Netherlands' recognition of dual nationality?

Legal General Legal Matters
1

I am preparing a report for the Legislative Yuan about the regulations regarding the recognition of “dual nationality” in various countries, in connection with my research on international reciprocity.

According to the information I have collected for the Netherlands (Holland), that country actually does not recognize dual nationality. In other words, an ROC citizen who applies for nationality in Holland has to renounce ROC citizenship (apparently).

Reference data (in English) available on the internet is at
http://www.immigratiedienst.nl/
which states

Conditions

You are eligible for naturalization if you:

Immediately prior to your naturalization application have lived for at least five years in the Netherlands, the Dutch Antilles, or Aruba;
Have lived for at least three years in the Netherlands with the same Dutch partner or;
Have been married and living together for at least three years with the same Dutch partner. In this case, it does not matter whether or not you have lived in the Netherlands. However, you must not be living in the country of your own nationality when the application is made.

Other conditions

You are an adult. That is to say, you are at least 18, or were not 18 when you got married;
You have a residence permit for a non-temporary purpose. If you do have a residence permit for a temporary purpose, such as study or medical treatment, you cannot be naturalized;
You are socially integrated. You are able, for example, to hold a conversation in Dutch about everyday subjects;
You do not present a danger to public order, public decency, public health, or to national security. The most important rule in this connection is that you must not have been given a prison sentence, a community service order, or fined more than € 453,78 (NLG 1000) in the four years prior to the application;
You are prepared to give up your current nationality. See the frequently asked questions for exceptions to this requirement.

In order to prove that you satisfy the conditions, you must be able to produce certain documents.

There is then an FAQ on the website
Wat zijn de kosten voor een verzoek tot naturalisatie?
which is in Dutch, and I can’t find an English translation.

If anyone knows of, or can obtain, more authoritative data on this subject, I would like to have it, so that when these “reciprocity issues” are discussed in the next legislative session, the rights of those citizens from Holland can be protected.

Comments anyone? I need authoritative data, not hearsay.

2
quote:
Wat zijn de kosten voor een verzoek tot naturalisatie?

“What are the fees for an application for naturlization”

I think that’s what it means, my Dutch is very very rusty.

I am a Dutch citizen, and a New Zealand Permanent Resident. I know that if I wanted to get NZ citizenship I would have to renounce my Dutch nationality.

In fact, when my passport expired I had to get a letter from the NZ Internal Affairs Department stating that I did not have NZ Citizenship.

I had a look at the FAQ, and it is in English, maybe you clicked on the wrong link?

http://www.immigratiedienst.nl/page.asp?PageID=5006&LangID=1&CategoryID=105&View=2

You might find this relevant. if you need more let me know what it is you are after and I will try and find out for you.

Do I have to give up my current nationality?

You don’t have to give up your current nationality if:

The legislation of your own country does not allow you to give up your nationality;
You are married to a Dutch citizen, or you are the registered partner of a Dutch citizen. This partnership has to be registered in the register of births, deaths, and marriages in the Netherlands;
You are a recognized refugee in the Netherlands, the Netherlands Antilles or Aruba, or you have been exempt from the passport requirement;
You are the under-age child of a Dutch parent;
You were in the Netherlands, the Netherlands Antilles, or Aruba, and you will be living in the Netherlands, the Netherlands Antilles, or Aruba when the application for nationalization is made;
Before you were 18, you lived for at least five consecutive years in the Netherlands, the Netherlands Antilles, or Aruba;
In order to give up your current nationality, you have to pay such a high a fee to the authorities of your country that you will suffer serious financial consequences. You can produce evidence to prove this;
You will lose proprietary rights, such as right of inheritance, if you give up your nationality . This loss must result in serious financial consequences. You must be able to produce evidence to prove this;
You can only give up the nationality of your country as soon as you have completed military service or bought such off. You must be able to produce evidence to prove this;
You have the nationality of a country that has signed the second protocol of the Treaty of Citizenship, and you belong to the categories detailed therein. The Civil Affairs department of the local council can tell you more about this;
You have exceptional reasons from an objective point of view why you do not want to give up your current nationality.

3

Hi Richard,
Read your message and noticed you came to the conclusion that it is not possible to have dual nationality. Well, it is possible.
At the FAQ’s on the referred website, which unfortunately has not being translated into English, are the exceptions on the general rule which says it’s not possible.

The exceptions are:

1 The origin country doesn’t allow you to give up your nationality.
2 Being married or (in Holland of course) living together having a relationship.
3 Being a refugee in Holland
4 Being a minor of a Dutch(wo)man
5 Having to pay an huge fee to the originate country when giving up that nationality.
6 Being obliged to join military services or to buy that off before giving up the nationality.
7Having the nationality of a country which joined the treaty of Straatsburg and are belonging to the categories stated in that treaty.
8 Having extraordinary reasons not to want to give up your first nationality.
9 Being born in Holland and living there at the moment of apply.
10 Having lived in Holland for 5 years before the 18th birthday.

