Dear Munkeyboy,
The short answer is yes. However, this is a tricky question.
The constitution does not refer to dual nationality, adversly or
otherwise.
The law actually stipulates, that "U.S. law does not mention dual
nationality or require a person to choose one citizenship or another.
Also, a person who is automatically granted another citizenship does
not risk losing U.S. citizenship. However, a person who acquires a
foreign citizenship by applying for it may lose U.S. citizenship. In
order to lose U.S. citizenship, the law requires that the person must
apply for the foreign citizenship voluntarily, by free choice, and
with the intention to give up U.S. citizenship". (Source: Department
of State, http://travel.state.gov/dualnationality.html).
The Department of State also writes, that "Intent can be shown by the
person's statements or conduct.The U.S. Government recognizes that
dual nationality exists but does not encourage it as a matter of
policy because of the problems it may cause. Claims of other countries
on dual national U.S. citizens may conflict with U.S. law, and dual
nationality may limit U.S. Government efforts to assist citizens
abroad. The country where a dual national is located generally has a
stronger claim to that person's allegiance." (Source: ibid).
Nevertheless, the part on the "intention to give up U.S. citizenship"
is important for the interpretation of the law. Several court decision
have proved, that de facto, a person must demonstrate this intention
in statement, and serving in a foreign military, or other such acts of
allegiance to the other country of citizen, do not consist of a
behavior which is of "intention to give up". (For example, see the
case of Afroyim v. Rusk, 387 U.S. 253 (1967), as summarised here
http://www.richw.org/dualcit/cases.html#Afroyim.
However, each country has its own immigration and naturalisation laws.
Some countries do not permit dual citizenship, and in this case you
will have to give up your American citizenship in order to naturalise.
You would be also subjected to both countries' laws.
You could read more about this issue in the Dual Nationality FAQ:
http://www.richw.org/dualcit/faq.html
An interesting discussion on the question, could be found at
misc.immigration.usa:
http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&threadm=3gdn23%24ise%40ia.mks.com&rnum=8&prev=/groups%3Fq%3D%2522dual%2Bcitizenship%2522%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26ie%3DUTF-8%26selm%3D3gdn23%2524ise%2540ia.mks.com%26rnum%3D8
See also Adam Starchild's article (1994) "DUAL NATIONALITY UNDER U.S.
LAW" http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=4nf4k7%24bh%40dfw-ixnews9.ix.netcom.com&output=gplain
I hope that answered your question. If you need any clarification on
my answer, please let me know. |
Clarification of Answer by
politicalguru-ga
on
18 Jun 2003 01:47 PDT
Dear Munkeyboy,
Please note, that this is beyond the scope of the original question.
Generally speaking, citizenship is granted on grounds of:
- Ancestry (that is, if your family immigrated from that country, if
you belong to a certain ethnic, religious or national group). For
example, Israel grants citizenship to every person of Jewish ancestry
(up to third generation, that is if your grandparents were Jews)
almost automatically, and probonopublico-ga here commented that it is
pretty easy to get an Irish citizenship.
- Blood relations (marriage, adoption)
- Birth on the grounds of this country.
- Some countries grant citizenship to people who invest a hefty some.
- Some countries (i.e., Canada, Australia) are "immigration countries"
in the sense, that one could legally apply to immigrate.
What is the easiest way?
It really depends on who you are. Canada, for example, has a point
system, where you could gain points for immigration based on your
skills, age, family condition and other factors - for young
professionals it is supposed to be quiet easy to initiate such
process. If you belong to a certain ethnic group or ancestry, the
easiest way might be just to apply to that country (this applies
especially to Israel). If you have some hetfy some of money you are
willing to invest, other countries would be appropriate and esier.
I hope that helped.
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