AMSTERDAM: The government of the European country of Holland has abolished the 10-year residence requirement, providing significant relief to foreigners seeking citizenship.
According to foreign media, the Dutch government has not changed the laws related to dual citizenship, but the long-term residence requirement for obtaining citizenship has been withdrawn. Despite this facility, new arrivals to the Netherlands will have to give up their previous nationality to obtain Dutch citizenship.
According to officials, Dutch citizens living abroad will not lose their Dutch passports anytime soon, but dual citizenship has not been maintained for new citizens. Thus, the Netherlands and Austria are still the only countries in the European Union where dual citizenship is not allowed, while Germany has recently relaxed the law in this regard.
Legal experts say that allowing Dutch citizens born in the Netherlands to hold multiple passports and depriving new citizens of this could be discriminatory. According to experts, the government’s plans for possible future changes to citizenship laws are still unclear.
