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How to Get Democratic Republic of the Congo Citizenship

The nationality law of the Democratic Republic of the Congo has no ordinary residence-based route to citizenship. Below: the 9 legal routes, what each requires, and what has changed since 2024.

Key facts

Based on GLOBALCIT data, not yet verified by our team
Residence for naturalisation
No residence route
Language
No route
Dual citizenship
Not accepted
Civic test
Not applicable: no residence-based route
Criminal record
Not applicable: no residence-based route
Income condition
Not applicable: no residence-based route
Dual citizenship in detail
Not acceptedCitizens who naturalise abroad lose their citizenship automatically.
Available routes
Marriage or civil partnershipDescent (citizen parent)Birth in the countryChild of a new citizenAdoptionOther family members of citizensFormer citizens (reacquisition)Stateless personsSpecial achievements
Region
Africa
Law in force as of
1 January 2024
Last checked
Not yet checked by our team

The rule text in the sections below was coded for the law on 1 January 2024. A November 2026 search found no later change for this country, but this has not been verified.

9 routes in the law of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Marriage or civil partnership

Discretionary

This route covers people married to a citizen of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, subject to the conditions below. Authorities retain discretion and may refuse an application even when the conditions are met.

Person has been the spouse of a citizen for at least 7 years. Citizenship is granted by decree. Other conditions: renounce other citizenship, speak one of the Congolese languages, be of good character, reside permanently in DCR for at least seven years, not having committed acts that are incompatible with Congolese citizenship or against the interests of DRC, not being convicted for certain serious crimes.

DiscretionaryAn application is required. The authority may refuse it even if the conditions are met.Nationality law: Art. 19

Descent (citizen parent)

Automatic

Descent from a citizen parent is the basis of this route in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The law of the Democratic Republic of the Congo confers citizenship automatically, independent of any administrative decision.

Descent (born in country)

Person is born in DRC to a citizen.

AutomaticCitizenship follows from the law. No decision by an authority is needed.Legal basis: Constitution Art. 10, Nationality law Art. 7

Descent (born abroad)

Person is born abroad to a citizen.

AutomaticCitizenship follows from the law. No decision by an authority is needed.Legal basis: Constitution Art. 10, Nationality law Art. 7

Birth in the country

Discretionary

For people born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the rules below show when birth there leads to citizenship. Authorities retain discretion and may refuse an application even when the conditions are met.

Person is born in DRC of foreign parents, is at least 18 years old, resides permanently in DRC and manifests the will to obtain DRC citizenship in a written manner. Other conditions: renounce other citizenship, speak one of the Congolese languages, be of good character, reside permanently in DCR for at least seven years, not having committed acts that are incompatible with Congolese citizenship or against the interests of DRC, not being convicted for certain serious crimes.

DiscretionaryAuthorities decide whether to grant citizenship and may refuse even if the conditions are met.Nationality law: Art. 21

Child of a new citizen

AutomaticDiscretionary

For children whose parent becomes a citizen of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the rules below set out what applies.

Person is a minor child and parent acquires citizenship by option.

AutomaticCitizenship follows from the law. No decision by an authority is needed.Nationality law: Art. 14

Person is a minor child who has been adopted by a parent who voluntarily acquires citizenship.

DiscretionaryAn application is required. The authority may refuse it even if the conditions are met.Nationality law: Art. 13(3)

Person is a minor child whose parent acquires citizenship by marriage.

DiscretionaryAn application is required. The authority may refuse it even if the conditions are met.Nationality law: Art. 19

Person is a minor child whose parent voluntarily acquires citizenship.

AutomaticCitizenship follows from the law. No decision by an authority is needed.Nationality law: Art. 25

Person is a minor child whose parent reacquires citizenship.

AutomaticCitizenship follows from the law. No decision by an authority is needed.Nationality law: Art. 30

Adoption

AutomaticDiscretionary

Adoption by a citizen of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is the basis of this route.

Person is a minor who is adopted by a citizen.

AutomaticCitizenship follows from the law. No decision by an authority is needed.Nationality law: Art. 17(1)(2)(3)

Person has reached the age of majority and has been adopted by a citizen. Person must have resided in DRC for at least five years, speak a national language, and renounce foreign citizenship.

DiscretionaryAn application is required. The authority may refuse it even if the conditions are met.Nationality law: Art. 13(2)

Other family members of citizens

Discretionary

For certain relatives of citizens, former citizens or new citizens of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the rules below set out what applies. Authorities retain discretion and may refuse an application even when the conditions are met.

Person is the child of a former citizen.

