Nigeria has been ranked fourth among the countries whose citizens were granted U.S. citizenship through military naturalization between 2020 and 2024, according to data released by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on December 9.
A total of 3,270 Nigerian-born service members were naturalized during this period, placing Nigeria behind the Philippines (5,630), Jamaica (5,420), and Mexico (3,670). The USCIS report reveals that individuals from the top five countries—Philippines, Jamaica, Mexico, Nigeria, and Ghana—accounted for over 38% of all military naturalizations from fiscal year 2020 to 2024.
The trend of Nigerian service members gaining U.S. citizenship has steadily increased in recent years. In 2020, 340 Nigerian service members were granted citizenship, a figure that rose to 630 in 2021, 680 in 2022, 690 in 2023, and 930 in 2024.
The U.S. Army led the naturalization process, with 60% of all military naturalizations occurring within the Army. Other branches, including the Navy (20.4%), Air Force (10.6%), and Marine Corps (6.6%), followed. The U.S. Coast Guard accounted for less than 1% of all military naturalizations.
The age demographic of naturalized service members indicates that nearly half were between 22 and 30 years old at the time of naturalization. The median age of naturalized service members from 2020 to 2024 was 27 years. Additionally, 17% of those naturalized were under 21, while nearly 5% were older than 40.
The data also highlighted the gender distribution among naturalized service members, with men comprising 73% of those who became U.S. citizens through military service, although the proportion of women has slightly increased over the years.
This data underscores the significant contribution of foreign-born service members to the U.S. military, with Nigerian-born individuals among the largest groups benefiting from military naturalization.
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