American with US/UKcitizenship:is it possible to work in EU?

jannekevt · Post by **jannekevt** » Thu Mar 27, 2008 9:10 pm

I'm in a relationship with an American. I am from Holland.
We love each other and wanna live together, which it's not so easy.

At this moment we live together in America. I tried to live her for almost two years now..... but I'm very homesick. We've decided that we want to try to live in Holland together.
My boyfriend is lucky that his mom is from the UK, so he can get a UK citizenship.

But we have some questions.
How easy is it for my boyfriend to come in Holland with a UK citizenship? Can he get work easily? Are there special things we have to take care off? Does someone has the same experience?

Thank you for your response!!

sakura · Post by **sakura** » Thu Mar 27, 2008 9:35 pm

jannekevt wrote:How easy is it for my boyfriend to come in Holland with a UK citizenship? Can he get work easily? Are there special things we have to take care off? Does someone has the same experience?

Thank you for your response!!

I guess you don't know much about the EU and what it offers. A person who is a citizen of a member state of the EU can live and work freely in the EU without any restrictions whatsoever, on how long he can stay, what type of job he can do (maybe other than being a member of parliament or the secret service). They don't even need to show anything, other than their passport or other national ID card, to enter a country and live.

Read here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizenshi ... pean_Union

Are you sure he qualifies for British citizenship, or you/he assume he does?

jannekevt · Post by **jannekevt** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 12:54 am

I know that people in countries that belong to the EU can work anywhere in Europe.... But I just wasn't sure if there might be some different rules for him because he lives in America. But I guess if he has a UK citizenship that it means the same as someone living in Europe.

At this moment we are not 100% sure yet if he qualifies for British citizenship.... we have to wait for their answer.
On the phone they told us that it's possible for him to get one. His mom was born in England (moved to USA in her twenties), and he was born before 1983..... so there is a special form to fill out.

I try to get as much as information as I can about everything but it sometimes hard to get all the right information.
I found a lot of different information on the internet ..... people say that you sometimes need an extra work permit to go into a country, and other people say the opposite. That's why I'm not sure.

Post by **JAJ** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 2:23 am

jannekevt wrote: At this moment we are not 100% sure yet if he qualifies for British citizenship.... we have to wait for their answer.
On the phone they told us that it's possible for him to get one. His mom was born in England (moved to USA in her twenties), and he was born before 1983..... so there is a special form to fill out.

He should be eligible to register as a British citizen if he was born on or after 8 February 1961.

Once he is a British citizen, he can have a British passport.

And with a British passport, he can live in any EU state.

Have you thought of getting U.S. citizenship before you leave the United States? You may be allowed to keep your Dutch citizenship if you are married to an American citizen.

sakura · Post by **sakura** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 12:01 pm

Janne..sorry if my first post read a little rude. It doesn't matter that he has been living in the US - he can travel and settle in any EU country regardless, using his British citizenship/passport. They don't ask questions about these things anyway.

What type of visa are you on? You're living together but you're not married, so are you on a work permit or student visa?

drsquirrel · Post by **drsquirrel** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 8:35 pm

paulp · Post by **paulp** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 8:38 pm

drsquirrel wrote:The original poster only said "he *can* get" his UK Citizenship, not that he has one right now.

But doesn't he have to at least reside in the UK before he can get a citizenship?

The boyfriend can get citizenship through his mother, i.e. by descent.

drsquirrel · Post by **drsquirrel** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 8:39 pm

paulp · Post by **paulp** » Fri Mar 28, 2008 8:44 pm

He doesn't need to have lived in the UK. British parent (not by descent) is enough.

jannekevt · Post by **jannekevt** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 2:50 pm

We are not married..... I have a study visa. And last year I had an au pair visa.

Thanks for the response.... It's just good to know that he will have the same rights as any person living in Europe.

