Denmark’s government will return its stalled citizenship bill to parliament in the first half of 2027, ending a freeze that has left 2,055 applicants and their children waiting. The bill, known as L98, was cancelled when an early general election was called at the end of February, and the decision follows growing political pressure over the delay.
Immigration minister Morten Bødskov told the Ritzau newswire that the bill had already been debated once in the Folketing with backing from the government parties, the Green Left Party, the Social Liberal Party, the Red Green Alliance and the Alternative. Before it is resubmitted, he said, every applicant will be reviewed again to confirm they still meet the requirements, which he described as the strictest Denmark has ever had.
The people on L98 will be exempt from the new screening the government is developing to filter out applicants with what it calls undemocratic attitudes, so they can no longer be refused over posts on social media. The re-check could still remove some names. Applicants who have taken on debt, changed the basis of their residence or been convicted of a crime risk being dropped, and children who turned 18 during the freeze are no longer covered. An immigration ministry spokesperson told The Local that a small number of stateless children might be added.
Future applicants will not get the same exemption. A committee is still designing the screening process, and its findings will shape a model that forms part of a new cross-party citizenship agreement involving the three government parties and at least one party from the right-wing opposition. Bødskov said applicants must share the fundamental values of democracy and human rights, and the screening will check whether they have expressed views that conflict with Danish values.
The Social Liberals and the Moderates welcomed the move, with Moderate spokesperson Mohammad Rana citing legal certainty for people who had been promised citizenship. Danish People’s Party leader Morten Messerschmidt accused the Social Democrats on X of “slaughtering immigration policy” by approving 2,055 people without screening. Steven Harrod, an associate professor at the Danish Technical University whose name is on the bill, told The Local the decision was “cheap”, noting it means no new citizens in 2026 and warning that further delays remain possible.
