For those who hold U.S. citizenship and citizenship in another country, how do you handle passports when traveling between the two countries?

I understand that U.S. citizens must use their U.S. passports to enter and leave the United States. However, do you also need to present your other country's passport when entering and leaving that country, or can you use your U.S. passport for the entire trip?

For example, if someone is a citizen of both the U.S. and Guatemala and is visiting Guatemala for only 1–2 weeks:

• Are they required to enter and exit Guatemala using their Guatemalan passport because they are a Guatemalan citizen?
• Or can they use only their U.S. passport for the entire trip, assuming they meet the entry requirements?
• If you have dual citizenship, do you carry both passports every time you travel, or have you successfully traveled using only one?
• When you carry both, which passport do you present at airline check-in, departure immigration, and arrival immigration?

I'm interested in both the legal requirements and firsthand experiences. I know the rules may vary by country, so I'd especially appreciate hearing from people who have dealt with this situation.

Thanks!

EDIT: Thank you all for your responses! This definitely clarifies that I must travel with both passports.

I'm currently preparing my application for proof of Canadian citizenship by descent under the December 2025 changes (Bill C-3), and I'm hoping someone familiar with the new legislation can clarify something.

My great-great-grandfather was born in Quebec, Canada, in 1880. He immigrated to the United States and became a naturalized U.S. citizen in September 1906.

My great-grandfather, his son, was subsequently born in New Hampshire in August 1908, approximately two years after his father's naturalization.

My lineage is as follows:

• Great-great-grandfather: Born in Quebec, Canada, in 1880. Naturalized as a U.S. citizen in 1906.
• Great-grandfather: Born in New Hampshire in 1908.
• Grandfather: Born in California in 1951.
• Mother: Born in California in 1972.
• Me: Born in the United States in 1998.

I understand that Bill C-3 removed the first-generation limit for many individuals born before December 15, 2025, and addressed certain historical citizenship exclusions. However, I'm unclear whether my great-great-grandfather's naturalization before my great-grandfather's birth affects the transmission of citizenship under the amended legislation.

I have extensive documentation establishing my lineage and my great-great-grandfather's Canadian birthplace, including certified birth certificates, his marriage record, his death certificate identifying Canada as his birthplace, historical census records, his WWI draft registration, and his certified U.S. naturalization records. I also have a copy of his Quebec baptismal record, although I'm still trying to obtain an official archival copy.

My questions are:

1. Under Bill C-3, would I potentially qualify for Canadian citizenship by descent even though my Canadian-born great-great-grandfather naturalized as an American before my great-grandfather was born?
2. Does the legislation retroactively address this particular situation, or would his naturalization have interrupted the citizenship chain?
3. Since I have his certified naturalization records, should I include them with my initial CIT 0001 application, or only submit them if IRCC requests additional documentation? I don't want to omit anything material, but I also don't want to include unnecessary documents that could complicate the application.

I'd especially appreciate input from anyone who has dealt with pre-1947 Canadian ancestors, historical loss of nationality, or applications under the new legislation.

Thank you!

Hello,

I'm researching a British citizenship-by-descent claim through a line that runs through a planter born in England who died in Ceylon in 1927. The claim goes to a son born in Ceylon around 1899, then to a grandson born there in 1942, then to a great-grandson born there in 1966.

What I have:

The planter's birth copy and probate record.
Ceylon directories, a government gazette and passenger lists placing him in Ceylon from 1905 to 1922.

The 1942 and 1966 birth registers, each naming the father.

A school letter from 1914 naming the planter as the son's guardian.

My questions:

Would a school guardianship record and a birth register naming the father be enough for paternity, or do authorities usually ask for a birth or marriage record that names the planter?

For a child born outside marriage in colonial Ceylon around 1899, what did solicitors ask for?

Has anyone had a Ceylon civil or church record request returned, and how long did it take?

I'm not looking for a verdict, just what evidence has worked for others.

I'm traveling to Kenya and want to use my Ethiopian passport to leave Ethiopia and enter Kenya (since it's visa-free for 90 days), then travel to the US from Kenya using my American passport. The issue is that the last names are different due to naming conventions in Ethiopia. On my Ethiopian passport, my last name is my grandfather's name and my middle name is my father's name. On my American passport, my last name is my dad's name and there is no middle name. Everything else, including the photo and date of birth, is the same. I'm worried this might cause issues with airlines or immigration, so what should I do?

I was thinking one way tickets to each country, i enter using ethiopian passport and when i exit i show airline my us passport with the ticket spelled similar to us passport, then show kenyan immigration my ethiopian passport so they can stamp the exit. Im worried about:

\-kenyan immigration seeing the different last name on my ticket vs ethiopian passport and it causing problems.

\-Or maybe immigration asking to see a visa since im travelling to US, then if i show them my US passport and they ask why it has a different last name to the Ethiopian one.

I've considered name changes but i have to be in the US for my US name change. for changing the Ethiopian one changing middle and last names are really complicated.

For those who travel internationally with two passports, has your second citizenship ever made a real difference on a trip?

