Washington, D.C. [US], December 2 (ANI): US Republican Senator Bernie Moreno of Ohio plans to introduce legislation on Monday that would require any US citizen holding foreign citizenship to choose between the two countries, Fox News reported. The proposal would also mandate that any American who seeks foreign citizenship in the future would automatically forfeit their US citizenship.
Moreno, who was born in Colombia and later renounced his Colombian citizenship, told Fox News, “One of the greatest honors of my life was when I became an American citizen at 18, the first opportunity I could do so.”
“It was an honor to pledge an Oath of Allegiance to the United States of America and only to the United States of America. Being an American citizen is an honor and a privilege — and if you want to be an American — it’s all or nothing,” he said. “It’s time to end dual citizenship for good,” he added, as per Fox News.
Moreno’s bill aligns with the broader approach of the Trump administration’s immigration policies, and it is not the first attempt by lawmakers to challenge dual-citizenship laws. Current US law allows citizens to hold multiple nationalities and does not require choosing a single allegiance.
The proposed legislation, titled the Exclusive Citizenship Act of 2025, is intended to protect US interests by addressing what supporters claim are “conflicts of interest and divided loyalties.”
Under the bill, existing dual citizens would be required to choose between the US and any other country whose citizenship they hold, Fox News reported. The legislation directs the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to establish databases and enforcement rules to manage the transition.
Americans with dual citizenship would have one year from the law’s enactment to either request that the secretary of state renounce their foreign citizenship or notify DHS of their intent to give up their US citizenship. Anyone who fails to comply within the allotted year would automatically be considered to have relinquished their US citizenship.
For individuals who lose their US citizenship—voluntarily or involuntarily—the DHS and the attorney general would be required to ensure they are recorded in federal systems and treated as non-citizens under immigration law.
Previous attempts to alter dual-citizenship rules have surfaced in the House, where some Republican lawmakers have pushed for candidates to disclose any foreign citizenship or block dual citizens from serving in Congress.
While former President Donald Trump has pursued efforts to end birthright citizenship—moves currently tied up in court—the administration has not taken a formal stance on dual citizenship. Moreno’s proposal could face legal challenges as well, given that the Supreme Court addressed the issue in the 1950s and has upheld its ruling ever since.
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