THE HAGUE, 05/09/03 - Since April, 588 immigrants have applied for the naturalization test. To date, 61 percent of participants have passed the exam, the justice ministry reported yesterday.

Last April, it became obligatory to pass the exam successfully to qualify for naturalization. After being resident in the Netherlands for five years, and providing they have a permanent residence permit, people can then become a Dutch citizen. Previously, five years' residence automatically qualified a person for naturalization via the local council.

The test, which ore offered by the Regional Training Centres (ROCs), consists of one part on linguistic skills and one part with multiple choice questions about the Netherlands, including the form of government and also everyday questions. No course is linked with the exams, contrary to integration courses. These are obligatory for immigrants who came to the Netherlands after 1997.