In 2019, around 706.400 people acquired citizenship of a European Union Member State in which they lived, compared to 672.300 in 2018 and 700.600 in 2017.
The information comes from data on acquisition and loss of citizenship published this week by Eurostat.
The majority of new citizenships were granted by Germany (132.000, 19% of the EU total), Italy (127.000, 18%), France (109.800, 16%), Spain (99.000, 14%) and Sweden (64.200, 9%).
Together, the five countries represent 75% of new citizenships granted in the EU in 2019.
Around 23.500 Brazilians have acquired European nationality – 73% opted for Italian or Portuguese citizenship, according to data released by the European Union's statistics office.
Moroccans, Albanians and British led requests
In 2019, Moroccans were the largest group among new EU citizens (66.800 people, of whom 84% acquired Spanish, Italian or French citizenship), ahead of Albanians (41.700, 62% acquired Italian citizenship), Britons (29.800, 75% acquired citizenship of Germany, Sweden or France), Syrians (29.100, 69% acquired citizenship of Sweden), Turks (28.600, 57% acquired German citizenship) and Romanians (26.600, 60% acquired citizenship of Italy or Germany).
Compared to 2018, Moroccans and Albanians continued to be the main recipients, while the British moved from seventh to third place. Brexit answers this question.
Romanians (26.600 people), Poles (12.600) and Italians (8.700) remained the three largest groups of EU citizens who acquired citizenship from another EU member state, as in 2018.
Nationalities that acquired the most European citizenship in 2019
| No. | NATIONALITY | CITIZENSHIPS |
| 1 | Moroccans | 66.800 |
| 2 | Albanians | 41.700 |
| 3 | British people | 29.800 |
| 4 | Syrians | 29.100 |
| 5 | Turks | 28.600 |
| 6 | Romanians | 26.600 |
| 7 | Brazilian | 23.500 |
