Advantages and Disadvantages of Dual Citizenship

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hm11

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What are the advantages and disadvantages of dual citizenship?Immigration gurus plz discuss?
 
Advantages:

You have more options as to where you want to live
Investment and Tax benefits in some cases
Family living abroad


Disadvantages:
Though US does not "recognize" dual cz, it lets it exist. You may be given a hard time by the INS (if you are unlucky :( ) if you
expose 2 passports @ port of entry
Some Govt Positions require you to renouce all foreign CZ

Just what I could think of...
 
What happens to the real estate you own in your country of birth (lets say India or Pak.) when you become US citizen?

-In dual citizenship, I am sure you will have no problem right?

- However if you keep only US citizenship, do you think you will have to face some problems in selling/buying that real estate?

Any comments?
 
If you have a PIO card it should not be a problem except for
agricultural land. I saw in India Abroad that buying agricultural
land after becoming US citizen is not allowed. But you can
keep the land you already had before becoming US citizen.

My understanding is that new Dual citizenship is essentially
the same as PIO card
 
My understanding is that new Dual citizenship is essentially
the same as PIO card..
With one possible exception that one has no restrictions on staying in India nor will one be required to register with Indian authorities for stays over 180 days. A PIO card is just like a glorified visa.
 
My understanding is that new Dual citizenship is essentially the same as PIO card:

YES, thats what I think.
I think one is better off with just one citizenship and that is "US" citizenship. This way you can avoid so many hurdles. Dual seems confusing to me.

What other immigration gurus think?
 
Originally posted by JoeF
Not at all. It is very straightforward.
In my case, I am going for dual citizenship. This gives me the best of both worlds. As a citizen of a EU country I can work and live freely in any EU country, i.e., in most of Europe. And as a US citizen, I will be able to work and live freely in the US.
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It is true to some extent only. You are not a full citizen of both the countries
(or unions). There has to be a primary allegiance to one country (as in the case of war between them). The second one is of course secondary. But again with the way the global economy is shaping, the citizenship is becoming secondary. Dual citizenship is mostly emotional in nature.
 
Originally posted by JoeF
Of course I am, with all the rights and responsibilities.
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I not sure about EU. But the India dual citizen ship does not allow
them to vote, run for public office, hold sensitive posts in govt. But
any self-respecting nation will not allow the persons who left that
country and living some where else just walk in do any thing. I am sure
there will be exceptions in smaller countries.
 
Indian Dual Citizenship

is not a citizenship.

The person would have ti specifically apply for it ( instead of retaining it on the basis of citizenship by birth r other means ) would be called an Overseas Citizen, and would not have any specific rights apart from those you already have thru PIO.

In other term just a VERY VERY long term visa.::D
 
It's unfair to expect a country that you leave, renouce your
CZ with, to give you the right to vote and be an elected representative (basically doing anything!)

Once you leave a country for another one and get Naturalized (immigration), you
have made your intent clear that you wish to have allegance to
your new country and not your old.

If countries let their "dual citizens" to vote and contest public
elections then one person could lead 2 nations.....!

It's still a great thing that a country that you leave for another one grants you some kind of CZ (be it a glorified visa or whatever). Hat's off of the Indian Govt for this......
 
Originally posted by Rahul Kumar


If countries let their "dual citizens" to vote and contest public
elections then one person could lead 2 nations.....!
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Depends on which country you are talking about. To be a President of US you have to be a born US citizen whereas in India naturalized citizen can hold Prime Ministers office (eg Sonia Gandhi can become a PM!)
 
If the country considers me a citizen,
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As Rahul mentioned earlier, "what country we are talking about" matters.
I think only less than a dozen countries matter in the present condition.
There are countries with populations in thousands and if you are from
US, you are welcome to be the president or what ever :-)
 
They are quite a latecomer, and my understanding is that they already suffered because of their lateness. But better late than never. But since it already becomes clear that this is just a visa with another name, there will likely be more pressure to make this a full dual citizenship.
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JoeF,

I don't think they are doing it just because it suddenly dawned on them. This is pure and simple economic convenience for both sides. I don't think the Naturalized citizens of US (of Indian Origin) are dying to become the Indian citizen's again.

Don't you remember the N-400 where you have to sign that you are changing (or I think it is a better word than this) the allegiance
to USA.

USA can revoke the citizenship at any time. In fact they are taking a second look at the citizenship by birth stuff.
There is a name for the countries which allows any one to become President. Ban*n* Republic :-)
 
Of course. That is what I meant. Being in this game so late has already hurt them economically. But entrepeneurs seek the full protection that full citizenship gives them, not something that smells like a visa that would make them second-class citizens. So what I think the Indian government will find is that this new status will not change much. There are other countries that welcome entrepeneurs without reservations
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The Indian Dual CZ as far as I know does not let you
a)Own agricultural land
b)Run for political office/be a lawmaker (actually if you are holding a top advisory post in another country you stand to lose your US Cz)
c)Vote??

Apart from that I think it offers full freedom for investment/living and working etc. I dont think it can be taken away that easily
by the Govt once granted. I do believe that a dual CZ will
dramatically change the Non Resident Indian's perspective on India.