We're still not a 100% sure he will get his citizenship, but if we read the rules about it on the website it must be possible. We also called them and they said he can get one.
But unless they sent us a letter that says that he gets his citizenship we're not totally sure.

sakura · Post by **sakura** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 2:55 pm

Tell him to ask his mother if he isn't sure. It is more than likely that, if she was born in the UK and is a British citizen otherwise than by descent, he is already a British citizen (by descent), and has always been a British citizen. Probably all he needs to do is register and obtain his passport.

Post by **JAJ** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 4:08 pm

sakura wrote:Tell him to ask his mother if he isn't sure. It is more than likely that, if she was born in the UK and is a British citizen otherwise than by descent, he is already a British citizen (by descent), and has always been a British citizen. Probably all he needs to do is register and obtain his passport.

No, that is wrong. If he was born before 1983 he was not automatically British when he was born. However, registration as a British citizen should be a formality if the statutory requirements are met.

jannekevt · Post by **jannekevt** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 4:34 pm

Yeah, we tried that first. That's not possible! Only his mom is British and he was born before 1983, so he needs to get his citizenship first before he can get his passport.
His mom got a US citizenship when she got married to his dad. But she still had a UK citizenship the moment he was born (that's also a requirement). She said that she always got her UK citizenship. So I guess that's OK, too.

sakura · Post by **sakura** » Sat Mar 29, 2008 5:09 pm

So how old is he exactly? I thought you guys were still young'uns...

jannekevt · Post by **jannekevt** » Sun Mar 30, 2008 4:24 pm

24 and 27

Post by **JAJ** » Mon Mar 31, 2008 4:40 am

jannekevt wrote:24 and 27

So he was born just before the 1983 cut-off.

If he acts quickly, he should have his British citizenship sorted out within 3-6 months. Then he can move to the Netherlands with a British passport.

He ought to be aware that any children he has born in the Netherlands (or anywhere outside the U.K. and its territories) will not be British citizens automatically.

He may be able to become a Dutch citizen in due course and keep his British + American citizenship.

Incidentally, his mother could not have got U.S. citizenship by marriage, but maybe she became a naturalised U.S. citizen later on. She would not have lost her British citizenship in doing so, provided she became American in 1949 or later.

jannekevt · Post by **jannekevt** » Mon Mar 31, 2008 7:28 pm

Yeah, we read that on the website already... that his children don't become UK citizens automatically (born outside the UK) But that's OK... If they would be born in Holland they're EU citizen anyway.

His mom said she got her US citizenship when she got married in USA.... but I guess she made a mistake than. The most important thing is that she still is a UK citizen!

Post by **JAJ** » Tue Apr 01, 2008 1:28 am

jannekevt wrote:Yeah, we read that on the website already... that his children don't become UK citizens automatically (born outside the UK) But that's OK... If they would be born in Holland they're EU citizen anyway.

Place of birth wouldn't make them Dutch. They would be Dutch because you're Dutch.

Both U.K. and Netherlands are EU nations (which could always change) but even if it doesn't there are some advantages to British citizenship, notably the more flexible situation on dual citizenship.

His mom said she got her US citizenship when she got married in USA.... but I guess she made a mistake than. The most important thing is that she still is a UK citizen!

In fact she only needed to be a UK citizen when he was born. It's also important that she has obtained her USA citizenship - hopefully she doesn't think she is American when she isn't.

jannekevt · Post by **jannekevt** » Tue Apr 01, 2008 2:25 am

of course.... I get it that the kids would be Dutch, because I'm Dutch..... what's the other reason they would be born in Holland?

Thanks for the information anyway!

Christophe · Post by **Christophe** » Tue Apr 01, 2008 10:05 am

jannekevt wrote:of course.... I get it that the kids would be Dutch, because I'm Dutch..... what's the other reason they would be born in Holland?

Thanks for the information anyway!

I think the point that JAJ was making was that birth in the Netherlands does not make one a Dutch citizen: more than that is required.

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American with US/UKcitizenship:is it possible to work in EU?

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