Most people assume that becoming a citizen of a new country is a private matter between them and the government. In several countries it is not. Japan, South Korea, France, Belgium and Denmark, among others, record new citizens by name in official gazettes or in laws passed by parliament, and those records are public.
Publication usually has a legal reason rather than a political one. In some systems the gazette notice is what makes the naturalization take effect; in others, parliament itself grants citizenship by passing a law that lists the people concerned. A few countries also publish the names of people who give up citizenship, most notably the United States.
For people who value privacy, who hold several passports or who come from a country that restricts dual citizenship, it helps to know in advance whether a naturalization will appear in a public record. This guide covers the main examples as of October 2026.
Key takeaways
- Japan's Nationality Act requires a notice in the Official Gazette for every naturalization, and the naturalization takes effect on the date of that notice.
- South Korea must publish both acquisitions and losses of Korean nationality in its Official Gazette.
- France, Belgium and Denmark publish naturalizations through official decrees, official journals or acts of parliament.
- The United States does not publish new citizens' names, but federal law requires a quarterly list of people who lose US citizenship.
- Most investor citizenship programs do not publish the names of approved applicants.
Why some governments publish naturalizations
There are three common reasons a country puts new citizens' names in the public record.
- Legal effect. In some legal systems, an administrative act takes effect only when it is officially published. Japan is the clearest case.
- Citizenship by legislation. Where parliament grants citizenship directly, the law that does so names the individuals, just as any other law is published.
- Transparency. Publication lets the public see who has been admitted, which can matter for accountability, particularly where citizenship is granted at the government's discretion.
None of these reasons involve a judgment about the new citizen. Publication is usually routine, and it applies to everyone who naturalizes through the relevant route.
Countries that publish the names of new citizens
| Country | Where names appear | What triggers publication |
|---|---|---|
| Japan | Official Gazette (Kanpo) | Every naturalization; takes effect on the date of the notice |
| South Korea | Official Gazette | Every acquisition and loss of Korean nationality |
| France | Journal officiel | Naturalization decrees |
| Belgium | Belgian Official Journal (Moniteur belge) | Acquisitions of nationality, published periodically |
| Denmark | Acts of parliament | Naturalization is granted by a law that names each person |
| Iceland | Acts of parliament | Direct grants of citizenship by the Althing |
Japan
Article 10 of Japan's Nationality Act says that when the Minister of Justice grants naturalization, the minister must give public notice in the Official Gazette, and the naturalization takes effect from the date of that notice. In practice, the notices list each person who has been naturalized. This makes Japan one of the few countries where publication is part of the legal mechanism itself, not an afterthought.
Japan does not generally allow adult dual nationality, so new Japanese citizens are usually expected to give up their previous nationality. The gazette notice is therefore a public record of a change that many applicants' original countries will also need to know about.
South Korea
Article 17 of South Korea's Nationality Act requires the Minister of Justice to publish in the Official Gazette whenever Korean nationality is acquired or lost, with the details set by presidential decree. The rule covers both directions. A Korean who loses nationality by voluntarily acquiring a foreign one also appears in the gazette, alongside foreigners who naturalize.
France
French naturalization is granted by decree. According to the French government's service portal, the decree is published in the Journal officiel, and applicants are informed when they have been entered in a decree and when it was published. Minor children named in the decree become French at the same time.
Belgium
Most people now become Belgian through a declaration procedure rather than naturalization, which has become rare. The names of new Belgians are periodically published in the Belgian Official Journal, the Moniteur belge or Belgisch Staatsblad.
Denmark and Iceland
In Denmark, naturalization can only be granted by law under Article 44 of the constitution. The Folketing decides who is naturalized and passes a law naming those people, so each new citizen is listed in legislation.
Iceland's parliament, the Althing, can grant citizenship directly by statute to people who petition it, usually considering these petitions twice a year. Grants made this way are part of the legislative record.
Investor citizenship and disclosure
Investor citizenship is where publication is most debated. Supporters of disclosure argue that people who buy citizenship should be identifiable; programs often reply that applicant privacy is part of what they offer.
Malta is the best-known example of a disclosure rule. When it created its investor program in 2013, the rules said that the names of everyone who acquired citizenship under the program would be published. The program was later criticized by the European Commission, and in April 2025 the EU Court of Justice ruled that it breached EU law. Malta's parliament abolished the investment pathway in July 2025. Our article on the EU crackdown on golden passports covers that case in detail.
Most other investor programs, including the Caribbean ones, do not routinely publish the names of approved applicants. Their public reporting tends to focus on totals, such as applications received and approved. For a comparison of those programs, see our Caribbean citizenship by investment guide, and for how governments can take investor citizenship away, see citizenship by investment revocation risk.
Publishing the names of people who give up citizenship
Publication also works in reverse. Under section 6039G of the US Internal Revenue Code, the Treasury must publish in the Federal Register the name of each individual losing US citizenship, within 30 days after the end of each calendar quarter. The list is often called the quarterly expatriate list, and it is public.
The rule is tied to US tax law, which treats renunciation as a potential tax event for some people. Our guide to renouncing US citizenship explains the process, the fee and the expatriation tax in general terms.
South Korea, as noted above, also gazettes losses of nationality.
Countries that generally do not publish
The United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia do not publish lists of newly naturalized citizens. Naturalization records in these countries are treated as personal records, and new citizens usually receive their certificate in a ceremony without any public notice of their name.
The same is broadly true of most countries that rely on administrative naturalization rather than legislation or gazette notices. Where a country does not publish, information about a naturalization usually reaches other governments only through formal channels, such as passport applications, border records or the person's own declarations.
What publication means for new citizens
Publication rarely changes anyone's legal position, but it has practical consequences:
- Searchability. Official gazettes and laws are public, and many are online. A name in a naturalization notice may be findable for years.
- Dual citizenship rules elsewhere. If your original country restricts dual citizenship or requires you to report a new one, the duty exists whether or not your naturalization is published. Our guide to countries that require reporting a second citizenship covers those rules, and the list of countries that do not allow dual citizenship shows where a new passport can mean losing the old one.
- Personal security. People with a public profile, or who have left a country with a hostile government, sometimes consider publication when choosing between routes to a second citizenship.
Privacy in this area means lawful privacy. Meeting every reporting duty in each country of citizenship is the baseline, and publication only affects who else can see a decision that the relevant governments already know about.
Frequently asked questions
Does the United States publish the names of new citizens?
No. US naturalizations are not published. The United States does publish a quarterly list in the Federal Register of people who lose US citizenship, as required by section 6039G of the Internal Revenue Code.
Is Japanese naturalization published?
Yes. Japan's Nationality Act requires the Minister of Justice to give public notice of every naturalization in the Official Gazette, and the naturalization takes effect on the date of that notice.
Do citizenship by investment countries publish the names of investors?
Most do not publish names routinely. Malta's former investor program was an exception, as its 2013 rules required publication of the names of people naturalized under it. Malta abolished the investment pathway in July 2025.
Why does Denmark list new citizens in a law?
Denmark's constitution says naturalization can only be granted by law. The parliament therefore passes acts that name the people being naturalized, which makes each new citizen part of the published legislation.
Will my home country find out if I naturalize somewhere else?
That depends on the countries involved, but many people are legally required to tell their home country anyway. Publication in the new country is only one of many ways information travels, and in practice both governments usually learn of the change sooner or later.
Important: This article is general information, not tax, legal or financial advice. Rules change often and depend on your personal circumstances. Speak with a qualified professional in each relevant country before you act.