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Comment on How does renouncing citizenship work?

owenfromcanada@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago

I’m a dual citizen (Canada & USA, born Canadian). Part of naturalization in the US is the oath where you renounce citizenship from everywhere else. Thing is, most countries don’t care about that oath–Canada requires filing a special form and appearing before an official (IIRC) to renounce citizenship. I asked about the discrepancy–it turns out the US doesn’t actually care whether I’m a citizen elsewhere, largely because it’s difficult to figure it out and enforce it (this might have been the opinion of the immigration officer, not sure).

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wildbus8979@sh.itjust.works ⁨5⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Hmmmm what? The USA absolutely allows dual citizenship.

U.S. law does not impede its citizens’ acquisition of foreign citizenship whether by birth, descent, naturalization or other form of acquisition, by imposing requirements of permission from U.S. courts or any governmental agency.

[…]

U.S. law does not require a U.S. citizen to choose between U.S. citizenship and another (foreign) nationality (or nationalities). A U.S. citizen may naturalize in a foreign state without any risk to their U.S. citizenship.

U.S. dual nationals owe allegiance to both the United States and the foreign country (or countries, if they are nationals of more than one). They are required to obey the laws of both countries, and either country has the right to enforce its laws.

travel.state.gov/content/…/Dual-Nationality.html

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- owenfromcanada@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  Yes, I mentioned that the US doesn’t care about dual citizenship. But the naturalization oath might suggest otherwise:
  
  “I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty, of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen…”
  
  uscis.gov/…/naturalization-oath-of-allegiance-to-…
  
  There’s an apparent discrepancy between the oath and the US official stance on dual citizenship (per the links you posted).
  
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  - captain_aggravated@sh.itjust.works ⁨5⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
    Oaths in the United States aren’t worth the shit they’re smeared in. The oath of enlistment into the armed forces has some hogwash about defending the United States against all enemies “foreign and domestic.” Meanwhile gestures broadly around
    
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Anticorp@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
The USA doesn’t care, because they don’t require you to renounce your citizenship, and neither does Canada. Some countries won’t let you obtain a 2nd citizenship, so you must renounce your original citizenship to get a new one.

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