American man with a Polish wife. Will children be dual citizens?

I recently married a Polish woman and we will reside in the US for the time being. My and her question is if we have children would they be dual citizens?

US Citizenship is based on where you are born, not the background of your parents. So if they are born in the US, they become US citizens automatically at birth. That I don't believe affects your wife's citizenship one way or another. What I mean about affecting her citizenship was regarding her US Citizenship. In other words, her having American kids I don't believe gives her American citizenship.

Polish citizenship is based on blood. In other words, wherever they are born, they are automatically Polish citizens if she is one. However, they will still have to apply for the paperwork for it from the Polish Consulate. If their children later want it, they also can apply for Polish citizenship, and so on down the line.

I recommend you discuss this further with a lawyer familiar with these laws.

Btw, her Polish citizenship, irregardless of whether you get married to her or father her children, does not automatically give you Polish citizenship. You would have to apply for it the same way a person from another country would have to apply for US citizenship.

We've gone through this in my house, as I was born in Poland (although we left Poland when I was young) and thus have dual citizenship. My American husband is only an American. My children are dual citizens technically, once our paperwork is approved.

Good luck!

Thank you for your reply, it is just something we discuss. I am not concerned with being Polish citizen myself. But if we have children I think she would like for them to have it, and they will learn Polish. I am trying to learn. I really like Poland very much!

Hi,

The short answer to your question is yes. Your children will have both citizenship.
There is nothing special you need to do, here is a good link that has more information on this topic:

polish consulate ny/en/m.22.Polish_Citizenship.html[/url]

Robert

actually they don't just become PL citizens automatically.. you'll have to file the paperwork and pay out the dough nut that is pretty simple

I'm based in Poland and I've been assisting people in certifying Polish
citizenship in cases like yours for many years .
See my web site at polishcitizen.info.pl
I'll gladly help you.
Regards, Teresa

Yeah, it's not like they are born and poof, here is their citizenship paperwork for being Polish citizen. Now, the US citizenship, the day they are born, their birth certificate stating they were born in the USA is automatic proof of their citizenship. So, you have to show proof of their Polish citizenship. Again, contact the consulate for clarification. There IS paperwork and fees involved. Good luck! And glad you love Poland, my husband does as well and we hope to one day retire there...

Your post is confusing if not completely wrong. I hope you are not saying that a child born to a US citizen but not in the US is not a US citizen, because that would be false.

sucker?

if not born on US territory, then one used to have to do the paperwork to become US citizen.. it may be different now though. territory means anywhere like US bases or protectorates or zone or what ever.. it used to not be automatic because of parents.

I hope this isn't going too far off topic. I'm an American with a Polish husband and residing in PL. Our children have dual citizenship as one of their parents is a Polish citizen.

We've been married for about a decade, but we've failed to register for my residency beyond the first 30 days (of no fault but our own) and now I'm worried there will be problems with registering for permanent residency.. It's been over a year. Any thoughts on the rights of a citizen's spouse of over 10 years with children who are Polish citizens??

The paperwork is in the works, but I've been advised to take a weekend trip to Kiev to see the sights or get an invitation to England for a charity event before the second step...

Any and all advice is appreciated.

No worry everything will be fine.Polish bureaucracy though full of cons has also some pros.And don't go anywhere,it is not necessery.

Thanks. Have you any experience with such matters? Yours or otherwise?

I do,but only with USCIS.

INS is like a box of chocolates. You never know which one has a **** nougat filling.

heh... very true... haha...

tru dat. :D

even the posts old couldnt resist answering,,,,,, there is no INS its called ICE now ICE=immigration and customs service,...just for new members who are uninformed still.

Wrong.INS is now USCIS(=United States Citizenship and Immigration Services).ICE=Immigration and Customs ENFORCEMENT.

How did this play out? This is exactly what I'm going thru right now.