A new bill introduced in the United States could upend long-standing rules on nationality by banning dual citizenship, a move that may affect millions of Americans and international travelers who hold or aspire to multiple passports.
According to aol.com, the Exclusive Citizenship Act of 2025, introduced by Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) on Dec. 1, seeks to establish “citizens of the United States… owe sole and exclusive allegiance to the United States.” If passed, the bill would force U.S. citizens with dual foreign citizenship to choose between the two.
Under the bill, U.S. citizens who also possess a foreign citizenship would be required to submit a written renunciation of one of those nationalities within one year. U.S. citizens who acquire another citizenship in the future would also “be deemed to have relinquished United States citizenship.”
The bill is currently in the early stages of the legislative process and has been moved to the Senate Judiciary Committee, according to Congress. GovTrack.us, which tracks the status of congressional bills, estimated the citizenship bill has a 7 percent chance of getting past committee and a 3 percent chance of being enacted.
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Moreno, who was born in Bogota, Colombia, and moved to the U.S. at 5 years old, said in a statement last month allowing U.S. citizens to maintain foreign citizenship would create a conflict of interest.
“One of the greatest honors of my life was when I became an American citizen at 18, the first opportunity I could do so,” Moreno said. “It was an honor to pledge an Oath of Allegiance to the United States of America and ONLY to the United States of America! Being an American citizen is an honor and a privilege—and if you want to be an American, it’s all or nothing.”
Currently, the law allows U.S. citizens to hold multiple foreign citizenships in addition to their U.S. citizenship, according to the Department of State. Several countries offer citizenship by investment or citizenship by descent, allowing people to apply for a second passport if a grandparent or even great-grandparent held citizenship. And some countries are easier to become citizens of than others: Portugal and Italy, for example, are notably easier than some other nations.
However, the State Department said U.S. travelers who hold two passports must enter and leave the U.S. with their U.S. passport. The department also noted some countries may not permit dual nationality and may not recognize a traveler’s U.S. nationality when they are abroad.
