Dual Citizenship by parentage, jus sanguinis

SECURITY CLEARANCE Q&A
1

Hello! I am hoping someone could help answer a few clearance questions for me. I am an American citizen and was born here in the US. I recently discovered that as a child of a German citizen (my mother: I was born after 1975), I automatically acquire German citizenship at birth through jus sanguinis, regardless of the place of birth. Neither country requires a person born under these circumstances to choose between American and German citizenship, i.e., I may keep both citizenships my entire life (dual citizenship).

In order to document this dual citizenship, I can apply for a Certificate of Citizenship through the German consulate. It is not my intent to ever obtain a German passport, or participate in German elections, etc., but rather I simply would like to document my heritage should my future children/grandchildren/etc. ever want to more easily live or work in the EU without the hassle of a visa, with their own Certificates.

I currently hold a secret clearance. My question is, would obtaining this Certificate of Citizenship alter my clearance status (I would report this), and/or prevent me from obtaining a TS clearance in the future?

Thanks!

2

I’d think you’d not only have issues with obtaining a TS in the future but also with your current secret clearance. You will have major foreign preference obstacles to conquer by soliciting for citizenship from a foreign country. Even though it is your birthright, you have to take affirmative steps to obtain your foreign citizenship. So, yes, I would think you would experience clearance problems.

3

It is not unusual today for American citizens born in this country to seek voluntarily dual citizenship in a foreign country, usually a country in which they have some family heritage. However, any such action is potentially disqualifying. My advice is to wait until you no longer have need for a clearance before applying.

4

That’s too bad. Thanks for your input.