And moreover isn't the Indian citizenship (dual) only for People of Indian Origin? I dont think they will give you a CZ just because
you want to invest a billion dollars in India....
 
The Indian Dual CZ as far as I know does not let you
a)Own agricultural land
b)Run for political office/be a lawmaker (actually if you are holding a top advisory post in another country you stand to lose your US Cz)
c)Vote??

---- Thats why it is not a citizenship, just a Long term Visa

Apart from that I think it offers full freedom for investment/living and working etc.
----- Same as for NRIs / PIOs

I dont think it can be taken away that easily
by the Govt once granted. I do believe that a dual CZ will
dramatically change the Non Resident Indian's perspective on India.
----- Whats the advantage it has over PIO Card ?

And moreover isn't the Indian citizenship (dual) only for People of Indian Origin? I dont think they will give you a CZ just because
you want to invest a billion dollars in India....
------ No, Though it is useless to call it Citizenship, it is for the people who had Indian Citizenship in the past and up to their 4 generations. So it is not just for People of Indian origin
 
I guess there are enough people of Indian origin in the US that have lots of money to invest...
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There are about 20,000,000 NRI (Non Resident Indians) and PIOs (Persons of Indian Origin). The agricultural land stuff is overblown. If you own the agricultural land before becoming US Citizen, you could continue to hold it. You can't buy it afresh.

But please note the local Govt. (at the Panchayat level i.e. almost village level) can reclassify the land from agricultural to industrial. Unless you want to buy the land next to your own land and cultivate it, this is not a big hurdle. Particularly if you are going to start an industry, or hospital (BTW: India will soon become the health care destination, particularly for UK), or even a college.
 
But it actually is the oath that you are taking.
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Joe,
This is what I am talking about. It is taken from N-400 form

H. Oath Requirements (See Part 14 for the text of the oath)
Answer questions 34 through 39. If you answer ''No'' to any of these questions, attach (1) your written explanation why the answer was ''No'' and (2) any additional information or documentation that helps to explain your answer.
34. Do you support the Constitution and form of government of the United States? Yes No
35. Do you understand the full Oath of Allegiance to the United States? Yes No
36. Are you willing to take the full Oath of Allegiance to the United States? Yes No
37. If the law requires it, are you willing to bear arms on behalf of the United States? Yes No
38. If the law requires it, are you willing to perform noncombatant services in the U.S. Armed Forces? Yes No
39. If the law requires it, are you willing to perform work of national importance under civilian direction? No Yes
 
Originally posted by JoeF
And, as I said, foreign countries are under no obligation to consider your declaration in the oath as valid under their laws. And apparently, the US doesn't consider similar oaths in other countries as valid anymore (that is a change from 1980, when a Supreme Court decision hold such an oath in Mexico to mean that the person in fact denounced US citizenship). See, again, the Dual Citizenship FAQ I referred to earlier.
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Joe,

I think, any self respecting country, demands the allegiance to it from its citizens.
f any one signs similar form (Or N-400 form of USA) and then still tries
to split the hair (remember the "meaning of 'is' is) can fit the "lacking good moral character"
mentioned in N-400 application). to the last "r")

I also agree that there are several counties in the world which lacks good people in their
country. So they invite with open arms any person and claim them to be their national (hero? :-) ).

On the lighter side when Albright started lecturing India on what it should and should not do, one
not so politically correct junior officer of Indian Govt. remarked " Though her
name is Albright, she is only Half Bright")

Remember what Einstein once said. "If my theory of relativity is proven to be correct,
America will say that I am an American and Germany will declare
that I am the citizen of the world. Otherwise America will say that I am a German and
Germany will say that I am a Jew". Note: pl. don't split the hair again with the exact words)

chanakya

The following (given in the end) is taken from the Indian Passport application form.
34. DECLARATION: for Indian Passport
I solemnly affirm that
(i) I owe allegiance to the sovereignty and integrity of India, and
(ii) Information given above in respect of myself, my son/daughter/ward is correct and nothing has been concealed and I am aware that it is an offense under the Passport Act 1967 to knowingly furnish false information or suppress material information, which attract penal and other punishments under the acts.
(iii) I undertake to be entirely responsible for expenses of my son/daughter/ward.
(iv) I have not lost, surrendered or been deprived of my citizenship of India. I have not voluntarily acquired the citizenship of another country.
(v) The information furnished by me in this form is correct.
(vi) I have neither applied for, nor been granted asylum.
 
wow, it was nice to read. lot of interesting things about Indian dual citizenship, which I had not paid attention to before.

I am a naturalized citizen, and I wish actual dual citizens would comment on how they feel, especially, about allegiance.
 
What are the advantages and disadvantages of dual citizenship?
Click to expand...

To return to the original question:

My country (Germany) allows for dual citizenship in certain instances. But I did not want it. First of all I do believe that I owe allegiance to one nation. One cannot serve two masters. But on the practical side: citizenship doesn't just come with rights, it also comes with responsibilities. I live in the US and I'm willing to take the responsibilities of US citizenship. I'm not willing to do the same for a country I don't live in. Even if it is my home country.

I guess it's really a personal decision. I only have a handful of relatives back in Germany and no other ties. So I'd rather give my whole support to my country of choice, the USA.

Just my opinion. :)
 
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