Dual citizenship

I read Dr. Wagenaar’s article about having a second passport (April ’05, pg. 102). I have two passports: American and British. I got mine through birth and parentage; I don’t think it’s worth the cost to actively seek out a second one.

Generally, the utility of having two passports is being able to choose between them depending on the country one is visiting (although the U.S. requires that all American citizens each enter and exit the U.S. using their American passport).

For example, in the first week of May ’05 I was in Iguassu Falls on the Argentine side. I wanted to go to the Brazilian side for the day to get a different perspective of the falls. Arranging the excursion with the Sheraton travel desk, they were relieved that I had a British passport because Americans each had to have a visa, which cost $100. Using the British passport, it was a breeze. Sometimes, however, other countries charge more for British travelers; then the shoe is on the other foot.

If you are using more than one passport, passing through a lot of countries requires some planning because Immigration officials often look to see if you were stamped out of the previous country, and if you switch passports between border posts you might have some explaining to do (that has happened to me, fortunately without negative consequences). Even though having two passports is legal, Immigration officers generally treat dual citizens with more suspicion.

Finally, the best thing about a second passport is that frequently you can bypass long Immigration lines. This is especially true in E.U. countries, where having that red passport leaves the Americans in the dust, and in the U.S. where the blue passport reigns supreme.

JAMIE OSBORNE
Kailua, HI