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It worked for me earlier. Wait, just checked it a few hours later; and I couldn't get it either. Weird.
At any rate, when I did get to see it, it basically boiled down to, "Why don't Canadians want to move to the United States?"
It was met with answers ranging from the mild and inoffensive, "Because we live in the best place on Earth," to loud guffaws, often accompanied by, "Good Lord, who would want to live in a s**thole place like that?" And everything in between. The usual reasons were cited: healthcare, better social safety net, less gun violence, and so on. Of course, there was understanding for those Canadians who went to the US for better and more lucrative chances with work (think actors, musicians, other performers; or physicians and scientists). And there were admissions that some posters were snowbirds, who wintered in Florida and Arizona, but who expressed no desire to move there permanently.
The responses were mostly from Canadians, and it was Quora, so in some ways, it was a self-selecting group (Canadians, resident in Canada, who are Quora members).
Me, personally, I wouldn't move to the US, unless a very good opportunity presented itself. Admittedly, I work in a field where transferring credentials between the two countries is possible, but not very easy, and usually requires additional coursework and exams. So it would have to be an extremely good opportunity in a location that I'd actually want to live in. Doesn't matter anyway; I'm happy here.
I'm unsure why you would think you have to relinquish your US citizenship in order to move to Canada. I've known a number of Americans who have immigrated to Canada (heck, I married one), and none of them have given up their American citizenship.
Some have become naturalized Canadians, but that doesn't remove their American citizenship. It simply makes them a dual citizen, who can carry the passports of two countries. Those who haven't are perfectly entitled to remain here as Permanent Residents, as long as they went through Canada's legal process to become one.
In short, you can keep your US citizenship if you move to Canada.
USA does not recognize dual citizenships. That said, if one is native born, their citizenship can not be revoked unless it is renounced, so claiming such citizenship would not mean they would lose their birthright citizenship. Non native born citizens though run the risk of losing American citizenship if they are found to exercise any foreign citizen activities. Although the attitude can change depending on what administration is currently in charge, a foreign born citizen is taking significant risks if they travel on a foreign passport or vote in a foreign election, for example, and the government learns about it. And even native born citizens who take on another citizenship are still considered to be responsible for the obligations citizenship entails if called upon to exercise them. Betraying the country would result in a treason charge, and America does have the death penalty for that (one of the few where that would apply). A foreign born citizen essentially must renounce their foreign citizenship to obtain an American citizenship.
Although very rarely done, a person can renounce their citizenship. That releases them from any citizen obligations, but it also results in a near total loss of rights of citizenship. They are not free to enter the country without permission, they can not vote in elections, they can not carry weapons or travel wherever they want without official permission, and so forth.
Last edited by Susquehanna Babe; 02-10-2023 at 12:49 AM..
What that is saying is essentially as long as you don't exercise any behavior as a foreign citizen it is not an issue, but if you do, travel on a foreign passport for example and it comes to the attention of the government, your American citizenship can be called into question. Apparently they have changed the law requiring renouncement of the foreign citizenship, but it is still not recognized here. It may be recognized elsewhere, but not here. The statement you have shown is incomplete.
If you are a foreign national and obtain American citizenship, it would be very unwise to come here flashing foreign documents. They don't care what the other country lets you do these days as long as it isn't something against America. There are things that can cause a non native citizenship to be revoked, and/or certain behaviors could be considered treason. If you hold US citizenship and perform services, military or otherwise, against USA without first having renounced the citizenship, that could definitely be considered treason, which is a very serious offense here. Claims of having foreign citizenship would not be a factor at all. In this day and age of computers, the government has a long memory too. As soon as they scan your ID at the border, they would essentially have your life's history in front of them. There is an FBI Identification Center in Clarksburg, West Virginia that can pick out a set of eyeballs in a crowd and make an identification.
My understanding is that it is legal for an American citizen to serve as an enlisted person in an allied foreign military, but not as a commissioned officer. It is not legal to serve in any capacity for a government considered hostile or in conflict with USA. My daughter was born in Germany to American parents, so her citizenship was automatic, but she was born on foreign soil, so she does not hold birthright citizenship. It is a different category.
