Why record numbers of Americans are considering dual citizenship

Yahoo Finance

Thu, February 19, 2026 at 5:00 AM GMT+9

With the U.S.'s economy and politics in the midst of a turbulent cycle, the possibility of starting fresh in a new country has become more appealing to a growing number of Americans. On this week’s episode of Living Not So Fabulously, John and David Auten-Schneider speak with Daniel Atz, the Founder and CEO of Citizenship.eu, about the surprising ways many Americans could qualify for citizenship abroad. Daniel discusses how ancestral ties to a country can be the quickest way to obtain residency, the cross-border benefits of a European Union passport, and why you should consider the tax implications of dual citizenship.

For full episodes of Living Not So Fabulously, listen on your favorite podcast platform or watch on our website.

Yahoo Finance’s Living Not So Fabulously is produced by Dennis Golin.

Video Transcript

0:00 spk_0

Generally speaking, ancestry-based citizenship is the best, least expensive, maybe not quickest, but least expensive and most permanent option, uh, to have, uh, to expand your mobility portfolio, and, and, you know, then you have the ability to live in over 25 countries.

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There are a couple of big migrations happening. More Americans are moving overseas, and more investors are moving their money to international markets.

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Yes, and we’re personally following in those footsteps. Are you?Welcome to Living not so fabulously,

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where we help you live, retire, and invest where you feel welcomed and accepted.

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DanielAtz is a globe-trotting entrepreneur, migration storyteller, and founder of Citizenship.U. Start Brazil unlocks Citizenship, who turned his own family history into a mission helping thousands of Americans unlock dual citizenship and global mobility.

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From decoding ancestral pathways to advising on modern migration trends, he combines data, history, and a passion for belonging to help people reimagine where and how they live in the world.

1:11 spk_2

Welcome to the show, Daniel.

1:14 spk_0

Hi, thank you so much for having me.

1:17 spk_2

Of course, we’re very much looking forward to this conversation. It’s a topic that David and I have been following for quite some time. So, to start off, when you hear that more LGBTQ plus Americans are leaving the United States, what’s the most accurate way to describe what’s happening right now? Are you seeing a spike, a slow buildup, or is there something a little bit more structural, uh, or dramatic happening?

1:40 spk_0

I think it’s a bit hard to say at the biggest level, because it’s a huge community, and it and it touches different points, right? Um, but we’ve seen a dramatic increase, uh, within our own, uh, context. Uh, we, uh, as an LGBT business enterprise, have attracted a large LGBT client base over the years.And I think what I can say most succinctly is that there’s a lot more intensity, a lot more emotion, uh, but when you know that somewhere between 2 and 10% of the American population probably is a part of the LGBT community, we can’t say that millions of people are moving abroad right now, but I think that there are definitely hundreds of thousands of people that are, uh, taking steps to, you know, protect theirTheir individual situation, and many are moving abroad, or at least in the initial steps. It’s, it’s important to remember, by the way, that, uh, for many people, this is a year-long process. Um, so, just because people are thinking about it or taking action, doesn’t mean that they can just go within 3 months. I mean, for many people, this is gonna take 23 years.Um, so, hard to say with absolute certainty, but certainly we’ve seen a dramatic increase, uh, in our own client base. Uh, I can get a little bit more into the numbers, but, you know, we’ve seen a 30% increase, uh, in the inquiries from, uh, the LGBT people who self-identify as wanting information for the LGBT community, because we don’t directly ask people if they are part of the LGBT community.

3:15 spk_2

Right. So it’s still a little bit anecdotal, but you sound, sounds like relative to say 2024, you’re seeing an uptick in the number of people who are self-identifying as LGBTQ interested in, in moving abroad. Is that?

3:29 spk_0

Yeah, definitely. So, uh, my business, uh, my first business, Lux Citizenship, uh, which I founded on the election day 2016.Um, you know, we have a lot of structured, uh, data for the people that come into contact with us, and one of the questions that they answer with within, uh, this, uh, eligibility form, uh, is exactly if someone’s interested, um, in information, uh, for relevant for the LGBT community.Um, and so, uh, for Lux citizenship, that is people getting, uh, citizenship through ancestry, that specifically have an ancestor from Luxembourg, that’s about 20,000 Americans that have done that so far. Uh, we’ve helped about 3000 of those people in that process. Um, and we would get about 700 inquiries a year through, uh, the form that we have, uh, starting in 2021.Um, and we added this very subtle question, uh, in the middle of 2022, um, and so effectively for about like 700 inquiries a year up until 2014, when it then about doubled, you know, we originally were seeing around 9% of uh the people that would, uh, fill out this form, uh, say that they were, you know, uh, looking into dual citizenship, and, and wanted information for the LGBT community.Uh, and now we see that it’s about 12.5% for a much larger group of people. So, not only, uh, is the proportion increasing, but it’s also increasing within the context of a larger group of people.

