EU parents: double citizenship for kids?

[Sanne Panne]

Husband and kids have British passports, I have a Dutch one. As mine is about to expire I will need to go to the embassy and am wondering whether to get the kids Dutch passports while I'm at it. I wouldn't give their British passports up for it though so it would purely be a matter of dual citizenship.

It's a nice idea but I'm not sure if there are any advantages to giving your kids your nationality... I'm sure there are things like the US green card lottery and some Dutch student programmes that you can't take part in with a British passport but is there any other reason you would do it? Also thinking about crazy unlikely events like my husband and me both dying and the kids' legal guardians(as stated in our will) having trouble moving the kids to Holland because they are British. Or the European Union totally falling apart and freedom to live and work across the EU being limited.

I must be missing something or is this kind of it?

[Audrey]

My daughter has an Irish passport (I'm Irish, her dad is from London). It's something I wanted her to have. She will grow up in London and so will identify easily with that part of her background, but I want her to to have something physical in her life that is a reminder of the other half of her lineage. I like the idea of her pootling around the world when she is older with an Irish passport, she can have both (or either) an Irish and a British passport which may give more options as you mention above, but for me it was more of a sentimental decision. I'll leave it up to her to decide later if she likes.

[Ole]

My husband is english, I am spanish, our son has both passports, I am happy for him to have both because you never know what could happen in the future (e.g. imagine spain brought back compulsory military service, shudder....).

[Yak]

I would definitely get both, even.aside from.the cultural & affiliation benefits it brings. EU free movement rights aren't unlimited so you're always better off having the option of relying on Dutch nationality if your daughters want to do extended visits to the Netherlands in the future etc.

[birnehelene]

Our daughter has a British and German passport - I am German and my partner is Cameroonian (no dual nationality for Cameroonians). No real advantages for now, but you never know in the future.

[littlebelka]

if there is an opportunity to have dual citizenship for kids, better to have it.

[Ossa]

We have dual British/US citizenship. I don't know about Dutch provision, but for my children citizenship of either the UK or the USA isn't acquired by getting a passport. They are either citizens or they aren't. If they're citizens they are entitled to apply for passports, but they do not have to. It won't effect their citizenship.

[birnehelene]

Yes, what Ossa is saying is correct. My daughter does not need a German passport to be a German citizen. She is one automatically from birth. That right remains for the rest of her life. So I suppose its not necessary to get the passport but that way you have an actual document to show citizenship which you don't otherwise get.

[borderpaul]

I have got an Irish passport and my wife and three kids have British passports. I have never thought of getting them Irish passports as I can't see any major advantages. I see both passports as being EU passports so not much difference. I feel they get their sense of Irish identity from myself, the sport we watch and visits to Ireland. I don't think an Irish passport would add much to that sense at this stage but if Britain was to leave the EU, I'd be queueing outside the embassy the next day.

[prm]

The notes page in a UK passport states regarding dual citizenship that being a British Citizen does not exclude you from the obligations you may have in the other country eg military service is specifically mentioned as an example

[shaunag]

Lo has an Irish passport- 15 euro for 3 years vs ?50 for 5- that was the advantage for me! Will probably get another 3 year one in three years as they change so much! My midwife tilde me this when baby was v small-she was v well informed! Have no opinion on other advantages, but if lo travelled somewhere where British citizenship not particularly favourable from a political point of view would probably suggest travel on Irish passport. Downside to Irish passport used to be the inevitable 'random secondary screening' from security-doesn't happen as much these days though...

[etta166]

Visa requirements do vary by nationality as well, so you might find that some places (like former Dutch colonies) will let you enter without a visa on a Dutch passport but not on a British passport. I'm often grateful for my Canadian passport in these situations, although I also have a British passport now as well.

[AllanLambert]

There's not much to tell really except that I'm glad my in-laws live on the other side of the world. My SIL is crazy and my MIL is one of those really over-protective types. I think she's finally realized we're not going there right now.. for the first year of our marriage she called once a week crying for my husband to come home. It almost caused us a divorce.

Anyway sometimes I wish it wasn't this way but I am so thankful for my child that it makes me feel bad. Hopefully the whole situation will never cause any problems for us.

[Passiflora]

Erm, you've replied to something posted in 2012 so don't know what you are going on about really?