DiscretionaryAn application is required. The authority may refuse it even if the conditions are met.Nationality law: Art. 13(1)

Former citizens (reacquisition)

Discretionary

For former citizens of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the rules below show when citizenship can be reacquired. Authorities retain discretion and may refuse an application even when the conditions are met.

Person proves that he/she has possessed DRC citizenship.

DiscretionaryAuthorities decide whether to grant citizenship and may refuse even if the conditions are met.Nationality law: Art. 30-33

Stateless persons

Automatic

This route covers stateless people and children who would otherwise be stateless, subject to the conditions below. The law of the Democratic Republic of the Congo confers citizenship automatically, independent of any administrative decision.

Foundlings

Person is a newborn child and his/her parents are unknown, unless his/her filiation is established during minority and he/she acquires citizenship of the parent according to the law of that country.

AutomaticCitizenship follows from the law. No decision by an authority is needed.Nationality law: Art. 8

Otherwise stateless (born in country)

Person is born in DRC to parents of unknown citizenship or without citizenship.

AutomaticCitizenship follows from the law. No decision by an authority is needed.Nationality law: Art. 8, 9

Special achievements

Discretionary

Special achievements, or a national interest in granting citizenship, are the basis of this route in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Authorities retain discretion and may refuse an application even when the conditions are met.

Person has delivered distinguished services to DRC or DRC has as significant interest in naturalisation.

DiscretionaryAuthorities decide whether to grant citizenship and may refuse even if the conditions are met.Nationality law: Art. 11, 12

Not available in the Democratic Republic of the Congo: Naturalisation (residence), Citizens of specific countries, Ethnic or cultural affinity, Residence during childhood, Very long residence, Refugees, Public or military service, Investment. This follows the GLOBALCIT coding, with in-force changes applied.

Dual citizenship

Dual citizenship is coded as not accepted in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, for new citizens and for citizens who naturalise abroad.

New citizens
Not applicable: no residence-based route
Citizens who naturalise abroad
Citizens who naturalise abroad lose their citizenship automatically

Person acquires another citizenship.

Compare with neighbours

Check where Democratic Republic of the Congo sits in the full residence ranking

Countries in Middle Africa with the closest residence requirement
CountryResidenceLanguageDual citizenship
Angola10 yearsTest or certificateAccepted
Cameroon5 yearsNoneNew citizens only
Central African Republic5 yearsNoneNew citizens only
Chad15 yearsNoneAccepted
Equatorial Guinea40 yearsRequired, no testNot accepted
Gabon5 yearsNoneAccepted

Official sources

Official government page: not yet linked.

Cite this page

APA citation
TravelDecl. (n.d.). How to Get Democratic Republic of the Congo Citizenship. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://traveldecl.com/citizenship/democratic-republic-of-the-congo/
HTML link
<a href="https://traveldecl.com/citizenship/democratic-republic-of-the-congo/">How to Get Democratic Republic of the Congo Citizenship</a> (TravelDecl, retrieved 5 November 2026)

Sources and licence

Vink, van der Baaren, Bauböck, Džankić, Honohan, Manby (2025). GLOBALCIT Citizenship Law Dataset v3.1. Global Citizenship Observatory, https://hdl.handle.net/1814/73190. CC BY 4.0. Modified by TravelDecl.

Modified by TravelDecl: updated with changes after 1 January 2024.

GLOBALCIT codes the law as written. Fees, processing times, quotas and how officials apply the rules in practice are not in this dataset: check them with the official authority.

FAQ

How many years to become a Congolese citizen?

There is no ordinary naturalisation route in the law of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, so residence alone does not lead to citizenship.

Does the Democratic Republic of the Congo allow dual citizenship?

No. The Democratic Republic of the Congo does not accept dual citizenship as a general rule, as coded in the data.

Do I need a language test for Congolese citizenship?

The Democratic Republic of the Congo does not offer a path to citizenship through residence.

Is there a civic knowledge test for Congolese citizenship?

The Democratic Republic of the Congo does not offer a residence-based path to naturalisation.

Do I have to give up my current citizenship to get Congolese citizenship?

Since no residence-based naturalisation route exists, this question does not apply to Congolese citizenship.

Can I get Democratic Republic of the Congo citizenship by marriage?

Yes. Marriage to a citizen is a route to citizenship in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Procedure: discretionary.

Can I get Democratic Republic of the Congo citizenship by descent?

Yes, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has a descent route. Procedure: automatic.

Can I get Democratic Republic of the Congo citizenship by investment?

No. The data codes no citizenship-by-investment route for the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

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Also see: Democratic Republic of the Congo passport, visa-free access and entry rules. Latest law changes.

Sarah Kim

Corrections to this page are handled by Sarah Kim, Fact-Checker.

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