The detrimental effects of low naturalization rates among eligible immigrants in the United States

02/05/2023

Photo by Metin Ozer on Unsplash

In the fiscal year of 2021, the United States saw the naturalization of more than 813,000 people. The country has about 44 million immigrants; 13.5% were born outside the country.

These numbers suggest a low naturalization rate despite the large number of immigrants in the U.S.

Suppose you’re an immigrant eligible to become a naturalized U.S. citizen. What are the cons of not applying for citizenship despite your eligibility?

What are the possible reasons some eligible immigrants prefer not to naturalize?

This article discusses the adverse effects of low naturalization among immigrants eligible for U.S. citizenship and identifies the reasons immigrants choose not to naturalize despite their eligibility.

Learning the detrimental effects of low naturalization can help eligible immigrants make more informed decisions about whether or not to become naturalized citizens.

The negative impact of low naturalization among eligible U.S. immigrants

The U.S. has welcomed immigrants from around the world for a very long time. The country has granted citizenship to eligible ones, often numbering hundreds of thousands. Despite these statistics, some eligible immigrants would refuse to become U.S. citizens.

Having the option to naturalize allows immigrants to become full-fledged members of the host country with all the rights, opportunities, and responsibilities. Without citizenship, they don’t have legal protection.

For instance, if you’re an undocumented immigrant arrested for DUI (driving under the influence), you can be subjected to immigration proceedings and possible deportation. In contrast, being in the U.S. legally should not result in deportation after a single DUI conviction.

DUI is one of the most dangerous road safety issues in the U.S., and Michael&Associates statistics show that it contributes to 11,000 deaths yearly.

According to Pew Research, immigrants accounted for 13.7% of the U.S. population in 2018. Despite this number and the privileges and benefits citizenship provides, 90% of those eligible for naturalization do not apply for one.

Because eligible immigrants who don’t apply for citizenship don’t get to enjoy those benefits and privileges, they may have limited or no access to specific rights like:

Employment
Education
Healthcare
Birth, marriage, or death registration
Property rights

Another significant right that immigrants don’t have, even when they’re eligible for citizenship, is the right to vote. Only U.S. citizens can vote in the federal elections and run as candidates in most local, state, and federal elections.

Other restrictions immigrants with no citizenship can face include the following:

Travel restrictions
Social exclusion
Increased vulnerability to physical and sexual violence
Exploitation
Human trafficking
Forcible displacement

If you’re a U.S. citizen, you can petition for your family overseas to obtain Green Cards necessary for them to immigrate to the country legally. This privilege may not be available to you if you’re not a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident.

Deportation is another potential risk if you don’t apply for U.S. citizenship. If you get arrested for theft, fraud, dishonesty, or intent to harm others, such offenses can be grounds for deportation.

On the other hand, U.S. citizens, whether naturalized or born in the country, cannot be deported.

On the economic side, if you don’t apply for naturalization despite your eligibility, you can miss out on several economic benefits, which include:

An increase in individual annual earnings by an average of 8.9% or $3,200
An increase in employment rate by 2.2 percentage points
An increase in homeownership by 6.3 percentage points

One study involving naturalization-eligible immigrants in 21 U.S. cities showed that these employment gains and increased earnings from naturalization translated into $5.7 billion.

Additionally, naturalization could have increased tax revenues by $2.03 billion if those eligible immigrants in the 21 cities became citizens.

Putting these pieces of information in another way, not becoming a naturalized citizen can cost billions in unrealized earnings and uncollected taxes. Thus, refusing to naturalize can bring an economic loss to the immigrant and the country.

Why some eligible immigrants choose not to naturalize

Generally, most naturalization-eligible immigrants apply to become citizens. But language barriers and lack of interest are some reasons immigrants refrain from naturalizing.

One survey involving Mexican immigrants cited several reasons these lawful permanent residents don’t apply for U.S. citizenship. The survey also showed the percentage of respondents who gave similar categorized responses:

Language and personal barriers: 35%
Not interested or have not tried to apply: 31%
Financial and administrative barriers: 13%

The survey also indicated that Mexicans were the top immigrant population in the U.S. but had the lowest naturalization rate.

In addition, lawful Mexican permanent residents who haven’t naturalized also mentioned the following reasons:

Needed to learn English: 27%
Did not have the time: 18%
Concerned with application costs: 8%

Based on these findings, it may be best to consider organizing programs promoting naturalization for eligible immigrants. Such programs can be a powerful mechanism for cities, states, and the federal government to harness the immigrants’ full economic contribution and promote local economic development.