Bahamas Citizenship Requirements
Ordinary naturalisation in The Bahamas requires a substantial residence or government-service history, English and civic knowledge, character and future-home conditions, and normally renunciation. Commonwealth registration and constitutional citizenship routes must be assessed separately.
Discretionary adult naturalisation
Section 9 permits the Minister to naturalise a qualifying alien of at least 18 with legal capacity. Commonwealth citizens and British protected persons are instead addressed by registration provisions. Approval and the required oath, not residence alone, confer citizenship under this route.
Final twelve months plus six of the preceding nine years
The Schedule requires residence, government service or their combination throughout the final twelve months, plus six aggregate years during the preceding nine. In special circumstances the Minister may accept a final twelve-month period ending up to six months earlier. This is not a rule requiring ten full years of residence.
English, civic responsibilities, character and future home
The applicant needs good character, sufficient English and knowledge of a citizen's responsibilities. The Schedule also requires an intention to continue residence or government service and make The Bahamas the permanent home. It does not specify a CEFR level for the English requirement.
Prior citizenship normally must be renounced
Before naturalisation, section 9 requires renunciation of any other citizenship; where that country's law prevents renunciation, it instead requires the prescribed declaration concerning that citizenship. This ordinary route should not be advertised as unrestricted dual citizenship.
Form 6 and immigration-status evidence
The Immigration Department's checklist calls for the application in duplicate, identity and family documents, immigration-status evidence, a recent police certificate, photos and notarisation. It also calls for advertisements in both named newspapers. Confirm the current checklist, translations and charges; a residence permit is not itself citizenship approval.
The 2026 amendment is a different, limited provision
From 1 July 2026, new section 7A allows discretionary permanent residence on stated terms after refusal of a section 7 application and payment of the prescribed sum. It does not amend section 9's ordinary naturalisation requirements or automatically convert a refusal into citizenship.
Effective from
Scope and limitations
- The principal Act is a separately published revised-law text; the 2026 amendment has been read separately. Constitutional registration, family and minor-child routes have different conditions and are not reduced to this naturalisation baseline.
- Government service can count where the Schedule says so. No purchase-of-property entitlement, processing-time guarantee or general dual-nationality permission is inferred.
- The application PDF has a 2019 upload path. Its supporting-document checklist is used, but printed fees and legacy oath wording are not asserted as current.
Next review due . An official update can change these requirements sooner.
Official sources
- Bahamas Nationality Act, Ch. 190: published principal ActGovernment of The Bahamas / Laws of The Bahamas · Retrieved 2026-09-22 · EN
- Bahamas Nationality (Amendment) Act, No. 32 of 2026Government of The Bahamas / Official Gazette · Retrieved 2026-09-22 · EN
- Form 6: certificate of naturalization application and supporting documentsDepartment of Immigration of The Bahamas · Retrieved 2026-09-22 · EN