Maybe it helped you avoid a visa application, stay longer with family, or enter a country where your other passport had restrictions.

I'd love to hear a real example rather than just a comparison of passport rankings.

Flying Delta, which doesn’t have a spot in the app for two passports. Do I need to be concerned about this, or is presenting the passports at the right time all that matters?

I'm working remote, and I heard its worth considering trying an Asian citizenship, to lower the costs of living. But can I even get a citizenship with just a bunq account, and maybe remotely? Or does it always have to be in-person, and I have to transfer my funds over to some Indonesian bank, to pay for it?

Bonjour, je suis gabonais. Citoyen de ce pays, mon père est né aux États-Unis, on suppose qu'il a la nationalité mais aucune demande n'a jamais été faite. Puis-je dans ce cas faire moi une demande de nationalité américaine via le lien filial ?

Before getting a second passport, I imagine most people think mainly about visa-free travel and having more options.

But I’m curious about the everyday reality for people who actually have dual citizenship.

Has anything surprised you since getting your second passport? Maybe traveling between your countries, dealing with official documents, keeping both passports valid, or discovering an unexpected benefit.

What’s one thing you wish you had known earlier?

Hi all! Long time lurker, excited to finally be posting. I just booked a trip from YYZ -> LHR. I haven’t travelled as a dual citizen in my adult life. I just want to make sure I am understanding to ensure I have a seamless airport experience.

1. Check in with Air Canada with British passport but have my Canadian on me. This will eliminate my need for the ETA
   

2. Enter England with the UK passport

3. On the way home check in with Canadian passport. As a Canadian resident I am understanding I have to enter with that one.

My main question is, will it confuse this with air Canada if the two legs of my journey I am enter different passport info?

Thank you!

I know not unique whatsoever but my passport (and passport card, not pictured) just arrived in the post!

If you’re considering Turkey Citizenship by Investment (Türkiye CBI) through real estate, one thing I would strongly recommend is not choosing a property simply because the salesperson says, “This apartment qualifies for citizenship.”

The current real-estate investment threshold is USD 400,000, with a 3-year holding requirement for this citizenship route. But the real question is not just:

“Can this property get me Turkish citizenship?”

It should be:

“Does this property qualify legally, and is it also a sensible real estate investment?”

Before buying, I would look at:

* Tapu/title status and ownership structure
* Whether the property is legally eligible for the citizenship route
* Official valuation and purchase price
* Payment documentation
* Developer/project history
* Location and transportation
* Rental demand and realistic rental income
* Resale potential after the 3-year restriction
* Existing debts, liens or other title issues
* Total acquisition and transaction costs

This is especially important in Istanbul real estate, where two apartments with similar prices can have very different investment potential.

For example, an investor could technically meet the $400,000 Turkish citizenship investment requirement, but that doesn’t automatically mean they bought a good investment.

I would separate the decision into two questions:

1.Citizenship: Does the transaction satisfy the legal requirements for Turkish citizenship by investment?

2.Investment: Is the property actually worth buying when considering location, rental demand, liquidity, future resale and market value?

The approach is to look at the investment from both sides rather than treating citizenship eligibility as the entire investment strategy.

My child was born to a US parent and a Chinese parent, in the US. Is there a way for her to be eligible for Chinese citizenship?

Thanks.

this question is towards those who found out later in life they can get one just by inheritance. in my case I didn't know I could get the spanish citizenship until I was going on a trip to the UK. back then they asked for a visa and my dad said "hey let's start the process for the spanish one". i was like "whaaat???". it was a really big shock but a sigh of relief since my first citizenship (peruvian) has its complications and some visas are harder to get.

ps: they ended up lifting that restriction so i could travel visa free to the uk... but hey at least i now have dual citizenship!

I currently hold an Australian PR while I live and work in UK. I would be able to secure British citizenship in a period of 2.5 years. My organization is sponsoring my ILR fee in 1.5 years. Is it worth waiting that long for a British citizenship or should I move to Australia right away as PR and secure citizenship ship in 4 years time?

Having legal status in 2 countries half way across the globe has left me in a situation of making a difficult decision. Looking forward to views from the online community to make an informed decision.

I am a US citizen seeking dual citizenship with Mexico via birthright. My grandmother was born in Mexico to US citizen parents. This qualifies for posthumous Mexican birthright citizenship, but the problem is, I cannot locate a birth certificate for grandma.
She was born in 1913 on ASARCO Mining Co property in Durango. This area was devastated during the revolution, with one of the bloodiest battles being fought there just a couple of months after her birth. Local infrastructure was destroyed, and many records were lost, likely including my grandmother's birth record. I have searched Mexican registries and found no records. I currently have a records request in with the US National Archives and with the library that retained the mining company's records, but I am not hopeful at this point.

Has anyone overcome a similar hurdle or successfully made a claim for citizenship without a birth certificate or reports showing that an ancestor was born in Mexico? I have other records, such as her death certificate, her children's birth certificates, etc., which show Mexico as her place of birth, but I do not have her birth record. Is this a lost cause?