Dual citizenship refers to when a person is a citizen of two countries at the same time. Generally, a person is a citizen of a single country. But according to the constitution of some countries, one may be a citizen of two countries simultaneously. For example, a child born in a country, but their parents are from a foreign country, and then the child gets dual citizenship—one in his birth country and another in his parents’ country.
Advantages of Dual Citizenship
There are some advantages of dual citizenship. A dual citizen can enjoy the facilities of work, travel etc., without any work permit or visa in both countries. He can study in any institution in one of the two countries. Other advantages are:
Two passports: A person with dual citizenship gets two passports from the two countries to which he belongs. He can travel to these countries without paying excess tax or complication of visa.
Property ownership: Another privilege of dual citizenship is property ownership. If you are a citizen of two countries, then you can buy lands in both countries. It increases your income also if you cultivate the lands.
Cultural activities: As a citizen of two countries, you will get the chance to know and practice the language and culture well. If you know the countries’ languages well, you may get a job to guide the tourists.
Disadvantages of Dual Citizenship
Apart from the advantages, there are some disadvantages of this system too.
Obligations: As a citizen, you have to obey the constitutions of both countries strictly. So, you may face some problems in that case. For example, usually, America permits its citizens to do the job in the foreign army. But as an American citizen, if you work in the army of a foreign country that fights against America, then you may lose American citizenship.
Double taxation: If you are a dual citizen, you have to return the taxes in both countries. But if the countries mutually make the contract for their dual citizens to reduce the taxes, it will be a privilege for you.
Obstacles in jobs: You have to submit any of your documents for your job. Your dual citizenship may affect here specials in the government job. But if you are dual citizenship by birth, then it may not count as a problem.
Intricate process: If you are a dual citizen by birth, it is a straightforward process. The country will count you as their citizen as per their law. But if not so, then you have to do a lot and wait for a long time to get citizenship. You must follow every rules and regulation and fulfil the requirements for it, which is not that easy.
Countries that Allow Dual Citizenship
More than 85 countries allow dual citizenship, such as Italy, Ireland, Portugal, France, America, Germany, Hungary, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Turkey, Malta, Singapore, Poland, Cyprus, Egypt, Greece, Australia, Austria, South Africa, Latvia, Philippines, Canada, Spain, Sweden, Vietnam etc.
We can conclude that dual citizenship is a blessing though it has both privileges and complications. A person with dual citizenship can enjoy many opportunities for education, travelling, cultural affairs because he gets the chance to visit two nations freely.
