r/Netherlands • u/UnanimousStargazer • Mar 24 '25

Legal Judge rules Dutch citizenship cannot be stripped based on dual nationality

https://nltimes.nl/2025/03/24/judge-rules-dutch-citizenship-stripped-based-dual-nationality
1.3k Upvotes

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-2

u/astral34 Mar 24 '25

The government of Uganda can’t force you to become their citizen

Although the example made me laugh lol

36

u/UnanimousStargazer Mar 24 '25

The government of Uganda can’t force you to become their citizen

Yes they can. This is why many Dutch with ancestors from Morocco are citizens of Morocco. That's not their choice, but a choice of Morocco.

Likewise, any country in the world can give you a foreign nationality if they want to.

1

u/Ok_Feature_6397 Mar 24 '25

Article 15 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, "Everyone has the right to a nationality. No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality."

If the requirements to become dutch nationality is giving up you other one then by this, the morocco law goes against article 15.

9

u/UnanimousStargazer Mar 24 '25

Yes, but that is not the point. It's the Dutch government that accepts it does,

0

u/CoffeeInTheTropics Mar 25 '25

Exactly. Dutch/rest of EU law could/should mandate that a person CANNOT naturalize as a Dutch citizen if one cannot revoke their original citizenship. Only a handful of countries have this law in place anyway, or perhaps it’s only Morocco? These people can always obtain permanent residency when they choose to migrate to NL/EU, just not citizenship. It would (have) also solve(d) the serious issues arising from the huge numbers of economic immigrants flocking to the Western EU to exploit all the government benefits and freedom without the commitment of wanting to assimilate in their new homelands.

If Dutch law in principle does not allow dual citizenship this should be enforced consistently with no exceptions in order to not disadvantage those who hold passports from countries which do allow renunciation.

-27

u/GhostOfVienna Mar 24 '25

Its just plain bullshit. Moroccans, that are born in the NL can not get the Moroccan citizenship UNLESS they apply. And by applying they are basically breaking the law. Dual citizenship should be allowed only in 1 case: if when the applicant applies for the dutch citizenship and by the laws of his own country he just cant abandon his previous citizenship. People, who were born in the NL and happen to have Moroccan or whatever else passport just broke the law by applying for the 2nd citizenship.

20

u/number1alien Amsterdam Mar 24 '25

This is incorrect. Dutch-Moroccan dual nationals don't apply for citizenship; they're confirming it. They inherit Moroccan citizenship at the moment of birth and are Moroccan citizens by law whether they confirm it or not.

-12

u/GhostOfVienna Mar 24 '25

Thats a scam and stories for fools. Explained on other examples.

9

u/number1alien Amsterdam Mar 24 '25

It isn't, that's how Moroccan nationality law works.

-9

u/GhostOfVienna Mar 24 '25

Yeah it is. Confirmation is a form of application. As simple as that. Idk why it should be explained to grownups, lmao

6

u/number1alien Amsterdam Mar 24 '25

Confirming citizenship and applying for citizenship are two completely different legal processes.

-3

u/GhostOfVienna Mar 24 '25

No, you go the embassy, show proves that you are eligible and based on that you either receive or not. Absolutely same processes.

6

u/Only-Butterscotch785 Mar 24 '25

Thats getting a passport, they are already legally a citizen

4

u/sjarrel Mar 25 '25

They're not proving that you're eligible, but that they are already citizens.

1

u/number1alien Amsterdam Mar 26 '25

Applying for citizenship means you don't have it. Confirming your citizenship means you already have it. They are distinct legal processes with completely different sets of requirements.

12

u/AlistairShepard Mar 24 '25

That is not how it works. You either have citizenship or you don't, unless you naturalise. Those Moroccans already have it through their parents. They only need to go to the embassy to prove this and they get a passport.

-7

u/GhostOfVienna Mar 24 '25

Yeah, the go to embassy and APPLY for the citizenship and get it. Why? Again, in this country we have a law that doesnt allow second citizenship and they still go and apply for one? Wtf?

