nelsontcs888

:-: Malaysian vs US Passport :-:

I have been doing a research on this but seems like a lot of questions still going through my mind. Hopefully you can share your experience so I can gather all the info and re-post it.

HOW CAN I DO THIS WITHOUT BEING BUSTED?

Let's say I have both Malaysian & US passport. And, I plan to move back to Malaysia for a year or more (for work opportunity). And that required a lot of travel to oversea countries...

I know I have to "Enter & Exit" U.S. via US passport, but...

1) Which passport to use - if I enter/exit Malaysia or going to other countries.
2) Renewing passport - I know that if I renew my Malaysian passport in US; they will ask to provide prove of my current status in US, therefore, I will have to renew my passport in Malaysia! How about renewing US passport in Malaysia?

I know my questions are kind of vague. I just think about all the possibilities of being dual nationality and without being busted.

Sincerely,
Nelson

jbcarioca

With most countries no problems at all. One presents the passport of the country you're entering if you have that nationality. When checking in one must often show both passports to prove you're legal at both ends. When getting visa for other countries use the passport which is easier. (e.g. Malaysia for Arab countries and ASEAN; US for EU).

My wife and I have this situation (US and Brazil) and never have any problems anywhere. We use Brazilian for Eastern Europe and Middle East, US for EU.

The problem is getting a new nationality, not using it. I think there are threads here on getting dual nationality. Anyway an internet search on the subject for the country of your choice will have lots of information as will the Consulates of most countries.

MoreMilesPlease

Get busted for what? Yhe US allows dual, or more, nationality.

GUWonder

Malaysia -- like many former colonies of the UK -- put in place legal restrictions against citizens of their own country from holding more than one citizenship at a time. Under Malaysian law, persons holding Malaysian citizenship are not legally entitled to hold another citizenship.

... that something doesn't violate the law in the US doesn't necessarily mean it is legal elsewhere. In this case, an adult holding dual citizenship would have committed a violation of the law in one jurisdiction even if another jurisdiction didn't care about such violation in the other jurisdiction.

ajax

Hi Nelson

To the best of my knowledge, Malaysia does not permit its citizens to be dual nationals.

I don't mean to sound like a prude, but this is the law. If you're looking for a way to get aroud the laws of Malaysia, then FT is not the place for it.

Best wishes to you.

GUWonder

Brazil -- unlike Malaysia -- does not have a legal ban against Brazilian citizens holding the citizenship of another country.

GUWonder

1) Malaysian nationals should use a Malaysian passport to enter/exit Malaysia when traveling on a single ticketed PNR directly to/from Malaysia. Just like US citizens should use a US passport when entering/exiting the US.

2) The US passport can be renewed through American Citizen Services at various US embassies/consulates around the world or at US passport agency offices in the US. If attempting to do so in Malaysia, it may be a problem more than it would be if done elsewhere or in the US. [It wouldn't be unprecedented for a country to keep tab of persons who are going into a foreign country's embassy/consulate and how they are entering/exiting such facilities and even searching them once beyond the grounds of the embassy/consulate. Then, for example, if a search results in a Malaysian citizen being found with a US passport for himself/herself, it'll be evidence of a violation of Malaysian law and punishable to the extent covered under Malaysian law -- and as you may know by now, the US won't process an application by mail in Malaysia.]

Redhead

Get your US passport renewed before leaving for Malaysia. You can do it before it expires.

lin821

Do you indeed have a US passport or just a Permanent Resident Card (Green Card)?

Your other post in another thread indicated you held a Green Card. I would think passport renewal and Green Card renewal do not apply the exact same rules/conditions/terms.

Cha-cha-cha

I don't know much about this, but I know enough that if I wanted to have dual citizenship, I'd consult a lawyer who was familiar with the laws of both countries.

Christopher

The problem is that Malaysia does not permit its citizens to hold another citizenship (or, in some cases, it may be possible to hold it but not to act on it).

Therefore, by "using" your US citizenship it is likely that, by the operation of Malaysian law, you are no longer a Malaysian citizen. Merely possessing the passport of a country does not make you a citizen, and the fact that you have not formally renounced Malaysian citizenship or been told formally that you are no longer a Malaysian citizen does not mean that you have retained the citizenship.

I should be careful because your Malaysian passport may well not be a valid document for travel. (As noted above, the US does not impose the same restrictions on its citizens.)

GUWonder

For this kind of situation, that's good advice. However, it's not easy to find a lawyer who is well versed in the political, economic and social rights/benefits and obligations/restrictions of both countries that come with wanting to have citizenship of both countries.

[Except in matters like this where at least one of the involved countries restricts or prohibits dual-/multi-citizenship to its nationals, most people who want to have dual-citizenship have little to no need to consult a lawyer familiar with the laws of both countries for mere purposes of holding dual-citizenship.]

tentseller

I have relatives who are Malaysian nationals and they know people who has had their Malaysian passport confiscated and/or citizenship revoked when they were found to be holder of another passport/citizenship other than Malaysia.

Also check out my other post of potential hazards of travelling with more than one passport:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/13401289-post39.html

My $0.02 YMMV

jpatokal

Just a question -- what would you gain by holding onto your Malaysian passport? Do you have property (eg. land) that requires it in Malaysia?

For travel purposes, a US passport is pretty good in ASEAN, and far superior elsewhere in the world. The only negatives would be that you would need visas to visit Vietnam (in advance) and Indonesia (on arrival).

GUWonder

Property interests and family interests are usually the primary driver for why people in various former British colonies with such restrictions want to try to hold on to the citizenship of another country as well.

Less about wanting to gain than it is about not wanting to lose.