The fight against "migratory disorder," Act III, Scene I. After issuing orders to tighten up how prefectures operate, and another limiting the possibilities for undocumented migrants to have their situations regularized, Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau has continued to display his hardline stance by addressing naturalizations. He issued new instructions in a directive dated May 2, disclosed on Monday, May 5. "I stand by tightening the criteria," said the minister, during a visit to the prefecture in the southeastern Paris suburb of Créteil, going so far as to claim that his new policy was a "break" from prior practices.

In 2024, nearly 67,000 people acquired French nationality through Interior Ministry procedures, meaning by decree or declaration (excluding acquisitions through birthright citizenship, which fall under the Justice Ministry's purview). Specifically, Retailleau's directive urges prefects to review naturalization requests by tightening their evaluation criteria on three subjects: assimilation, employment, and respect for the law.

Today, to submit a naturalization request, one must have primarily resided legally in France for at least five years, be professionally integrated, have a B1 level of French and never have been sentenced to more than six months in prison.

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