AdobePinon

It does happen, but it's not common. In the cases I've seen, renouncing UKC has certainly not sped things up - probably there was some underlying reason for requiring the renunciation that was not entirely satisfied by doing as they asked. But, IMVHO, if you're not prepared to renounce, you're not ready for a clearance - it's more than just a career move.

JAJ

With respect, I am correct. Section 13(1) of the British Nationality Act 1981 gives a (once-only) entitlement to a former British citizen to resume citizenship but only if the renunciation is to acquire or retain another citizenship or nationality.

Resumption following renunciation for any other reason is under section 13(3) of the Act and is discretionary.

If you don't believe me you may wish to peruse Chapter 17 of the Home Office Nationality Instructions:
http://www.bia.homeoffice.gov.uk/pol.../IDIs1/nivol1/

As for your family in Zimbabwe, they lost their Zimbabwe citizenship (which isn't worth much anyway) when they re-acquired their British citizenship, so it's not clear on what exactly they gained from that exercise.

Incidentally, Embassies and High Commissions don't process resumption cases - they are forwarded to the Home Office for decision.

JAJ

I actually don't see why someone with dual citizenship is inherently more or less trustworthy than the exact same person (and the same circumstances) would be without a dual citizenship.

It is of course the prerogative of the U.S. to make whatever rules it likes, but reality is that if they are not prepared to trust you as a dual citizen, who's to say they will trust you after you give up your other citizenship?

There have been cases (anecdotal) where this has happened - people have renounced their other citizenship and still been denied security clearance. Unfortunately, if the profile of person that they want is someone who has no ties outside the United States, the reality is that as a naturalized American or an American who has spent time overseas, you're probably not going to fit the mold.

nun

Dual citizens are not necessarily less trustworthy, but they are a greater security risk because of their foreign contacts.

I think it comes down to potential conflict of interest. That's why that are also suspicious of any foreign family. You might have divided loyalties and there is the potential of you choosing another countries interests over those of the US.

I worked on the Joint Striker Fighter for a year and the British guys form BAe Systems were always pissed off because they were excluded from certain meetings. As a dual national I got to go to those meetings, what if some MI5 guy came along and asked me what happened in those meetings for the "good of the UK". What should I do, be loyal to the US or to the UK. Well I know what I would have done, but you can see that its a potential security issue.

nun

That sums it up, foreign connections are NOT good. That's obvious from the questions they ask on the form.

scrubbedexpat099

I would agree, plenty of stories in the UK Media supporting such a view.

You could certainly argue that somebody prepared to renounce themselves for carrer advancement may have larger loyalty issues. Do it once, why not do it twice.

JAJ

But wouldn't these foreign contacts present a security risk anyway, even if the person was no longer a foreign citizen?

Seriously, you would have a lot of good reasons to say no, not least the fact that espionage is a serious offence. There are also "false flag" operations. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_flag

But it is legitimate to ask the question in the same circumstances who would be more at risk of being coerced: a person who has retained British citizenship, or a person who has given it up? In many instances, the latter person would ironically be more at risk of coercion unless such person had no family or property ties remaining in the U.K. and no plans ever to return.