Is is true that if you become a citizen of another country you give up your status as a citizen of the US?

Question

Ive heard from several people that if you are a US natural citizen and you move to another country and become a citizen there say the UK or Canada you give up your US citizenship. Is this true?

Additional Details

If it is true than why do they do this? And would it be possible to gain back you citizenship?

Answer 1

Best Answer - Chosen by Voters

No.

The only way to give up your American citizenship is to renounce it to a government official. America recognizes dual citizenship.

Other countries sometimes do require you to have given up your citizenship before becoming a citizen of there country, the UK isn't one of these.

Answer 2

obviously

Answer 3

You can live in another country without giving up your citizenship. But if you get a British passport, you have to forfeit your US passport. But it is different if you are British. You can gain citizenship in another country, and retain your British.

Answer 4

yes it is true they outlawed dual citizenship in 2001 due to people going to canada and the uk for free health care while they were not paying taxes in that country

Answer 5

To become a naturalized citizen of one country you have to abandon allegiance to the other. If you give up your US citizenship it can be regained. (The employer of a family friend transfer ed him to Canada where he became a citizen then upon retiring and returning to the USA he was able to regain his US citizenship.)

Answer 6

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.

In 1967 when the Supreme Court handed down its decision in Afroyim v. Rusk , 387 U.S. 253. In that decision, the court declared unconstitutional the provisions of Section 349(a) which provided for loss of nationality by voting in a foreign election.

In so doing, the Supreme Court indicated that a U.S. citizen "has a constitutional right to remain a citizen... unless he voluntarily relinquishes that citizenship."

Further confirmation of the necessity to establish the citizen's intent to relinquish nationality before expatriation will result came in the opinion in Vance v. Terrazas , 444 U.S. 252 (1980).

The Court stated that "expatriation depends on the will of the citizen rather than on the will of Congress and its assessment of his conduct."

The Court also indicated that a person's intention to relinquish U.S. citizenship may be shown by statements or actions.

Source(s):

http://travel.state.gov/law/citizenship/…

Answer 7

So far as I know it is not true. I am a US citizen and a permanent resident of Canada. My sons are all dual citizens. It used to be that at age 18 or 21 they would have to have chosen between the US and Canada, but that is no longer true. It also used to be true that if you became a citizen of another country the US would deem that you had done something or other and revoked your US citizenship, but that is no longer the case, and hasn't been for years. Now you have to do something to really rub the State Department's nose the wrong way. Citizenship laws change.

It is true that if you are a US citizen they want to you travel into the US on your US passport.

I don't know anything about this 2001 law, but if there actually is one I'd like to know about it.

Answer 8

For Canada, you dont need to give up ur Citizenship, however, I m not sure about UK

Answer 9

Thats not true. I tell you because I have Dual citizenship. I was born in the U.S.

Answer 10

Here you go
http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw…

Answer 11

No you become a dual citizen. Once my residency period is over I plan to choose this option.

Answer 12

yes, some counties do that///... Italy does not for example! But I believe that USA does not