Indians have emerged as the second-largest group to obtain citizenship to the United States of America (USA) and green cards in 2023, according to data from the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), as reported by India Today.

USCIS statistics reveal that over 78,000 Indians acquired US citizenship during the fiscal year 2023, ranking only behind Mexicans in the number of citizenships by naturalisation, India Today reports.

"Among the top five countries of birth for people naturalising in FY 2024, Mexico was the lead country with 13.1 per cent of all naturalisations, followed by India (6.1 per cent), the Philippines (5.0 per cent), the Dominican Republic (4.9 per cent), and Vietnam (4.1 per cent)," stated the USCIS report.

Additionally, more than 65,000 Indians received legal permanent residency, commonly known as green cards.

The vast majority of naturalised citizens enter the United States as immediate relatives of US citizens or through family-sponsored preference categories, followed by employment-based preference categories, refugees and asylum seekers, and the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program.

As of 2023, India has the second-largest number of foreign-born US nationals, at 2.83 million, after only Mexico's 10.6 million. China is third, with 2.22 million foreign-born American citizens.