Help Needed - German USA Citizenship Question - American Citizen

[eric2287]

Good afternoon. I am an American but hold a German passport and dual citizenship because my mother was born and raised in Germany. My fiancee and I are trying to plan our future together and are trying to come up with the best plan. We are very close to family that live in Germany and could see ourselves living there in the near future. We have not gotten married yet in the US and wondering if getting married in the US vs Germany help my futures wife chances at obtaining dual citizenship. Would she need to give up her American citizenship? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Zigner]

Sorry, but this forum is designed to help with US law questions. Your question is related to German law, not US law.

 

[eric2287]

Ok my apologies. I thought that might qualify as US because it obtains to her possibly losing her American citizenship as I am an American citizen as well.

 

[Mass_Shyster]

Ok my apologies. I thought that might qualify as US because it obtains to her possibly losing her American citizenship as I am an American citizen as well.

US Law does not require she relinquish her US Citizenship upon becoming a German Citizen, but German Law may require she do that.

 

[Zigner]

Ok my apologies. I thought that might qualify as US because it obtains to her possibly losing her American citizenship as I am an American citizen as well.

The only reason that would be required is if Germany requires it.

From my VERY limited poking around, it appears as though Germany allows for dual citizenship with the US.

ETA: But you might want to hurry up. Who knows how long other countries are going to put up with our shenanigans!

 

[LdiJ]

Good afternoon. I am an American but hold a German passport and dual citizenship because my mother was born and raised in Germany. My fiancee and I are trying to plan our future together and are trying to come up with the best plan. We are very close to family that live in Germany and could see ourselves living there in the near future. We have not gotten married yet in the US and wondering if getting married in the US vs Germany help my futures wife chances at obtaining dual citizenship. Would she need to give up her American citizenship? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Where you get married might factor into what hoops you have to jump through for her to get German citizenship...because it might matter under what kind of German visa she would enter into Germany under. You would really need a consult with a German immigration attorney to know what is best for that. US law would not help you make that decision.

The US does not recognize dual citizenship but because other countries do, it is possible to have dual citizenship. Apparently Germany is a country that recognizes dual citizenship. Because you have a German passport you don't enter the US as a US citizen. That complicates things a bit as well. Most people who have dual citizenship between the US and another country carry a US passport rather than a passport from another country.

 

[FlyingRon]

Ldij says something very DANGEROUS. If YOU are a US citizen, you MUST ENTER THE US WITH A US PASSPORT. To do otherwise is ILLEGAL

I think what Eric was saying is that he holds a German passport in addition to his US one. If he doesn't, he should remedy that ASAP before he causes problems for both himself and his intended.

 

[LdiJ]

Ldij says something very DANGEROUS. If YOU are a US citizen, you MUST ENTER THE US WITH A US PASSPORT. To do otherwise is ILLEGAL

I think what Eric was saying is that he holds a German passport in addition to his US one. If he doesn't, he should remedy that ASAP before he causes problems for both himself and his intended.

What did I say that was dangerous? I said that it complicated things if he entered the US on a German passport. I did not read that as him having both an American and German passport, but I agree, if he does he must enter the US on his American passport.

 

[eric2287]

Thanks so much for the advice everyone! That is correct I was born in the US and have lived here all my life. My father was American and my mother is originally from Germany. I was able to obtain my German passport as well due to my mothers status. When I travel to Europe and return to the US I always use my American passport. My fiance and I have done some research on our own and have reached out to a couple of lawyers to see if they can help with this particular situation.

Our main concern is the order of operations we should take when we do get married. We have been together for 10 years and are finally tying the knot and before we do so we wanted to explore the best route if we were to live in Germany one day. Would it matter if we get married in the US or Germany? Should we file for any type of Visa before getting married? As of now we do not have any plans to move permanently to Germany but wanted to keep that option open.

I know this may not be the best forum for any advice because it is more of German law but it is still American law as well because my wife would not want to give up her American citizenship ever.

Thanks again everyone!

