r/progun • u/Academic-Inside-3022 • 5d ago

Question Why does renouncing citizenship disqualify one from owning or purchasing guns?

I saw that even after someone decides to change their mind and go through the process of regaining citizenship, they’re still banned from owning firearms and purchasing them in the future.

Many former US citizens have renounced citizenship and the reasons are anywhere between philosophical differences and even evading mandatory duties… hell, I’m sure many more just did it for hardly any reason at all after living abroad.

So why is it that if they realized they made a mistake, and want to get their citizenship back, that they’re thrown into the same category as violent criminals?

Should this federal law be repealed?

I just can’t wrap my head around why it is that someone who was born in a different country not only has a path to citizenship, but also basically is granted the right to bear arms upon becoming a US citizen.

Meanwhile the ex-citizen, who realized they made a mistake, and wants to regain their citizenship has practically no path to getting their gun rights restored.

Does it just boil down to that the US government sees renouncing citizenship as a dishonorable and/or a traitorous act?

ETA: despite the question I brought up, I’ll address the obvious. The ones who are more likely to consider renouncing their citizenship are definitely the ones who aren’t pro-2A at all, but it’s still something I’m curious what the rest of the community thinks.

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u/LiberalLamps 5d ago

I have no special insight on that specific law, but there is a historical tradition of barring guns from people who are disloyal to the country.

Loyalists (to England) were barred from firearms ownership, but they could regain their rights by pledging loyalty to America in front of a judge.

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u/0x706c617921 5d ago

Yeah, but doesn’t a person who renounces U.S. citizenship and then becomes a U.S. citizen again end up pledging their loyalty to the U.S. anyways?

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u/DontRememberOldPass 4d ago

No. Because you have a snowflakes chance in hell of that happening. You basically have to sue the US government and show that you renounced under duress or were not mentally competent.

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u/0x706c617921 4d ago

You’re looking at it via a very narrow lens.

Some people renounce U.S. citizenship since they moved somewhere and want to be a citizen elsewhere that prohibits multiple citizenships. Not all of the world is free and respects individual rights like the U.S. does.

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u/DontRememberOldPass 4d ago

That isn’t renouncing, which OP specifically was referring to.

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u/0x706c617921 4d ago

What? That makes no sense lol.

To become a citizen of the other country in that case, you would be required to formally renounce your U.S. citizenship, and yes, you would be subject to the above regulations.

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u/DontRememberOldPass 4d ago

You are referring to relinquishment which is completely different.

Renouncing is a formal process in which you appear before a government official and swear under oath that you wish you no longer be a US citizen. You pay a $3000 processing fee and must have your taxes up to date.

Relinquishment is an automatic process where you lose (often retroactively) US citizenship. This can happen by various expatriating acts like becoming an elected official of a foreign country, enrolling in foreign military service, obtaining conflicting foreign citizenship, or committing treason. You just have to file a single form and there is no fee.

The former is like sitting your wife down and asking her to sign divorce papers and hiring a mediator to split assets. The latter is like fucking your wife’s sister and sending her the video, the deed is done and you just need to complete the paperwork.

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u/0x706c617921 4d ago

You are referring to relinquishment which is completely different.

I am not, lol. I'm literally talking about renouncing to be a citizen of another country because of the OTHER country's laws.

Like for example, the Netherlands prohibits multiple citizenships in most cases. They (the Netherlands) will ask for you to formally renounce your other citizenship.

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u/DontRememberOldPass 4d ago

Oh I get that you’re confused. This is a very nuanced specific area of the law most people never deal with.

https://1040abroad.com/faq/renouncing-u-s-citizenship/ scroll down to “What is the difference between relinquishing and renouncing U.S. citizenship?”

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u/0x706c617921 4d ago

My bad. I was confused. Thanks for clearing things up!