Datanomics: Citizenship renunciations by Indians rose 57% in a decade

Indians renouncing citizenship nearly doubled between 2015 and 2022, with the US, Canada and Australia emerging as the top destinations for new citizenship

Actor Imran Khan moved the Bombay High Court against a directive by authorities asking him to leave India by October 28 for participating in a recent protest demanding removal of the chief election commissioner over alleged irregularities in the electoral rolls. Khan is a US citizen and an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cardholder. In recent years, many people from India have acquired US citizenship and subsequently renounced their Indian citizenship. The number of Indians renouncing their citizenship ROSE FROM 131,489 in 2015 to 225,620 in 2022, before slightly declining to 206,378 in 2024. Among the world's largest economies, India's citizenship renunciation rate remained in the range of 97-158 people per million population annually between 2015 and 2024. In comparison, the rate for the US ranged from 7 to 19 people per million, and for the UK, it was 6 to 12 people per million. Between 2019 and June 2023, the US, Canada, and Australia emerged as the top three destinations for Indians acquiring new citizenship.