[11] Naturalization can be granted to persons of the age of majority who have resided in the territory for a sufficient period of time to confirm they understand the customs and traditions of the society.

[6] To confirm an attachment to the nation, applicants must show that they have an understanding of Kirundi and either own property in the territory, or are engaged in a profession.

The general residency requirement is ten years, but exceptions can be made for individuals who have performed exemplary services to the nation.

Besides foreigners meeting the criteria,[6] other persons who may be naturalized include: Nationality conferred at birth may not be revoked in Burundi.

[22] Authority was secured through patronage,[23] in which the king had power and influence over his subjects by offering them protection in exchange for loyalty and allegiance.

Of feudal roots, the system was designed to maintain an inexpensive, pliable labor pool, which could be used to maximize production and limit costs, allowing a small elite class to monopolize wealth and power.

[27][28] Peters acquired twelve treaties with the sultans, which in exchange for protection against forces which might be a threat to their domain, granted him and his company the right to colonize, establish trade, and govern their territories.

[29][30] Returning to Germany and presenting these to Bismark, in 1885 an imperial charter was issued to Peters to establish the Society for German Colonization.

[26][31] In 1888, Peters secured an agreement with the Sultan of Zanzibar granting port concessions to German traders, which led to widespread revolt.

[32] In 1889, Germany began a military occupation of Burundi[33][34] and in 1890, Peters turned over control of his colonization company to the German empire.

[31][37] Urundi formally became a protectorate in 1903 when the Treaty of Kiganda was signed by Mwezi IV of Burundi and Friedrich Robert von Beringe.

Three years after the Treaty of Versailles was signed in 1919, Ruanda-Urundi became a League of Nations mandated territory, under the authority of Belgium.

[47] The colonial administration transplanted tens of thousands of the inhabitants of Ruanda-Urundi to the North Kivu area of Belgian Congo to work on agricultural plantations and as miners.

[48] At the end of World War II the United Nations modified the mandates and established Trust Territories.

[54] Though the monarchy was changed by the decree, the mwami retained the power to issue laws to provide for governance and policing without democratic input from his subjects, however, he was bound to consult with the newly established native councils.

[55] When Congo gained independence in 1960, there was confusion regarding the status of the imported laborers from Ruanda-Urundi, which would remain an issue of conflict.

[69] Intervention by neighboring states, including Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda, resulted in the Arusha Peace and Reconciliation Agreements being signed on 28 August 2000.

[13] According to professor and jurist Gerard Niyungeko, political unrest in the country meant that for 30 of the first 40 years of Burundi's independence, they were without a constitution.