The process for gaining Danish citizenship has been formally frozen since March this year.
An expert group, due to finish its work by the end of 2026, is currently looking into the legalities of adding a screening process. Its findings will then be negotiated on in Folketinget, likely establishing a new naturalisation process. Only then, does it seem, will the freeze end.
This has meant that the 19,000 applications at various stages of the process have not been able to proceed or move forward.
This includes the 2,055 people who passed the application process and were included in bill L98 (in Denmark, all naturalisations are pooled and must pass a vote in parliament) who have seen the law dropped without any certainty regarding a reintroduction.
Now, an opinion poll conducted by polling company Epinion for DR has given an indication as to where Danes broadly stand on this issue.
Back to the beginning
To understand the freeze, we must start in 2024 when three applicants who had passed the process and were due to be voted on by Folketinget drew massive controversy for ‘undemocratic views’ they had shared on social media.
This led to the Naturalisation Committee calling them in for questioning in a historic first in Danish politics. This move had a significant majority behind it supported by all the parties in blue bloc as well as the Social Democrats (Socialdemokratiet).
This started a debate around the legalities of such a process and whether a more systemic screening process was possible. So, the then-government established an expert group to consider these questions.
The introduction of the freeze
Treatment of citizenships and the naturalisation process continued through 2025, though at a significantly slower rate than previous years.
At the start of 2026, bill L98 (the one that would naturalise 2,055 people) was introduced. However, as is standard practice, it was tossed when the general election was called for March.
The Ministry of Immigration and Integration then announced it would freeze the naturalisation process until a new government was in place and certainty had been established regarding potential changes to the system.
Therefore, L98 has not been reintroduced following the general election (which would otherwise be standard practice too).
And that’s where many applicants are now: waiting for the committee to finish its work, so Folketinget can debate what to do with the findings, so a new system can be introduced.
No doubt where Danes stand
In the opinion poll conducted by Epinion, it was found that 74% of Danes either ‘entirely agree’ or ‘mostly agree’ with introducing a new screening requirement in the citizenship process that would check for ‘undemocratic views’.
It is uncertain what introducing a new screening system would do for the people currently in the application process.
Both the Red-Green Alliance (Enhedslisten) and the Alternative (Alternativet) oppose introducing such an additional requirement.
Three of the four governing parties support taking action to find a solution for the 2,055 people on L98 before the committee is done with its work: the Green Left (Socialistisk Folkeparti), the Moderates (Moderaterne), and the Social Liberals (Radikale Venstre).
However, this has been blocked by the Social Democrats, whose leader and Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen reportedly rolled her eyes at a colleague suggesting a reintroduction of L98.