Compulsory naturalisation ceremony as of 1 January 2006
As of 1 January 2006, all Dutch municipalities are obliged to hold at least one naturalisation ceremony per year, namely on 24 August, designated as ‘National Naturalisation Day’. If local authorities so wish, they may also organise these special occasions on other days of the year. This is a direct result of amended regulations governing obtaining or losing Dutch nationality that recently came into effect.
The ceremony is to mark the completion of the citizenship procedure and will lend style to the special ties between the Kingdom of the Netherlandsand the newly naturalised citizens. It is a confirmation of the fact that the new Dutch nationals will take on all rights and obligations associated with Dutch citizenship.
The content and form of the ceremony are the responsibility of the organisers of the ceremony, i.e. the local authorities. The Municipalities Fund will be increased by EUR 1.5 million for this purpose. Local authorities may experiment with the ceremony’s content and form as they see fit and may also cooperate with other local authorities in this respect. The ceremony must, however, have some grandeur and pay attention to rights and obligations as well as to the political history of the Netherlands. Integration and Immigration Minister Rita Verdonk intends to distribute booklets to local municipalities that describe the Dutch form of government and the rights and obligations for Dutch citizens.
People wanting to become Dutch citizens are expected to attend these ceremonies as of 1 October 2006, the day the required ministerial order on obtaining or losing Dutch nationality comes into effect.
Source: Ministry of Justice, 30 December 2005
