Global Residence and Citizenship Handbook. Christian H. Kälin

Greece Grenada Hungary Iceland Iran Iraq Ireland Israel Italy Jordan Latvia Lebanon Lithuania Macedonia Malta Mexico Montenegro New Zealand Pakistan⁴⁵ Philippines Russia Serbia Spain⁴⁶ Sri Lanka St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia Sweden Switzerland Syria United Kingdom United States of America Vietnam Western Samoa

      On the other hand, countries which do not allow the acquisition of another citizenship include the following:

Azerbaijan	Brunei
Chile	China
Czech Republic47	Denmark
Ecuador	Fiji
India48	Indonesia
Japan	Kazakhstan
Kenya	Kiribati
Kuwait	Malaysia
Mauritius	Myanmar
Nepal	Norway
Papua New Guinea	Peru
Poland	Portugal
Romania	South Africa49
Saudi Arabia50	Singapore
Solomon Islands	Spain51
Turkey	Ukraine
Venezuela

      One of the most important criteria specific to citizenship is of course the overall reputation of the country and its passport. It is futile to obtain a second passport if the country has a poor reputation at a regional and international level, and therefore its passport is not well regarded and does not afford much visa-free travel or causes suspicion at international borders.

      ¹⁸ See for example Torpey (2000), Lloyd (2005), Joppke (2010), Hokema (2002)

      ¹⁹ See The Henley & Partners Visa Restrictions Index (HVRI) 2011; www.henleyglobal.com/citizenship/visa-restrictions/

      ²⁰ This can happen even to citizens of small and generally neutral countries, as Danish citizens experienced following the publication of Mohammed cartoons in the Jyllands-Posten newspaper in Denmark on 30 September 2005

      ²¹ The Economist, 19 February 2013 “Tourist visas: You’re not welcome”

      ²² For a good discussion of the differences between residence and citizenship statuses, see Joppke (2010)

      ²³ See Betten (1998) and the chapter in this book by Professor Langer on relinquishment of US citizenship

      ²⁴ As an example, the Maltese Permanent Residence Scheme has been abruptly suspended by the Government in 2010, and following a review of the program new, stricter conditions and higher taxes were imposed; for a general discussion see Joppke (2010)

      ²⁵ For example in St. Kitts and Nevis

      ²⁶ Although some countries, such as the UK and New Zealand, have introduced limits to the passing on of citizenship infinitely through blood line

      ²⁷ See Hokema (2002) and Hansen/Weil (2001) on multiple citizenship

      ²⁸ Some countries do not even allow you to give up your citizenship unless you have another one. For a good discussion of statelessness, see Stiller (2011)

      ²⁹ For example in China, Malaysia, the UAE and many other countries, there are minority groups which are resident there but are prevented from acquiring citizenship of the country they live in

      ³⁰ In some Swiss Cantons for example, you have to pass an “integration” test, which means that you may need to learn some Swiss history and other things deemed useful to qualify for the privilege of applying for Swiss citizenship. In some Asian countries, if you are not of a particular ethnic origin, your chances of ever being granted citizenship are close to zero. In most Muslim countries you need not apply if you are not Muslim

      ³¹ See the chapter by Professor Weil for further information on this

      ³² Ireland for example

      ³³ For an extensive overview see Bauman (2009) and www.henleyglobal.com

      ³⁴ For an in-depth discussion of these options see Part IV

      ³⁵ For example Bulgaria, Cape Verde, Montenegro, Nauru, the Seychelles, most South American countries, and others

      ³⁶ Montenegro, for example, granted citizenship to the controversial former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra on the basis of a mere promise to invest in the country

      ³⁷ Panama, under its retiree residence program

      ³⁸ Tonga and a couple of African countries

      ³⁹ For more information see the website of the Ministry of Interior of Iceland http://eng.innanrikisraduneyti.is/laws-and-regulations/english/citizenship/nr/27049

      ⁴⁰ As has been the case in Costa Rica and other Latin American countries for many years

      ⁴¹ The information is based on the author’s own interpretation of citizenship legislation in the relevant countries; for a definitive assessment of the legal situation and possible exemptions, it is necessary to seek legal advice from a specialist in the relevant country

      ⁴² Persons may retain their former citizenship only if they apply to do so prior to taking out another citizenship (Beibehaltungsgenehmigung) or if they become citizens under section 10(6) of the Citizenship Act. Otherwise, dual citizenship is generally not allowed and if another citizenship is acquired, Austrian citizenship is lost ex lege

      ⁴³ You may become a foreign citizen only if you apply to do so prior to acquiring another citizenship. Otherwise dual citizenship is generally not allowed, and if another citizenship is acquired the Egyptian citizenship is lost ex lege

      ⁴⁴