Uh, rafatmit, you're girlfriend's parentage, I believe, is a first! http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttravel_forum/wink.gif

Thanks for all the info on second passports. I'm of (mostly) German ancestry, going back just 3 generations. I think I can easily prove it although it'll take time since they didn't come through Ellis Island; somewhere in the mid West.

They embarked from Odessa, Russia, and eventually came up the Lawrence River. Where they disemarked I don't know, but what I do know was they settled in either North or South Dakota along with a zillion other Germans.

Just building this for future reference. It seems Canada forbade citizens from acquiring citizenship in other countries without relinquishing Canadian citizenship (which only came into being soon after WW-II) until 1977. The above link does a decent job of outling the advantages and disadvantages of multiple citizenships.

Here's the link to the C$75 Search for Canadian Citizenship.

The French don't care.

I think Mexico is working on a law (if not enacted already) to allow its citizens to hold dual citizenship so the masses of Mexican immigrants in the U.S. can vote.

I guess that an option for them if they got Canadian citizenship would be to actually renew their passports in Austria or any other country but Canada!

If I'm not mistaken, Israel allows all Jews to move to the country and become citizens.

I remember there was a case (i think it was here in Australia) where there was person (not sure from which country he was from) who applied for refugee status, and who happened to be Jewish, but his claim was rejected based on the fact that he could claim Israeli citizenship because he was Jewish.

goodo

Israel allows any Jew the "right of return," pretty much instant citizenship upon proof of being Jewish under religious law.

Ireland has a similar but lesser known law for those with Irish ancestry.

Why do you guys keep fixating on Ireland and Israel?? While Israel is a bit special (return), pretty much every country allows citizenship to be claimed based on ancestry, although how far back and your % change from country to country!

Ireland and Israel are special cases in the general lack of minimum residency requirements.

If you and every U.S. citizen with any degree of German ancestry went and got German citizenship, there'd be more "Germans" in the U.S. than in Germany! http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttr...orum/smile.gif

Germany has no residency requirements, Italy has none, Britain as stated above doesn't a generation back, but does for Two. Greece doesn't, Spain now does, but in most cases is two years I believe. Japan doesn't (but has the blood thing like Germany). The list goes on and on.

Any links to the Irish passport issue? I'm Irish and a US citizen, so does this mean with some paperwork I can be get an Irish passport?

See this thread from the Irish Embassy.

I just read that page and it seems pretty clear to me that one can only claim Irish citizen by descent if one has a grandparent who was born in Ireland. So what's all this talk about no limit to the number of generations one can go back? It looks to me like it would only work if one's forefathers have kept their Irish citizenship papers in order through the generations.

I believe (if I read correctly) it is also possible in some circumstances to obtain Irish Citizenship if a great-grandparent was born there. You might want to check it out anyway if you think you qualify. I completed the process of researching/obtaining needed documentation last fall, and recently received by IBA (Irish Born Abroad) papers. So now I can get the passport. I will be glad to have it in Europe and if travelling to places that are not "Ameri-friendly".