sir_eccles

I've seen a number of people balk at the cost involved in getting citizenship. It isn't non-zero but it is one of the cheaper parts of the process. It is never going to get cheaper, it is only likely to go up.

Gozit

Normally I scoff when people even debate dual nationality as 99% of the time there are zero consequences to it. But with the US there are. Namely military service (do you want to be drafted into the US military if they get into war?) and tax. Banks have to report the accounts of US nationals living abroad via FBAR and get penalties if they don't. As a result some foreign banks choose not to serve US citizens. So its a two edged sword, if you want to leave the US you can either do so as a citizen with the right to return but the obligation to report foreign accounts and pay tax, or leave as a Brit with no obligations to the US but also no right to return. Its tricky.

If it were me, the one nationality I would choose not to take up is that of the US. But many happily take US nationality with the benefits it gives and that isnt a bad decision either.

Nutmegger

By the time most people start to consider naturalizing, they are way past the point where the draft has to be a consideration.

sir_eccles

To clarify, Greencard holders must register for selective service. In fact failure to register when required may count against your good moral standing at the time of application for citizenship.

caleyjag

Sadly very true.

As a physicist (and, I'd like to think, a pretty good one) in the event of World War 3 the US would arguably be better off locking me in a secret bunker working on horrible new technologies than using me as cannon fodder.

Gozit

This is true, however you never know what "emergency" acts they may bring in-in Canada they always said "there will be no conscription" but then brought in conscription anyways in the case of WW I and II. Although this could still be a moot point as they could decide to recruit foreigners too.

Ah. This I didn't know. Thats rather odd, fighting for a country you don't even have citizenship of.

sir_eccles

If it is your permanent residence I don't see the problem with defending your home.

sir_eccles

I would go further and suggest that for a large number of people by the time they consider emigrating to the US they are already over 26. Degree, post grad, a few years of employment, ...

morpeth

Non citizens can join the US military, though most will become citizens while in the military.

The other issue is the US seems to be quite prone to imposing it's worldwide reach - if current trends continue who knows what steps it will take in regards to currency controls, residency, privacy.

augigi

My US tax attorney mentioned some issues with tax later in life if I became a US citizen (with regard to Australia), but I hear "blah blah" when he talks taxes so I can't remember what he said exactly. He said when I was getting near eligibility we could discuss the ramifications in more detail.

mamasue

I became a USC so I could come and go as I pleased, and so that I wouldn't have to deal with USCIS ever again.

The 'military service' thing.....One of the questions I was asked at the citizenship interview (standard stuff) was would I be willing to take up arms to defend the US (not sure of the exact words!)
My reply was "If they want a 60-year-old- woman to do so....I would"

I'm glad to be a USC....if Trump becomes POTUS I can go live on a desert island for a few years, and come back when it's all over!

Pulaski

Tell that to the Nepalese.

Pulaski

What a lot of people don't seem to think too much about is the situation that they put their young or future children into, with respect to having to register with the Selective Service, and many years later it seems to cause some parents, and presumably some of their sons, and soon daughters too, a certain amount of angst.

That said, I can't imagine any circumstance where the US would send conscripts into battle again. War is increasingly mechanized and automated, with US "soldiers" often fighting from behind a computer screen hundreds if not thousands of miles away. IMO the chances of the Selective Service being asked to call anyone into the military services is vanishingly small.

Rete

If there is anything left to come back to.

Pulaski

Do you need help packing too?