Help! Passport questions

Hi,

I have dual nationality between the US and the UK. I was born in the UK, but lived in the US all my life until I moved here to the UK 6 years ago. I want to go back home for a visit, but my US passport has expired. So the question is:

Will I be able to travel to the US for a holiday on just my UK passport or do I need to have both? Will this affect my dual nationality in any way?

Also, I was 16 when we moved here and now my official signature has changed (I didn't realize it would be so important at the time) so how can I get that information updated?

Thanks,

Cherry  

I don't know if it will help this particular question or not, but a while back I posted a link to a "FAQ on dual citizenship" site...I don't recall it now but if you look in this section for my topic "dual citizenship" the link is there, that may be of help to you.

Good luck!

I don't know if it will help this particular question or not, but a while back I posted a link to a "FAQ on dual citizenship" site...I don't recall it now but if you look in this section for my topic "dual citizenship" the link is there, that may be of help to you.

Good luck!

Thank you! That was very helpful

You're very welcome.  

SAF....thats a great site but I've got a question for ya in the event you have already checked it out and may know the answer. It states that when someone applies for U.S citizenship they take an oath of alliegance and renounce their citizenship to any other country, but the author states that some countries do not recognize this renunciation ,thus THIS is what allows an individual to become a dual citizen. Would you know if the U.K is one of these that doesnt recognize it? I read the whole site hoping to see which countries do and dont but didnt see it. from what I can read and interpret dual citizenship seems to be more of an imbiguous state one would find themselves in rather than an actual recognized status. Any info would be appreciated.

Curiousity got the better of me so I looked it up and found the answer on this website!
   
        http://www.usvisa.com/dual_citizenship.htm

 Hope this helps anyone looking into it!

..... Any info would be appreciated.

I've looked into this myself, as I am a British citizen that expects to take US citizenship (527 days to go  ) and I can confirm that the UK removed its legal prohibition on dual citizenship a long time ago, in 1949 I think.  

The US doesn't actually prohibit dual citizenship either, but doesn't officially recognize it, and informally recommends against it.

The effect of this is that if you get into trouble in your "other home" Uncle Sam will not come to your aid.  This is fairly normal if you hold dual citizenship, and the same warning is given to British dual-citizens too.

There is also one Golden Rule: when entering and leaving the US you MUST travel on your US passport.  If you use another one and they realize that you are also an American citizen they will confiscate your other passport.

Cheers for that Mr Val, ya see its that "I recognize it but officially I don't" kinda gray area thingy that the U.S adopts that throws me. My wife has been over here since late 99 and is still waiting on her "permanent" green card. We married in August of 2000,went through the whole interview process,she got her 2 year card and life was good now we're waiting on her applicatin to Remove Conditions which could quite concievably take another 1-2 years to be processed because of huge back-ups at the INS in Vermont. In the meantime I think we've both come to the conclusion that next year we may be moving back to the U.K. Even if the application is processed before then the INS rules state that you cant leave the country for more than 1 year or you lose your green card because according to them you've abandoned the country. There are extensions to that you can apply for (family illness, etc) but most immigration advisors say any time over 6 months out of the country is asking for trouble and will certainly draw immigations attention during re-entry. Now....with all that said and done, I dont want to burn any bridges ,and 5 years down the road decide to move back to the States I sure as hell don't wanna go through this whole process again of applying for a green card etc,etc,etc.....Thats why I equate dealing with the INS as the never ending story.

Celtic,

Have you guys thought about the whole dual thing too?

Last time I spoke with INS to inquire about my wifes application to Remove Conditions which was about 3 weeks ago the gentleman told me that those applications filed in Dec. of 2001 are the ones they were working on at the present time. He then mentioned the Naturalization (N400)  process which was taking anywhere from 6-9 months from start to finish in which case you forego the Condition to Remove process altogether. Now I thought that meant that my wife would have to renounce her British citizenship which I know damn right well she wouldnt consider so I didnt give it much thought at the time. Now after further inquiry I find out that even though that "renunciation" clause is in the oath of alliegance one takes when becoming a U.S citizen ,that Britain (along with a host of other countries listed in the website I found and posted above) doesnt recognize that "renunciation" in the U.S oath and in order to give up ones British citizenship one would literally have to go to the British embassy and fill out forms in order to do so. Unless you do that then youre still recognized as a British citizen by Britain despite what the U.S says........thus in a nutshell........dual citizenship. On the other hand doing that is not a prerequisite to getting American citizenship. Confused yet? Thus the term "dual citizen" is somewhat ambiguous in that both countries claim you as theirs and youre able to hold dual passports. From what I can ascertain, the U.S sorta frowns on it but in reality cannot "force" a person to renounce the country of their birth. the website Mr Val refers to above is very interesting, have a peek at it ......it seems that may be the way to go

http://www.hansenhome.demon.co.uk

Is a pretty good site too.

My DH and I are thinking about going the dual route for both of us.  Esp. considering those long weight times you are referring to Celtic.

At first he was hesitant --true Ukpeep through and through, but the benefits can outweigh the costs.  The thought of not having to do this again should we decide to come back is a big draw. He might go ahead as he feels comfortable he won't loose his UK citizenship.

I have always wanted to have dual, just did not realize it was possible until recently. I figure having a US passport and access to the EU is the best thing since sliced bread.

Though I have known tons of people from Latin America that keep both and just mainly use their US one.

Well ..true to form the INS Vermont S.C phone number was "mysteriously" busy all day long  .........is it any wonder that theyre over 2 years behind on processing some forms? Ach well, I'll try again on Monday.