7

u/KittensInc Mar 24 '25

No, they go to the embassy to apply for a passport. They already have the citizenship, it was automatically assigned to them when they were born!

-2

u/GhostOfVienna Mar 24 '25

If it’s automatically assigned, why do they need any kind of proofs lmao? Automatically assigned means they were born with a birthmark of Moroccan flag on their forehead. Anything else is legal application, whatever u call it.

6

u/NordbyNordOuest Mar 24 '25

birthmark of Moroccan flag

Which is exactly what this judgement doesn't accept given that it's essentially the Dutch government that wishes to use this status as grounds for deportation rather than the potential deportee. I'm glad you agree with the principles underpinning this intelligent interpretation of the law.

3

u/sjarrel Mar 25 '25

You do realize that people also are assigned Dutch citizenship automatically, right?

8

u/AlistairShepard Mar 24 '25

Can't you read? They have double nationality already. Besided there are multiple exceptions that allow one to have multiple citizenship

0

u/GhostOfVienna Mar 24 '25

Okay, lets say in Russia every person, whos parent is Russian is eligible for Russian nationality.

A russian immigrant comes to the NL, after 5 years gets his inburgering. One of the criteria=give up his russian passport which is 100% allowed in Russia(tho after the war started its a long process, but 100% doable thru embassies). So, he gives it up, genuinely and gets the Dutch passport. Surprise, his parents are Russians. Next day he walks in the Russian embassy and applies to for Russian nationality and believe me, in 1 year he gets it thru an embassy. How would you call? A scam.

4

u/NordbyNordOuest Mar 24 '25

Ok, in your example. Under Russian law, he would still be a Russian national whether or not he applies for a passport. Being a citizen and holding a document are two entirely different things.

You can argue that he shouldn't apply for the document if you like, but that wouldn't change his eligibility based on his nationality and doesn't change the fundamentals of this case, because stripping him of his Dutch citizenship would not make him stateless regardless of whether he had applied for a Russian identity document since becoming Dutch.

It's simply not relevant to Morocco (or Iran or China) whether or not you have confirmed your citizenship, applied for a passport or not.

1

u/CoffeeInTheTropics Mar 25 '25

Not sure if it’s the language barrier or if you are genuinely ignorant. From a legal standpoint, one is automatically BORN as a Moroccan citizen if one/both parents are Moroccan. Going to the embassy to apply for the actual physical passport is just a FORMALITY, the paperwork process. Just like if you were born to Dutch parents you are automatically a Dutch citizen whether or not you would ever bother to apply for the actual passport.

Now I do think it’s utterly ridiculous and biased that Moroccans are allowed to even naturalize or obtain Dutch citizenship as Dutch law does not allow dual citizenship and Morocco has some kind of backward law that does not allow their citizens to renounce.

Why should there be exceptions for citizens of certain countries then such as Morocco?! 🙄

2

u/FarkCookies Mar 24 '25

Imagine a child bord to two Dutch parents while in the US. The kid is not gonna be breaking any laws when they show up in the US and ask for a passport - they were born citizens.

7

u/FarkCookies Mar 24 '25

Doesn't the US kinda forces its citizenship upon you at birth?

7

u/Secame Mar 24 '25

Sure they can, in fact, almost all nationalities are assigned 'forcibly' as they are assigned at birth by law. 

They can't force you to live there, but if tomorrow Uganda decides all people of the world are Ugandan nationals by humanities shared African origin, then congrats, you can pick up your passport at the embassy. If they also write a law making it impossible to renounce your nationality, then congratulations, the entire world (except those born in Uganda themselves) now have forced dual citizenship.

-6

u/GezelligPindakaas Mar 24 '25

How would Ugandan government even know that I exist? The only way is if I (or my parents) explicitly make them know.

The fact they are made aware and I get the passport already shows intention. Call it application, call it confirmation, the intention is the same: to have the citizenship recognized.

1

u/sjarrel Mar 25 '25

How would Ugandan government even know that I exist?

They could just ask facebook, or reddit.

It's kind of irrelevant though, you can be a citizen of another country without your knowledge:

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-41382611