Holland also include the Netherland Antilles and Aruba.

All these exceptions doesn’t make it very difficult to have dual nationalities.
It surely gives you another conclusion of your report about Holland.

The sentence in Dutch you could not translate is about the fees to be paid when applying for the Dutch nationality.

I hope you can use this info.
Good luck on your report.

Hans Heijerman

quote:
Originally posted by Hartzell: I am preparing a report for the Legislative Yuan about the regulations regarding the recognition of "dual nationality" in various countries, in connection with my research on international reciprocity.

According to the information I have collected for the Netherlands (Holland), that country actually does not recognize dual nationality. In other words, an ROC citizen who applies for nationality in Holland has to renounce ROC citizenship (apparently).

Reference data (in English) available on the internet is at
http://www.immigratiedienst.nl/
which states

Conditions

You are eligible for naturalization if you:

Immediately prior to your naturalization application have lived for at least five years in the Netherlands, the Dutch Antilles, or Aruba;
Have lived for at least three years in the Netherlands with the same Dutch partner or;
Have been married and living together for at least three years with the same Dutch partner. In this case, it does not matter whether or not you have lived in the Netherlands. However, you must not be living in the country of your own nationality when the application is made.

Other conditions

You are an adult. That is to say, you are at least 18, or were not 18 when you got married;
You have a residence permit for a non-temporary purpose. If you do have a residence permit for a temporary purpose, such as study or medical treatment, you cannot be naturalized;
You are socially integrated. You are able, for example, to hold a conversation in Dutch about everyday subjects;
You do not present a danger to public order, public decency, public health, or to national security. The most important rule in this connection is that you must not have been given a prison sentence, a community service order, or fined more than € 453,78 (NLG 1000) in the four years prior to the application;
You are prepared to give up your current nationality. See the frequently asked questions for exceptions to this requirement.

In order to prove that you satisfy the conditions, you must be able to produce certain documents.

There is then an FAQ on the website
Wat zijn de kosten voor een verzoek tot naturalisatie?
which is in Dutch, and I can’t find an English translation.

If anyone knows of, or can obtain, more authoritative data on this subject, I would like to have it, so that when these “reciprocity issues” are discussed in the next legislative session, the rights of those citizens from Holland can be protected.

Comments anyone? I need authoritative data, not hearsay.

4

Thanks for your comments.

Actually, it would be more accurate to say that my report is focusing on the situation of adults who have lived in Holland for some time and who are now applying for naturalization.

Based on this point of view, and according to a telephone conversation which I had with an official of the Netherlands Trade and Investment Office in Taipei on July 5th, 2002, it is indeed REQUIRED that the applicant renounce original nationality when applying for Dutch nationality. I am told that this requirement is primarily due to the fact that Holland encourages integration into its society, and it is felt that those who retain their original nationality will be less inclined to fully integrate.

Additionally, with the specific consideration of the situation of ROC nationals applying for naturalization in Holland, I am told that the possible exemptions (regarding the “renunciation of original nationality requirement”) would not apply in 99% of all cases.

This is the key point of the matter, in regard to a discussion of “international reciprocity.”

As a result, it appears that my report must list Holland as NOT recognizing dual nationality.

5
quote[quote]At the FAQ's on the referred website, which unfortunately has not being translated into English [/quote]
quote:
There is then an FAQ on the website which is in Dutch, and I can't find an English translation

FAQ in English

quote[quote]Thanks for your comments. [/quote]
6

Hi Richard,

My feeling is that you are correct about Holland NOT ACCEPTING DUAL CITIZENSHIP. Here’s what I can offer to this. My sister, an American, is married to the Minister of Justice (a lawyer) of Curacao, a Dutch island in the Carribbean. She has been married for I believe 5-6 years. She also has children. I believe SHE does not have dual citizenship, but her children do. In talking with my mother about this just yesterday, she said my sister would have to renounce her US citizenship to attain Dutch (Curacao) citizenship. I know this is not necessarily Taiwan related, however,if you would like I will try to get additional information from my brother-in-law.

Taka

7

Yes, correct, for children who obtain dual nationality by birth, the Netherland authorities allow it.

What I am focusing on, as stated in my previous posting, is the situation of adults who have lived in Holland for some time and who are now applying for naturalization.

We will want to propose that adult Dutch citizens in Taiwan be treated in a similar manner to adult ROC citizens living in Holland. This is stressing “international reciprocity” in the realm of naturalization rights.