 

[Mass_Shyster]

Thanks so much for the advice everyone! That is correct I was born in the US and have lived here all my life. My father was American and my mother is originally from Germany. I was able to obtain my German passport as well due to my mothers status. When I travel to Europe and return to the US I always use my American passport. My fiance and I have done some research on our own and have reached out to a couple of lawyers to see if they can help with this particular situation.

Our main concern is the order of operations we should take when we do get married. We have been together for 10 years and are finally tying the knot and before we do so we wanted to explore the best route if we were to live in Germany one day. Would it matter if we get married in the US or Germany? Should we file for any type of Visa before getting married? As of now we do not have any plans to move permanently to Germany but wanted to keep that option open.

I know this may not be the best forum for any advice because it is more of German law but it is still American law as well because my wife would not want to give up her American citizenship ever.

Thanks again everyone!

You need a German immigration lawyer. Here's why:

If the roles were reversed, and you were both German citizens, you were a dual citizen and you travel to the US intending to get US Citizenship for your spouse. When your wife/fiance enters the country on a visa waiver, she has just committed immigration fraud - she entered the US on a non-immigrant visa, but entered with the intention to immigrate. Doesn't matter if you're married or not - she still entered on a non-immigrant visa with immigrant intent.

I have no idea if Germany has similar rules, which is why I suggest contacting a German immigration lawyer.

 

[FlyingRon]

What did I say that was dangerous? I said that it complicated things if he entered the US on a German passport. I did not read that as him having both an American and German passport, but I agree, if he does he must enter the US on his American passport.

Again, you spout dangerous misinformation. It matters NOT whether he holds a US passport. If he is a US citizen (which he stated he was), he MUST ENTER THE US as a US citizen (i.e., on a US passport). To do otherwise is ILLEGAL, plain and simple.

 

[cbg]

I don't suppose anyone would care to hear from another dual citizen who actually has some experience with this, would they?

No, I didn't think so.

 

[PAPP]

Our main concern is the order of operations we should take when we do get married. We have been together for 10 years and are finally tying the knot and before we do so we wanted to explore the best route if we were to live in Germany one day. Would it matter if we get married in the US or Germany? Should we file for any type of Visa before getting married? As of now we do not have any plans to move permanently to Germany but wanted to keep that option open.

I think you seems confused with a visa and a citizenship. If you are not living in Germany now, you don't need to worry about a visa for your fiance now. The time you need to care about a visa is when you both decide to live in Germany.

I'm from a different country and my son has dual citizenship. If my son and his future wife decide to live in my native country, she needs to apply for a spouse visa of my country as his spouse, but she doesn't need any visa just visiting there. My son is required to register his marriage to my country's system at a consulate, but other than that, he doesn't need to do anything living in the US.

I just heard some countries give a citizenship automatically to foreign nationals when they get married to their citizens. If Germany has this kind of law, that's a different story. As other members mentioned, you need to check German laws and systems. I suggest you to check a website of the German consulate.

 

[LdiJ]

I don't suppose anyone would care to hear from another dual citizen who actually has some experience with this, would they?

No, I didn't think so.

I am certainly interested.

 

[cbg]

The US only pays lip service to the idea of dual citizenship. They reluctantly acknowledge that other countries recognize the idea of dual citizenship and they cannot prevent other countries from considering someone a citizen who is also a citizen of the US, but the do not really acknowledge it themselves. The Canadian consulate told me, "If someone in authority asks you if you are an American citizen, say yes. Do not elaborate unless you are told to do so. We will understand, and we will continue to consider you a citizen of Canada until or unless you sign something that says you're not". That has worked for me.

As I understand it Germany allows dual citizenship but does not encourage it. They do not, generally, require that the citizen renounce their original citizenship but neither country is in favor of duality. I would recommend that the OP's fiancee have a very long talk with the German consulate about whether or not acquiring German citizenship is actually her best option rather than a spousal visa. It also couldn't hurt to run the matter past an immigration attorney.