26,000 new Luxembourgers created since 2009

(JB) Almost 26,000 people have acquired Luxembourg nationality since the double nationality reform came into effect, a report has revealed.

Out of the 25,820 new Luxembourgers created between 2009 and 2014, a third were born in the Grand Duchy and a fifth (20,136) were from people not resident in Luxembourg.

The latter was made possible under a clause in the 2008 reform which enabled people living abroad who have Luxembourgish heritage to recover their grandparents' nationality.

When the reform came into force, initial take-up was slow, but figures from STATEC show that recovery rates “exploded” from 1 percent of all new nationalities in 2009 up to 41.9 percent in 2013.

Belgians made up the largest proportion of non-residents who recovered dual Luxembourgish nationality, accounting for 4,031 of the new passport holders from 2009 to 2014.

Among Luxembourg residents who successfully acquired Luxembourgish nationality, the majority were Portuguese nationals accounting for over a quarter (7,026), followed by Belgians (5,436) and French (2,894). 

Click here to view the report (in French)

Do not miss the news - sign up to receive the wort.lu newsletter in English delivered to your inbox six days a week.