Nationality & Citizenship Bureau (Makko Oko)

Nationality & Citizenship Bureau

Agency overview
Formed	July 2019 (2019-07)
Jurisdiction	Makko Oko
Agency executive	Eugene Driscoll, Director
Parent agency	Ministry of Internal Security
Website	citizenship.gov.mk

The Nationality & Citizenship Bureau, also referred to as the NCB, is a citizenship and immigration agency in the Empire Of Makko Oko. Its mission is to enforce immigration law and to regulate and manage the visas and citizenship programs of the Empire. The agency is under the Ministry Of Internal Security and was founded in July of 2019 after the end of the Civil Transition War to replace the former Naturalization Services Agency of the Republic.

History

The Nationality & Citizenship Bureau was formed to purge of the old staff of the Naturalization Services Agency, and Emperor Conall Solis led the transformation of immigration reform, modifying the system drastically from one of great opportunity and monthly lotteries to one of great restriction. One of the greatest controversies was the Mass Deportation of 2020, where over 6 million legal immigrants became illegal due to the reform and a mass revocation of visas, leading to all of them being deported unexpectedly.

Involvement In Mass Deportation

The Mass Deportation of 2020 event was one of the biggest controversies in immigration. The NCB became very heavily swamped within the days leading up to the arrests, which were conducted by soldiers of the Homeland Border Protectorate (HBP) agency in raids. Within a 1-week period, the NCB received over 4 million applications to "review immigration case" and over 1.5 million requesting permanent residency. Out of the total 5.5 million, only 2.7 million were assigned a case agent and put "under review" while processing their applications, and only 687,500 actually had their applications approved, the rest ended up deported.

At the time, NCB Director Eugene Driscoll said of the crisis, "The agency is doing everything it can with the resources given, to process these applications as speedily as possible". Legal analysts claimed that the lack of foundational law on immigration allowed the government and the NCB to not only abuse, but to also run things as they sought fit. It's reported that only 10 people got to be heard in a court of law prior to deportation.

Duties & Functions

The NCB processes immigrant visa petitions, naturalization applications, applications for permanent residency, applications for work permits and refugee applications. It also makes adjudicative decisions performed at NCB field offices, and manages all other immigration benefits functions. The NCB's other responsibilities include:

• Administration of immigration services and benefits
• Issuing employment authorization documents (EAD)

The NCB used to also handle asylum applications but now only handles status updates in regards to a decision made on the application. Asylum applications were taken over by the newly formed Asylum Claims Review Board under the Ministry Of Diplomatic Affairs soon after a revision was made to the Nationality & Travel Act.

Citizenship Paths & Requirements

Becoming a citizen in Makko Oko is quite a strict endeavor, but it used to be stricter. Until May 18th, 2022, it was codified within the Basic Rights that all foreigners had to serve in the conscription before citizenship could even be considered, and when that date came, the conscription was abolished for all, including citizens. There's multiple paths and ways to get citizenship, you can see these below:

Visitors & Other Foreigners

This category is for any foreigner that either is a visitor wishing to become a citizen, or for if they don't fit under any other category. The requirements to obtain citizenship under this category are:

- Must take the allegiance test and pass it with a 100

- Must take the citizenship test and pass it with a 70 or above

- Have lived in Makko Oko for at least 2 years

- Have held permanent residency for at least 6 months

- Must take the English or Makuri language tests and pass it with a 100

- Must take an Oath of Allegiance to the state and to Christianity

Former Military

This category is for any foreigner that is a former military soldier in the Makkonian military. The requirements to obtain citizenship under this category are:

- Must have served at least 5 years generally or 1 year during wartime

- Must have been discharged honorably. General, medical and dishonorable are not accepted.

- Must take the allegiance test and pass it with a 100

- Must take the citizenship test and pass it with a 70 or above

- Must take the English or Makuri language tests and pass it with a 90 or above (May be exempted if Ministry of Defense attests to language skills)

- Must not have a criminal record in Makko Oko

- Must take an Oath of Allegiance to the state and to Christianity

Asylum Applicants

This category is for any asylee that is present in the nation and has a valid Asylee Registration Number (ARN). The requirements to obtain citizenship under this category are:

- Must be an asylee with a valid ARN

- Must have been granted the right to apply for citizenship by the ACRB

- Must take the allegiance test and pass it with a 100

- Must take the citizenship test and pass it with a minimum score of 65

- Must take the English or Makuri language tests and pass it with a 70 or above

- Must not have a criminal record in Makko Oko

- Must take an Oath of Allegiance to the state and to Christianity

Asylees could be exempted from having to take a language test if they can demonstrably show their proficiency in other ways, or if they are elderly.

Permanent Residency Requirements

One of the requirements to becoming a citizen in Makko Oko is becoming a permanent resident. In order to become a permanent resident, you need to meet the following:

- Must have a currently valid visa

- Must not have been charged with any crimes that are applicable to Makko Oko

- Must be able to or are currently holding a job within the nation

- Must not leave the nation for longer than 7 days

- Must have resided in Makko Oko for at least a year prior to applying

Non-Citizens Married To Citizens & Non-Citizens With Citizen Family

This category is for any foreigner that is either married to a citizen, or has family in the nation that has citizenship*. The requirements to obtain permanent residency under this category are:

- Must have a currently valid visa

- Must not have been charged with any crimes that are applicable to Makko Oko

- Must have obtained the marriage license within Makko Oko, if claiming residency by marriage

- Must not leave the nation for longer than 1 month

- Must have resided in Makko Oko for at least 2 months prior to applying

- Must be able to have family/spouse attest to their relation to you, and be able to verify their citizenship status

*Subject to meeting special designated status and/or possessing an SN visa