| Description |
The index addresses the economic requirements and the costs (fees) for naturalization. The index is composed by two sub-indexes index of economic requirements for naturalisation (ERN index) and index of naturalisation fees (fee index), which are combined by calculating the mean of the two indexes.
ERN Index. Economic resources as a requirement for naturalisation may take three principal forms: the requirement to participate in the formal economy, to have an income, or not to draw certain welfare benefts In order to measure
the relative strength of these requirements, six indicators on their legal format, thresholds, duration and exemptions are combined into an index ranging from 0 (no requirement) to 100 (most difficult requirement). These six indicators vary over time and across countries and can give a meaningful account of differences in economic requirements for naturalisation. Each indicator
measuring the strength of economic requirements has three coding options. The index score
for each observation (country_year) is measured by taking the mean of the six indicators.
Fee Index. Fees may constitute an economic obstacle for accessing citizenship. For the purpose of investigating costs in the naturalisation process over longer
periods and across countries, only general expenses in the naturalisation process, which are independent from an applicant’s individual condition, can be considered. These expenses are measured with five indicators, which are subsequently summarised to a weighted index, in which the total fees make up 70%, language skill certificates and exemptions/reductions for the second generation 10%, and exemptions/reductions for spouses and kin-citizens 5% of the index
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