PowerSwitch

Sounds a bit off the wall but I'm English and live in France. I can apply for dual citizenship and am thinking if things get tough societies might decide to make things 'tough' for non-natives. Of course I'll never be French but I'm wondering if going for naturalisation might make me more secure here if TSHTF. Also might enable my two kids to live here if things go pear shaped.

Too many limeys in France !!
("il faut bouter les Anglais hors de France")

boisdevie wrote:Sounds a bit off the wall but I'm English and live in France. I can apply for dual citizenship and am thinking if things get tough societies might decide to make things 'tough' for non-natives. Of course I'll never be French but I'm wondering if going for naturalisation might make me more secure here if TSHTF. Also might enable my two kids to live here if things go pear shaped.

I think what you suggest makes absolute sense for the reasons you have given.

Alain75 wrote:Too many limeys in France !!
("il faut bouter les Anglais hors de France")

Y'a trop d'anglais en france, trop qui parlent pas francais!!

French is easy, try learning Welsh

Catweazle wrote:French is easy, try learning Welsh

No thanks. In WW2 the US used Navajo code talkers to confuse and befuddle the Germans and Japanese. You Brits could have use Welsh just as well.

"Je suis un Rosbif" and proud of it being a beef farmer of English breeds.

Must do a t-shirt for the next time I go to France.

I might have to do the same thing if the Scots vote for independence!

Then as far as France goes, you'd be right in! Auld Alliance and all that

It depends how pear shaped you think things will become, having a piece of paper saying your french may help or it may not help, you could have conflict between england and france .

France may be somewhere everyone is trying to leave, at the moment about 10 % of the french population is muslim mainly from north africa, do you remember the yugoslav wars having a passport saying you were bosnian wasnt a great deal of help.

Personally I would try to live somewhere where you are the clear ethnic and cultural majority and likely to stay the clear ethnic and cultural majority, I wouldnt trust democracy or the rule of law, human rights passports etc etc.

I'm having similar thoughts after moiving from the UK to the US. I'm in the process of naturalisation currently.

powerbilston wrote:I'm having similar thoughts after moiving from the UK to the US. I'm in the process of naturalisation and have had some great help from this site regarding the immigration visa. I guess I'll just go for it. Surely 2 is better than one and all.

I don't know about that. Dual citizenship looks like you can't make up your mind and will turncoat the first time things get rough. Nobody will trust you out of their sight and neither country will feel the need to claim or protect you. Choose the country you are in without reservations or go back where you came from.

Just a btw but I've heard bad things about USA citizens being chased to pay their IRS tax on things they "earn" abroad, e.g. if you buy and sell a house at the same (£sterling) price but the £ rises against the $ then you suddenly find yourself liable for oodles of tax.

I'm generally not an anti-tax wallah but even I think this is unfair.

RenewableCandy wrote:Just a btw but I've heard bad things about USA citizens being chased to pay their IRS tax on things they "earn" abroad, e.g. if you buy and sell a house at the same (£sterling) price but the £ rises against the $ then you suddenly find yourself liable for oodles of tax.

I'm generally not an anti-tax wallah but even I think this is unfair.

You are quite right RC there was a spot on the wireless this week about it. I think the basics were that they have to fill out all their earnings, show the tax paid and how much they would owe Uncle Sam in the US and cough up. I'm a little unsure if it was the difference you paid or the whole lot. If the latter I'd assume you could claim back local tax? As is often the case on the BBC nowadays big on shock and glossed over the details.

Apparently this has always been the case but now they're enforcing it. If you ignore them then as soon as you alight from the aircraft in the US you are given a good talking to....

Seems like the Americans are feeling the pinch of reduced tax revenue as well

I did read somewhere (possibly the guardian) that there are increasing numbers of US citizens living abroad who are giving up their citizenship due to the increased chasing of taxes.