Can I apply for Dutch Citizenship?
June 18, 2014 12:23 PM Subscribe
I'm a child of a Dutch immigrant to the USA. Is it possible for my father, who naturalized as a child to the USA at the age of 10, to renew his NL passport?
My father immigrated to the US from The Netherlands in 1955 at the age of 3.
He because a naturalized US citizen at the age of 10. He is still in possession of his Dutch passport.
I've dug around on a few Dutch websites and have not been able to find a clear answer whether or not someone in his situation would be able to renew their Dutch passport.
If he is able to do so, it's stated pretty clearly online that my brother and I, both his children, would be able to also apply to become a Dutch National.
I have a friend who worked in the French Embassy in DC who believes that this process should be pretty easy for my father to do - if renewing Dutch documents is similar to the French process.
Does anyone have experience with a situation like this, dealing with NL or other EU expired passports from the US?
My father immigrated to the US from The Netherlands in 1955 at the age of 3.
He because a naturalized US citizen at the age of 10. He is still in possession of his Dutch passport.
I've dug around on a few Dutch websites and have not been able to find a clear answer whether or not someone in his situation would be able to renew their Dutch passport.
If he is able to do so, it's stated pretty clearly online that my brother and I, both his children, would be able to also apply to become a Dutch National.
I have a friend who worked in the French Embassy in DC who believes that this process should be pretty easy for my father to do - if renewing Dutch documents is similar to the French process.
Does anyone have experience with a situation like this, dealing with NL or other EU expired passports from the US?
The dutch don't like dual citizenship. Your father might have lost it if he became a US citizen depending on his age at the time - might be an exception for being a child then. Call the embassy.
posted by wingless_angel at 12:35 PM on June 18, 2014
posted by wingless_angel at 12:35 PM on June 18, 2014
I would say your chances are slim. As wingless_angel alludes to, the Netherlands has recently started adding restrictions around dual citizenship. This IND page summarizes the conditions under which you'd automatically receive Dutch citizenship. Contacting the embassy is one place to start, but I'd also get in touch with the IND. I've always found them to be quite helpful, even if you contact them by snail mail.
posted by neushoorn at 12:57 PM on June 18, 2014
posted by neushoorn at 12:57 PM on June 18, 2014
The document you might want to search for is the "Bewijs van Nederlanderschap" ("proof of nationality"). With this document you can legally work in the Netherlands, apply for a passport, etc.
My Dutch father also immigrated to the US, but in the late 60s. When I was 23 I moved to the Netherlands for a year (in 1999) and acquired (through a laborious 4-month office-hopping process) this document. It did not require my father's passport (which had long since expired) but did require his birth certificate, a working knowledge of the language, and a great deal of patience for bureaucracy.
Not knowing your age, nor the other dates involved, I do recall that at the time I was told that one had to claim citizenship before the age of 28. All this may have changed by now, but searching for that document should get you a bit further in your research.
posted by mireille at 2:22 PM on June 18, 2014
My Dutch father also immigrated to the US, but in the late 60s. When I was 23 I moved to the Netherlands for a year (in 1999) and acquired (through a laborious 4-month office-hopping process) this document. It did not require my father's passport (which had long since expired) but did require his birth certificate, a working knowledge of the language, and a great deal of patience for bureaucracy.
Not knowing your age, nor the other dates involved, I do recall that at the time I was told that one had to claim citizenship before the age of 28. All this may have changed by now, but searching for that document should get you a bit further in your research.
posted by mireille at 2:22 PM on June 18, 2014
My understanding is you lost the option when your father naturalized to the US.
posted by humboldt32 at 3:49 PM on June 18, 2014
posted by humboldt32 at 3:49 PM on June 18, 2014
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Etrigan at 12:35 PM on June 18, 2014 [2 favorites]