How to Get Danish Nationality: Tests, Vote, and Ceremony

To get Danish nationality if you were not born to a Danish parent, you generally need nine years of continuous residence in Denmark, a permanent residence permit, an advanced Danish language test, a citizenship knowledge test, a clean criminal record, financial self-sufficiency, and a final vote on your name by the Danish Parliament, followed by a constitution ceremony at your municipality. Shorter routes exist for Nordic citizens, former Danes, and children of a Danish parent.

Citizenship by Descent

If one of your parents is Danish, you may already be a citizen and the naturalization process does not apply to you. Denmark follows jus sanguinis. For children born on or after July 1, 2014, having a Danish mother, father, or co-mother is enough to acquire citizenship automatically at birth, regardless of where the birth takes place or whether the parents are married. For children born on or after January 1, 2025, a Danish co-father also passes citizenship to the child.¹

Children born before July 1, 2014 fall under whichever version of the Danish Nationality Act was in force on their date of birth, and earlier rules were more restrictive. People born to a Danish mother between 1961 and 1978 who missed out under those older rules may qualify through a special provision sometimes called the Princess Rule.²

Citizenship by Declaration

Declaration is a simpler path that skips the parliamentary vote. It is open to specific groups.

Nordic citizens from Sweden, Norway, Finland, or Iceland can acquire Danish citizenship by declaration if they are at least 18, have lived in Denmark for the past seven years without interruption, and have not been sentenced to any form of custody during that period. The declaration fee is 1,150 DKK (2026).³ Nordic citizens who do not meet the seven-year threshold still benefit from a much shorter naturalization period of just two years of continuous residence.¹

Former Danish citizens who lost their nationality by acquiring a foreign citizenship before September 1, 2015 can reacquire it through declaration. That window is open only until June 30, 2026.²

Residence and Permanent Residence Permit

For everyone else, naturalization is the route. The general rule is nine years of continuous residence in Denmark. Recognized refugees, people in refugee-equivalent situations, and stateless persons may apply after eight years.⁴

You also need a permanent residence permit, held for at least two years by the time the naturalization bill passes through Parliament. For refugees and stateless persons, the minimum is one year.⁴ Because a permanent residence permit itself typically requires eight years of residence, the two clocks run largely in parallel. You must also be physically residing in Denmark on the day the bill passes, so long trips during the application period are risky.

Criminal Record and Financial Self-Sufficiency

Even a traffic fine of 3,000 DKK or more triggers a waiting period of four and a half years from the date of the offense, and multiple penalties stack rather than run concurrently.⁴ Suspended or unconditional imprisonment can result in exclusion from citizenship entirely. Exemptions through the Parliamentary Committee on Naturalisation exist in theory but are rarely granted. Even a conviction that has been deleted from your criminal record must still be disclosed on your application.

Financial self-sufficiency has two parts. You cannot have received any social assistance under the Active Social Policy Act or the Integration Act during the two years immediately before the bill passes. Over the full five-year lookback, you cannot have received more than four months of such assistance in total.⁴ Outstanding debts to public authorities also block an application, including unpaid taxes, fines, overpaid social benefits, and repayable benefits under the social policy or integration laws.

Language Test and Citizenship Test

Applicants must pass the Danish Language Test 3 (Danskprøve 3), which covers reading, writing, listening, and speaking at an advanced intermediate level. Several groups are exempt, including residents of Greenland and the Faroe Islands, native Swedish or Norwegian speakers, members of the Danish minority in Southern Schleswig, and those applying under the Princess Rule while living abroad.⁴

Applicants with a long-term physical, mental, or intellectual disability that prevents them from passing can apply for an exemption through the Parliamentary Committee on Naturalisation, but it is not automatic. You need to show that you participated in a Danish training program and actually sat the test, including with special aids where relevant. A medical diagnosis alone is not sufficient.⁴

The Citizenship Test (indfødsretsprøven) is a separate exam covering Danish history, culture, society, politics, and geography. It consists of 45 multiple-choice questions in 45 minutes. You must answer at least 36 correctly to pass. Within that total, at least 4 of the 5 questions on Danish values must be correct, and failing the values section fails the entire exam regardless of your overall score. Of the 45 questions, 35 are drawn from official study material, 5 cover current events from the past six months, and 5 test Danish values. Special testing conditions are available for applicants with disabilities, with supporting medical documentation.

Applying and the Parliamentary Vote

The application is submitted digitally through the Ministry of Immigration and Integration’s website. You log in with MitID and your CPR number. The application requires precise records of every entry into and exit from Denmark to document continuous residency, along with uploaded certificates for the language test, citizenship test, employment records, and educational history. A non-refundable application fee is due at submission.

What makes Denmark’s process unusual is that citizenship is granted by statute. The Ministry does not simply approve your application. After verifying that you meet every requirement, it places your name on a naturalization bill (lovforslag om indfødsrets meddelelse) that goes before the Folketinget. These bills are submitted twice a year, in April and October, and Parliament typically takes two to three months to consider each one through its three required readings.⁵ The total timeline from application to the final vote often exceeds a year. Status updates arrive through your digital post box (e-Boks).

Once the bill passes its final reading and receives royal assent, your name is listed in the law. You are still not yet a citizen.

The Constitution Ceremony

After the bill passes, you must participate in a constitution ceremony at your local municipality within two years. Citizenship is not valid until you complete this step. At the ceremony, you sign a declaration that you will comply with the Danish Constitution and respect fundamental Danish values and legal principles, and you must shake hands with the mayor or a city alderman.⁴

The handshake requirement has been contested by applicants who decline physical contact for religious reasons. Danish courts have upheld the requirement, treating refusal based on the gender of the official as incompatible with Danish equality norms. Exemptions from the ceremony itself apply to narrower categories: applicants living in Greenland or the Faroe Islands, children under 18, stateless persons born in Denmark under certain conventions, and individuals physically unable to attend due to illness. In that last case, the Parliamentary Committee on Naturalisation decides whether to grant the exemption.⁴

Within ten working days of the ceremony, you also submit a sworn declaration to the Ministry disclosing any criminal activity committed in Denmark or abroad. Your CPR register is then updated, and you can apply for a Danish passport at your local citizen service center.

Dual Citizenship

Denmark has recognized dual citizenship since September 1, 2015. You do not need to give up your existing nationality to become Danish, and Danish citizens who acquire a foreign nationality do not lose their Danish citizenship as a result.⁶ Denmark’s rules only control the Danish side. If your current country of citizenship does not permit dual nationality, you may still be forced to choose, since some countries automatically revoke citizenship when a person naturalizes elsewhere.

1
Nordic cooperation. Danish Citizenship
2
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark. Danish Citizenship
3
Life in Denmark. Nordic Citizens and Danish Citizenship
4
Life in Denmark. Conditions for Foreign Citizens Acquisition of Danish Citizenship
5
Life in Denmark. Guidance on How to Apply for Danish Citizenship
6
Udlændinge- og Integrationsministeriet. In English