To Be or Not to Be: The Dual Citizen's Dilemma
![handle is hein.barjournals/advvba0048 and id is 717 raw text is: Vol. 48 Part 5 September1990 The Advocate 711
To Be Or Not To Be:
The Dual Citizen's Dilemma
by Terry T. Preshaw and Roberta K. Shapiro*
THE NEW US. NATIONALITY POLICY
Do you have former or current U.S. citizens as clients? The chances are that you have
almost certainly encountered a U.S. born client in your practice. Based on 1986
Canadian census data, there were over 280,000 U.S. born residents in Canada and
over 52,000 U.S. born residents in British Columbia. Many of these individuals believe
that they have irrevocably lost their U.S. citizenship by becoming Canadian citizens
Others believe that they will automatically lose their U.S. citizenfhip if they become
Canadian citizens.
Both beliefs are now wrong thanks to a remarkable, shift in U.S. nationality policy
announced by Mr. Carmen DiPlacido, U.S. Department of State, Office of Citizen
Consular Services, at a recent American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA)
conference. The new policy focuses on a change in the evidentiary' standards used in
loss of nationality cases.
The New Evidentiary Standard
The change is a complete about-face: instead of presuming that U.S. citizens who
become foreign nationals have the intent to relinquish their U.S. citizenship, the new
premise is that U.S. citizens intend to keep their U.S. nationality when they obtain a
foreign nationality.
Loss of Nationality proceedings are initiated by the Department of State (usually
through the local U.S. Embassy or Consulate) when the Department of State learns that
a U.S. citizen may have committed an expatriating act such as acquiring the citizenship
of another country.
According to Mr. DiPlacido: ...The Department processes approximately 4,500
Loss of Nationality cases each year under the mandate of Section 358 I.N.A. [the U.S.
Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, as amended]. My office, the Office of Citizen
Consular Services, approves approximately 800 Certificates of Loss of Nationality
(C.L.N.) each year. About 25% of those cases are the express renunciation before a
U.S. consul....
Loss of Citizenship (Expatriation)
When the Department of State seeks to prove loss of citizenship it must demonstrate
by a preponderance of the evidence the following:
1. A potentially expatriating act must have been performed by a U.S. citizen;
' The authors are both members of The Law Society of British Columbia. Ms. Preshaw is also a member of the
Washington State Bar Association, and Ms. Shapiro is also a member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association.
Vol. 48 Part 5 September 1990
The Advocate 711](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.barjournals/advvba0048&div=66&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
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To Be or Not to Be: The Dual Citizen's Dilemma
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