What is dual citizenship?

Advantages and disadvantages of dual citizenship

There are a lot of benefits of having dual citizenship, but it can be complicated, depending on the rules and regulations in each country. We’ll outline some of the advantages and disadvantages for you below.

Advantages of being a dual citizen:

• Political rights - the right to vote

• Freedom of travel - the ability to travel without a visa

• Right to work

• Social benefits, such as access to social services

• Right to own property

Disadvantages of being a dual citizen:

• Dual obligations, such as military service

• Double taxation in some countries

• Barriers to work in certain roles (government in some countries)

• Limitations of international laws

Which countries allow dual citizenship or multiple citizenship?

Rules around dual citizenship will vary based on the country you live in and the country you’re seeking citizenship from. For the sake of brevity, we will be diving into two of the most common countries for seeking dual citizenship: the United States and the United Kingdom.

Even if you don’t need citizenship for one of these countries, you may still find the rest of the article useful, so keep scrolling for more!

Countries which allow dual citizenship with the US:

• Albania

• Angola

• Armenia

• Australia

• Belarus

• Belgium

• Burundi

• Cabo Verde

• Comoros

• Ivory Coast

• Cyprus

• Denmark

• Djibouti

• Fiji

• Finland

• France

• Gabon

• Gambia

• Germany

• Ghana

• Greece

• Hungary

• Iceland

• Iraq

• Ireland

• Israel

• Italy

• Kenya

• Kosovo

• Latvia

• Lebanon

• Lithuania (specific cases)

• Luxembourg

• Mali

• Malta

• Moldova

• Morocco

• Mozambique

• New Zealand

• Niger

• Nigeria

• North Macedonia

• Norway

• The Philippines

• Portugal

• Romania

• Russia

• Rwanda

• Sao Tome and Principe

• Senegal

• Serbia

• Sierra Leone

• Slovakia

• Spain

• Sri Lanka

• Sudan

• Sweden

• Switzerland

• Syria

• Czechia

• Tonga

• Tunisia

• Uganda

• United Kingdom

• Vanuatu

• Zambia

Countries which allow dual citizenship with the UK:

• Australia

• Barbados

• Belgium

• Bangladesh

• Canada

• Cyprus

• Denmark

• United States

• United Kingdom

• Romania

• Switzerland

• South Korea

• South Africa

• Egypt

• Greece

• France

• Finland

• Germany

• Iraq

• Italy

• Israel

• Ireland

• Poland

• Hungary

• Iceland

• Kenya

• Sweden

• Slovenia

• Syria

• Serbia

• Armenia

• Thailand

• Lebanon

• Malta

• Spain

• Tonga

• Philippines

• Sierra Leone

• Sri Lanka

• Pakistan

• Portugal

• Turkey

• Belgium

• Bulgaria

• Croatia

• Cyprus

• Czech Republic

• Denmark

• Finland

• France

• Germany

• Greece

• Hungary

• Iceland

• Ireland

• Italy

• Latvia

• Liechtenstein

• Luxembourg

• Malta

• Poland

• Portugal

• Romania

• Slovenia

• Spain

• Sweden

• Switzerland

How to get dual citizenship

Every country has slightly different rules when it comes to accepting new dual citizens. However, the pathways into dual citizenship are much the same.

You can either achieve dual citizenship by:

• Descent - Being born of a parent or grandparent with that citizenship.

• Birth - Being born on ‘the soil’ of the naturalised country.

• Marriage - Marrying a person of that citizenship.

• Naturalisation - Residing in a country for a period of time then applying for official citizenship.

• Investment - Some countries give citizenship to wealthy individuals who make a significant investment into their economy.

Whether you have dual citizenship or not, WorldRemit makes life abroad easier

WorldRemit is made for a world where dual citizens are the norm. We celebrate migration in all its forms by making it easier than ever to transfer money across borders. We offer fast and reliable money transfers in minutes with our easy-to-use app.

Plus, you can also turn to us for help with other topics that might interest you like how to open a US bank account without being a citizen and how to apply for Canadian citizenship. We wish you luck on your citizenship journey, in the hopes that you (like our customers) can one day say, ‘I fly two flags!’

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Dual Citizenship: FAQs

Still got questions? Here are some commonly asked questions that you may have about the dual citizenship process.

Does dual citizenship get passed down?

In some countries, dual citizenship can be acquired through family connections.

Can you get dual citizenship through marriage?

You’ll have to review the rules for the countries that you’re seeking citizenship with, as it varies from country to country. But broadly speaking, it’s possible to gain dual citizenship through marriage if your countries allow for it.

Do I need a visa if I have dual citizenship?

Citizenship should grant you all the same rights as a natural-born citizen, so you won’t need a visa to live and work in the country of your choice once you’ve got your citizenship. However, you may need a visa at first to meet the eligibility requirements, if the country requires you to live there for a certain period of time.

The contents of this blog post do not constitute legal or financial advice and are provided for general information purposes only. If you require specific legal and / or financial advice you should contact a specialist lawyer or financial advisor. Information true at time of publishing.