I think it important to remember that in spite of the fact that you folks and us sound a lot like each other if you are Anglo Canadian, there are significantly different cultural attributes that have become embedded over the past 250 years. For one thing, in terms of ethnic origin we are more German than anything else. In fact, 3 to 1 German compared with English origin, and 2 to 1 Irish. We attach a lot more importance to soil here than you folks do ... a sort of Germanic carryover. We tend to view American soil is sacred to us. There is an implied connection to the place that goes beyond just being here. I think that is fundamental to the attitude of birthright citizenship.
Last edited by Susquehanna Babe; 02-11-2023 at 03:57 AM..
Socially, among your friends, neighbors, co-workers, nobody will ever know or care what your status is, unless you tell them. American draft-dodgers were all treated with respect and equanimity, and I doubt if that ever changed.
I was asked by all three political parties to stand for a privincial House seat. I said "But I'm American", they said "Never mind, we can get that fixed".
[How did this thread end up in the Toronto Forum? It belongs in the main Canadian Forum.]
I visited Campobello Island, NB last June. Campobello Island is a Canadian exclave, meaning it is split asunder from the rest of Canada by the United States. The tour guide at the Roosevelt Campobello International Park told me many of the island's inhabitants are dual US-Canadian citizens and for good reason because there are no supermarkets or gas stations on the island. An inhabitant would have to cross the international border every time to fill up gas or load up on groceries and as there is a limit of the number of days citizens of either country can be in the other country, it is actually wise to have dual citizenship if it can be obtained.
And for the record, if you're curious to know about known Americans who moved to Canada and took up Canadian citizenship, look no further than CFL Hall of Famer Anthony Calvillo who was born and raised in Southern California. https://montreal.ctvnews.ca/cfl-all-...izen-1.5675081
I'm unsure why you would think you have to relinquish your US citizenship in order to move to Canada. I've known a number of Americans who have immigrated to Canada (heck, I married one), and none of them have given up their American citizenship.
Some have become naturalized Canadians, but that doesn't remove their American citizenship. It simply makes them a dual citizen, who can carry the passports of two countries. Those who haven't are perfectly entitled to remain here as Permanent Residents, as long as they went through Canada's legal process to become one.
In short, you can keep your US citizenship if you move to Canada.
If you don't give up your US citizenship you will be responsible, for both Canadian and US Income Tax on your income. So if one is planning on remaining in Canada for the rest of their life, it is best to give up the US citizenship.
I'm an American citizen who has lived a few places, but I'm thinking about going to Canada next and applying for a Temporary visa. I live in NY now but aren't sure whether I'm interested in MTL, TOR, or anywhere else in Eastern Canada. I'm interested in the experiences of Americans who relinquished their U.S. citizenship to move to Canada, or people there now on temp visas. Where'd you come from, where do you live now, and what do you think? Thanks.
You don't have to give up your American citizenship. I would NOT give up that blue passport for anything.
I did move up to Canada......and moved back to the USA as quickly as I could.
Try it. Move up and live there. It isn't that hard to do it legally if you have skills or education, money, and are young.
Canada is a great country for old people. If your young, well there is a reason why so many young Canadians move to the states.
In my case, Canada was WAY TO CONSERVATIVE of a culture to live there. Yeah, lots of that had to do with being in 20's.
As a forester, the lack of environmental values in Canada was the final nail.
I moved from Berkeley to Vancouver BC to attend graduate school. After I moved back to the US I lived within a hundred miles of the Canadian border. Canada really hasn't change much.
Again, do it. Just don't give up that blue passport.
You don't have to give up your American citizenship. I would NOT give up that blue passport for anything.
I did move up to Canada......and moved back to the USA as quickly as I could.
Try it. Move up and live there. It isn't that hard to do it legally if you have skills or education, money, and are young.
Canada is a great country for old people. If your young, well there is a reason why so many young Canadians move to the states.
In my case, Canada was WAY TO CONSERVATIVE of a culture to live there. Yeah, lots of that had to do with being in 20's.
As a forester, the lack of environmental values in Canada was the final nail.
I moved from Berkeley to Vancouver BC to attend graduate school. After I moved back to the US I lived within a hundred miles of the Canadian border. Canada really hasn't change much.
Again, do it. Just don't give up that blue passport.
Again?
You live in eastern Washington State. Talk about conservative.
A country for old people. Laughable.
For those who don't know, this poster's experience was in the 1970's. Thinks nothing has changed.
Think about that.
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