simplified naturalisation
On 26 May 2010 the Hungarian Citizenship Act was amended, as a result of which the preferential naturalisation of Hungarians living beyond the border commenced on 1 January 2011. The law states that to obtain Hungarian citizenship one does not have to settle in Hungary (there is no need to have a registered permanent residence in Hungary) and no citizenship test is required to be taken either. Under the simplified naturalisation procedure Hungarian citizenship can be granted to anyone who used to be a Hungarian citizen or whose ancestor was a Hungarian citizen, and he/she speaks Hungarian. Applicants who previously held Hungarian citizenship but for some reason had lost it may use the legal institution of reacquisition of citizenship. The applicant must have a clean criminal record in the case of both naturalisation and reacquisition, no criminal proceedings may be pending against him/her before a Hungarian court at the time of the application, and his/her naturalisation must not represent a risk to public security and national security in Hungary. Since 2011 more than one million people have become Hungarian citizens through naturalisation or reacquisition.