# Can American Citizen have Dual Citizenship?? Plz Help



## joychang2020 (May 3, 2017)

Hi all,

My 9 year old son is an US citizen by birth and I and my wife are Chinese citizens.

All 3 of us are applying for Australian Citizenship, and 

I would like to know if he acquires an Australian citizenship then how will it impact his American citizenship status.

1. As an American Citizen by birth can he acquire dual or more citizenship's of other countries?
2. Will it impact on his rights as an American citizen in any way?
3. When he turns 18 years old would he have to choose between 2 citizenships?

Thanks all.

-Joy


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

They did away with that thing about having to choose at age 18 ages ago. And certainly at the moment, you can hold not only dual nationality but also multiple nationalities in addition to US. The only "inconveniences" are that your son will have to file US income tax returns once he starts to earn income exceeding the filing threshold, and that having a second (or third, or fourth....) nationality gives him no excuse for failing to do anything expected of US citizens, though as always, they would have to find out about any alleged violation to do anything about it.
Cheers,
Bev


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## UltraFJ40 (May 20, 2014)

I may be wrong but I believe that as long as the US citizenship is in hand, then one may apply for citizenship from other nations.

My wife (from the Philippines) had to surrender her birth nation citizenship in order to get her US one. Once she rec'd it, she reapplied for Phils and now is a dual citizen.

We are also in the process of applying for our children to have Phil citizenship as well. They also are Americans by birth.


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

The US overlooks additional citizenships u til there is a conflict of interest such as employment requiring clearance, ... Yes, disregarding inconveniences along the line of registering for Selective Service or filing taxes or entering/exiting with the incorrect passport, ... but that is for those to deal with who use the benefits associated with US passports.

It also depends on the other countries. Some use the same head in the sand approach and practice exchange of fiscal reporting others do not allow it or make it it almost impossible to shed the original citizenship. Remember - rights and obligations of those citizenships are part of holding the passport.


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## Raria (May 10, 2017)

twostep said:


> The US overlooks additional citizenships u til there is a conflict of interest such as employment requiring clearance, ... Yes, disregarding inconveniences along the line of registering for Selective Service or filing taxes or entering/exiting with the incorrect passport, ... but that is for those to deal with who use the benefits associated with US passports.
> 
> It also depends on the other countries. Some use the same head in the sand approach and practice exchange of fiscal reporting others do not allow it or make it it almost impossible to shed the original citizenship. Remember - rights and obligations of those citizenships are part of holding the passport.


Agreed. I wouldn't go just collecting citizenships unless your sure you want the obligations that go with it. Some of these (i.e. filing tax returns) can outweight the benefits unless you live in the country for a while.


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## icare (May 22, 2017)

My kids have dual citizenship US and Brazil. It's simple. 
We didn't go for a third for one of the countries that was possible only due to the consequences there.


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## mrryder99 (May 22, 2017)

Yep, as others have said, if you are a US citizen you have to pay tax on what you earn elsewhere even if you don't live in the US. Seem to recall Boris Johnson in the UK dropped his US citizenship for that reason.


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## mrryder99 (May 22, 2017)

mrryder99 said:


> Yep, as others have said, if you are a US citizen you have to pay tax on what you earn elsewhere even if you don't live in the US. Seem to recall Boris Johnson in the UK dropped his US citizenship for that reason.


Here's the article about BJ: Boris Johnson has renounced his U.S. citizenship - Feb. 9, 2017

"Johnson wasn't always happy being American. In 2015, he settled a U.S. tax bill that he had described as "absolutely outrageous."
Unlike most countries, the U.S. taxes its citizens on all income, no matter where it's earned or where they live. The rules can sometimes result in surprise tax bills for Americans who live abroad."


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## moonstonerain (Jun 23, 2017)

Yes you can have dual citizen. Both my daughter and myself have American and Australian citizenship. Just means you have to use the correct passport for exiting and entering the country.

I even have a brother who has citizenship of three countries. Just make sure you carry both passports, as it is illegal for an American citizen to enter America on another passport.


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