# St Kitts and Nevis: adult naturalisation Ordinary naturalisation is discretionary and distinct from Commonwealth registration or citizenship by investment. The posted statute requires a final residence year and separately refers to residence during the preceding fourteen years; its unusual wording is preserved rather than converted into a simple total. Scope: Adult alien naturalisation under section 6 and Second Schedule paragraph 1; Commonwealth registration, British-protected-person alternatives, descent, marriage and investment are not interchangeable baseline routes. Jurisdiction: Saint Christopher and Nevis. Sources reviewed 2026-09-22; review due 2026-12-21. General information, not legal advice or a finding of eligibility. Requirements depend on the route, applicant and filing date. Verify the official instructions before applying. ## Final year and preceding-period wording An alien applicant must reside throughout the immediately preceding twelve months. The additional limb says the applicant has resided locally during the fourteen years preceding that year, without specifying an aggregate in that limb. Administrative interpretation of that wording remains unresolved; it is not labelled a simple fourteen-year total. Evidence: conditional. [Saint Kitts and Nevis Law Commission: Citizenship Act, Chapter 1.05 — 31 December 2020](https://lawcommission.gov.kn/wp-content/documents/Revised-Acts-of-St-Kitts-and-Nevis/Revised-Acts-of-St-Kitts-and-Nevis-2020/Ch-01_05-Saint-Christopher-and-Nevis-Citizenship-Act.pdf). Source location: Second Schedule paragraph 1(a)–(b), printed page 15. ## Absences and excluded residence Absences under six months and approved education, health or prescribed absences can count. Unlawful residence and custody outside a mental hospital do not; temporary immigration permission counts only with ministerial consent. Special circumstances can shift the final twelve-month period back by up to six months. Evidence: conditional. [Saint Kitts and Nevis Law Commission: Citizenship Act, Chapter 1.05 — 31 December 2020](https://lawcommission.gov.kn/wp-content/documents/Revised-Acts-of-St-Kitts-and-Nevis/Revised-Acts-of-St-Kitts-and-Nevis-2020/Ch-01_05-Saint-Christopher-and-Nevis-Citizenship-Act.pdf). Source location: Section 2(7)–(8); Second Schedule paragraph 2. ## Adult capacity, character and future home The applicant must be at least eighteen, of full capacity, of good character in the Minister's opinion and intend to reside locally after naturalisation. Evidence: documented. [Saint Kitts and Nevis Law Commission: Citizenship Act, Chapter 1.05 — 31 December 2020](https://lawcommission.gov.kn/wp-content/documents/Revised-Acts-of-St-Kitts-and-Nevis/Revised-Acts-of-St-Kitts-and-Nevis-2020/Ch-01_05-Saint-Christopher-and-Nevis-Citizenship-Act.pdf). Source location: Sections 2(3), 6; Second Schedule paragraph 1(c)–(d). ## Discretion, certificate and oath Meeting the qualifications does not compel a grant: the Minister retains discretion. Naturalisation uses Form N1; the oath or affirmation is required, normally within one calendar year of the certificate unless extended. Evidence: conditional. [Saint Kitts and Nevis Law Commission: Citizenship Act, Chapter 1.05 — 31 December 2020](https://lawcommission.gov.kn/wp-content/documents/Revised-Acts-of-St-Kitts-and-Nevis/Revised-Acts-of-St-Kitts-and-Nevis-2020/Ch-01_05-Saint-Christopher-and-Nevis-Citizenship-Act.pdf). Source location: Section 6; Citizenship Regulations 4–6, printed page 17. ## Language evidence unresolved No named language level, accepted evidence or test exemption was established from the collected ordinary-route provisions. This is not an assertion that no language assessment exists. Evidence: not established. [Saint Kitts and Nevis Law Commission: Citizenship Act, Chapter 1.05 — 31 December 2020](https://lawcommission.gov.kn/wp-content/documents/Revised-Acts-of-St-Kitts-and-Nevis/Revised-Acts-of-St-Kitts-and-Nevis-2020/Ch-01_05-Saint-Christopher-and-Nevis-Citizenship-Act.pdf). Source location: Section 6 and Second Schedule. ## Dual-nationality protection is cohort-specific Constitution section 93 protects people entitled to registration under section 92 from refusal or compulsory renunciation solely because of another nationality. That express protection must not be extended to all ordinary naturalisation applicants; this collection does not settle their complete retention conditions. Evidence: conditional. [Government of Saint Kitts and Nevis: Constitution — registration and dual citizenship](https://www.gov.kn/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/constitution-of-st-kitts-and-nevis.pdf). Source location: Constitution sections 92–94, especially 93(1)–(2). ## Scope and limitations - The statutory source is the official 31 December 2020 revision. The separately read September 2026 descendant-registration bill is not treated as an operative ordinary-route amendment. - No single total residence number is asserted from the unusual Second Schedule wording. Commonwealth registration and British-protected-person rules differ. Language and ordinary-route foreign-nationality retention remain unresolved, not waived. ## Explore this passport - [Passport rank and travel access](https://multipassrank.com/passport/st-kitts-and-nevis) - [Tax residence & income](https://multipassrank.com/passport/st-kitts-and-nevis/taxes) - [Country-profile JSON, including sources and scoped requirements](https://multipassrank.com/api/v1/country-profiles/KN) - [Multiple-citizenship policy guide](https://multipassrank.com/dual-citizenship-countries) [Canonical page](https://multipassrank.com/passport/st-kitts-and-nevis/citizenship)