dual citizenship
 

hello!

i'm struggling to find out info about getting dual citizenship.I have been living in france for 16 years,nearly my whole life.I would like to obtain french nationality but do not wish to lose my english nationality.I wondered if anyone here had been in a similar situation?
Does english law allow their citizens to obtain a different nationality without losing british citizenship?
From what i've understood so far,having adressed myself to the "sous-préfecture" of my town,i have to do a demand of french nationality and then check with the british consulat that i will keep my british nationality.Have i got that right?
If someone had anything to help me out!
Thanx

Re: dual citizenship
 

Hi there BDM,welcome to you,Im sure someone will be along to help you soon.:D

Re: dual citizenship
 

Bluedaisymoon, there should be no problem with either France, or the UK.
You will have to go through the motions of naturalisation in France and become a French citizen (it takes a while, a year minimum), but you will not lose your UK nationality. A number of people have dual nationality French/British, some have a third or even more.

Re: dual citizenship
 

thank you both for the welcome and the reply!
i did think that it would take some time for the dual nationality to become effective if accepted,though i wasn't thinking of a whole year...
oh well nevermind i'm still going to go through with it,guess i'll just have to be patient!
thanx for the info

Re: dual citizenship
 

You're welcome.
Be prepared for a lot of paperwork, and maybe several trips to the Prefecture. But since you have lived in France for 16 years, you probably know what to expect.
There is a little cost involved, like official translations of some of your documents (birth certificate).
I have dual citizenship and am very happy about being a British in the UK, and French in France, happy to have 2 passports, and the right to vote in both countries.
As long as you are not in a hurry, it should be relatively painless.;)

Re: dual citizenship
 

i'm just asking for a friend who is affected by the healthcare crackdown-- they've lived there for over 5 years and are going for the dual citizenship, but have been told they have to write an essay on why they want to become french. no guidelines other than that. i thought i'd poke around to see if anyone knows what should go in this essay, can anyone point me in the right direction? thanks in advance!

Re: dual citizenship
 

Morning Zilla,just popped in to say welcome,someone will by to help you Im sure.:D

Re: dual citizenship
 

I haven't heard of anyone having to write an essay. Unless things have changed recently I thought the following applied:
obtain the application form from your local mairie and have copies of the following:
your birth certificate
proof of identity, such as a passport
evidence of your marital status (and whether you have children)
evidence of your profession
proof of residence in France
an attestation de moralité – a letter from your maire attesting to your character is usually enough

show you have integrated into French life – this means being able to pass an interview in French. You don't have to speak as well as a native French person but you will have to show that you can speak the language sufficiently well to function in France.

Re: dual citizenship
 

interesting, i wonder where they got that information, then! they're quite worried about it, just because so much is riding on it but there is so little guidance. i wonder if this is a new hoop to jump through because there's suddenly more people trying to naturalize?

Re: dual citizenship
 

Yes, that is odd. Do you think it could have been misplaced humour? :confused:

Re: dual citizenship; be carefull!!!
 

I have seen it all and believe me, the only Attorney who can do this with out you getting into problems 6 months down the road is Joseph A. de LA CUETARA, I do not know his email, web or telephone but I have a friend that got a second nationality with his help for 10.000 Euros and now he is going after a name change!!! He has all his assets offshore and now.....Who is going to pay taxes? I am doing the same I don't care what people says about patriotism!!!

Re: dual citizenship; be carefull!!!
 

Eh???:confused::confused::confused:

Re: dual citizenship; be carefull!!!
 

Is he Nigerian?

Seriously, nobody from the EU needs to bother with dual citizenship. Becoming a citizen of your adopted country dates back from before the Union of Europe, although children born to parents from two EU countries get the choice or can take both.

Re: dual citizenship
 

One of the few advantages with dual citizenship is that you can vote in the general elections of both countries.
Plus, if you are living in France, there are certain jobs that are open only to French citizens. I am not sure if is the same in the UK.
Some British immigrants in France are now considering applying for French citizenship as a way to entitlement to healthcare. It is not clear yet, whether this is a definite way in.

Re: dual citizenship; be carefull!!!
 

That's not true. There are certain things that local citizens can do which those from other EU states cannot do (full voting rights, public service employment etc).

And perhaps stating the obvious, but there is no guarantee that the free-movement rules between EU states won't break down at some point in future, eg if there is a serious recession.