6 Reasons to Consider a 2nd Passport

Gaining a second citizenship requires a fair amount of research, a fair amount of bureaucracy and most of all, a fair amount of patience. Occasionally, depending on the program, it can also involve a fair amount of coin. But, a second citizenship can offer an exceptional number of benefits as well which might fit well within your overall internationalization plan. Here are just a few of the reasons to consider it. One: "Nobody kills all the Slovakians" ... or Uruguayans, Costa Ricans or Dominicans. But, it will come as no surprise that certain passports do attract more negative attention abroad than others - the US, UK and Israel (in certain places), come to mind. Any time one country decides to apply military pressure against another, it will create local anger and frustration that is then projected onto the general citizenry of the oppressive nation. It doesn't matter if that particular citizen was against the conflict, the passport alone makes him a target. The terror attacks of 2008 in Mumbai specifically targeted US and British citizens, for example. On the other hand, there are certain nationalities that are either relatively well respected as peacemakers (Canada, Costa Rica), or ones that have tended to mind their own business rather than attempting to project influence outside their borders (Switzerland, Uruguay, Dominican Republic). In other words, having a "neutral" passport can act as a useful insurance policy in case of trouble. Two: Bypass potential travel restrictions / visas Having a second passport allows you to avoid potential travel restrictions or the need to get entry visas to certain countries. Much of the value of any passport is the number of countries it will let you access without requiring the often expensive and time-consuming visa application process. Denmark, Sweden and Finland top the list in that regards with access to 173 different jurisdictions. Perhaps not surprisingly, a country like Afghanistan offers one of the least useful travel documents. Three: Emergency bolthole A second passport acts as an emergency insurance policy in case you need to get out of dodge quickly but are limited by your home country's useless passport. (South Africans during Apartheid, for example). Four: If you want to eventually expatriate If you do decide to officially renounce your primary citizenship, you will need to have established a second citizenship before you do so. To renounce without a new home will make you a person without a state, which will make it difficult to travel in the future. Five: Easier to open bank accounts overseas In this day and age, some citizenships are better than others when it comes to accessing financial resources abroad, particularly if you are a citizen of the US. In fact, it's relatively common now for Americans to be actively excluded from access to services simply because they carry a US passport. Gaining a second citizenship potentially allows one to gain access to these services by registering with that other travel document. (Though arguably, as the net gets tighter around Americans heading overseas, this is not as useful as it once was.) Six: Access additional opportunities

Having the right passport can potentially allow one access to live and work overseas with no additional documentation required. An EU passport, for example, allows one to live and work within any of the other members of the union. Taking those first steps... Of course, choosing a place can be a difficult process. It depends on your objectives, your current level of wealth and your timeline. If you simply want another passport as an insurance policy (and you want it relatively quickly and you have the cash), then the economic citizenship programs of St. Kitts and Nevis or Dominica might be a good option. If you want a second passport and don't want to spend time actually living in the country where you are applying for citizenship, jurisdictions like the Dominican Republic or Paraguay potentially offer such possibilities. Or, if you don't mind going through the proper procedures and waiting a few years in order to get a truly useful travel document from a neutral, rich world country, they are certainly available as well. The key is to start your research now. Decide if it's right for you. And then, if it is, start the process.