Citizenship

[ralf-nz]

Who of you would give up one's previous citizenship(s) to gain NZ citizenship)?

I know for most of youth this is a theoratical question (currently?) as you wouldn't have to do it; for others it isn't.

[TJH]

Right now the answer is no for us, but we are inching closer and closer to a yes.

[sophiedb]

If it was a question about my French citizenship, then yes - I've never applied for the passport, never voted, never even lived there (though spent 2 months a year there until I was 17).

My UK passport is too useful though. More useful than the NZ one would be, particularly if we ever moved back to Europe. I suspect that this would be more likely than a move to a Pacific island or Australia.

[bob_the_engineer]

Yes I would, then I'd go there and stay until I was an overstayer just for a laugh... see what they did :-).. if interviewed I'd insist on a translator from Yorkshire and pretend I couldn't understand anyone from south of Birmingham...

ok so i'm joking, but seriously yes I would, NZ is my home... do I think the country of my birth has a right to insist on this.... well that's another question ay..... bob

[jawnbc]

Like Sophie, it depends on the citizenship. NZ would be my fourth:

American: birth
Irish: ancestry
Canadian: good fortune

I won't give up the Canadian or Irish and would only get rid of the American if forced to do so to acquire NZ. My family are all still in the States and I'm worried that renouncing would piSS someone off, leading to me being denied entrance. Emotionally I have no ties to the American citizenship: I keep it strictly for visiting family. In my heart I'm Canadian.

[benj1980]

I thought you could keep your other passports if you claimed NZ nationality?

[dharder]

I thought you could keep your other passports if you claimed NZ nationality?

Depends on the other passports/nationalities. Some you can keep easily, some not easily.

Daniela

[itsellesi]

Depends on the other passports/nationalities. Some you can keep easily, some not easily.

Daniela

And some not at all.
Dual citizenship is not allowed at all for Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia (adult). We have to renounce our citizenship before taking up a new one. Kids can have dual citizenship till age 18 (or 21 - can't remember).

[ralf-nz]

Thanks for all those who voted and even more for your contributions in posts!

Quite interesting: My wife is just just back from Europe where she spent several months visiting and staying with family. This is the second time she did so within the years of her living in NZ.
And now she has entirely changed her mind, based on the experiences during this time, and is now clearly leaning to obtaining NZ citizenship whilst giving up the current one (BTW: It would be the second time for her in doing so...); something I have felt for quite some time already.
However as she got her permanent residence rather late there is still some time to go before she can apply; and I would wait with my application, so we could have the ceremony at the same time - if we still want(ed) to do it then.