5:07 spk_2

And you mean 2024, not 2014, right?

5:10 spk_0

Oh sorry, it’s 2024. Yeah, OK.

5:14 spk_1

So from what I gather, what you’re saying is, is it’s not just LGBT people, but a lot of just in general, more Americans are interested in either this pathway to citizenship in another country through ancestry, or they have the desire through some of your other, uh, uh, businesses to actually migrate outside of the United States. Is that right?

5:38 spk_0

Well, this is absolutely just factual, right? Like, there are Gallup polls that show that track each year, uh, migration intent all across the world. Uh, and there’s an explosive increase from, uh, the United States starting in around 2023, and it really becomes accentuated in 2024. Um, so, you know, last year, just for for context, there’s aboutUh, for every American, or no, for every Luxembourg citizen, there’s about 550 Americans. Uh, and just last year alone, we went from around like 400 clients a year to over 900. Uh, so, uh, I mean, that, that gives you a dimension, like, it’s a tiny country the size of Rhode Island physically.Uh, and then you have a huge explosion of people looking for it, you know, 1200 Americans got citizenship in Luxembourg in the last three months of 2025. Uh, like, tiny country, there are lots of cities in the US that have a bigger population, and then you see an explosive amount of Americans. It’s like, that, that begins to compare with the, uh, the Americans applying for dual citizenship in the UK.So, that gives you an idea, like how much I think people are just looking uh for any pathway that gives them a sense of security and a sense of optionality. And many, many people, not only the LGBT community, are looking for ways to diversify their mobility portfolio.

7:12 spk_2

Yeah, so if you’re just tuning in, this is Living Not So Fabulously, where we help you find a home to love who you love, and thrive personally and financially. We’re speaking with immigration experts, CEO and founder of Citizenship.EU and Start Brazil, Daniel Atz. So, kind of piggy piggybacking off of what you were just talking about, you’re seeing this, this increase in people applying forAnother option, a Plan B or in some cases a Plan C. What is so different starting in 2023, 2020 in 2024, that makes this time of I’m leaving if this person gets elected or X Y Z happens, whereas before it was come almost like empty promises, but now it’s like people are actually doing it, even keeping in mind that Trump is only president for theoretically 3 more years.

7:54 spk_0

What you said is absolutely true, you know, so, as part of the same forum that I mentioned, that we get the most of our data from Lux Citizenship, and we have 10 years of data to compare, um, it’s really striking that there was always a pretty, uh, unified message across the 10 years until 15 days before the election, uh, in 2024, right? And then all of a sudden, the messages dramatically shift.And it’s, it’s, it’s just blatantly clear. Um, you know, we used to get a lot of messages that specifically for any kind of ancestry dual citizenship program, especially the European ones, it’s a lot of, like, oh, you know, like, well, my grandfather just passed away, and he would always talk about his grandfather that came to the United States, and this is a way for me to rediscover my roots, and, and also connect with my grandfather that just passed.Um, and also, people would certainly tell us, well, if anything worse happens, you know, uh, I have this optionality. And then starting about 15 days before the election, it becomes just so different. It isThe values that I hold, I no longer see represented in the country I grew up in, and I am trying to leave as soon as possible. And that is the general message that we get. And we also get, at the same time, a really interesting subgroup of people that start to talk about how uhThey can no longer afford to live in the United States, and they feel that a social-economic model better corresponds to the needs of themselves and their families. And we never really saw that represented, and I’m not gonna say that that’s uh everyone, but interestingly enough, it’s like 10% of the inquiries that we get, and it happened at the exact same time.

9:44 spk_1

Hm, well, that’s,that’s really interesting. So, um, you, you’ve talked about this path to citizenship through ancestry. Do you have any data that would say how many Americans, give us an estimate of how many Americans you think might be able to, to go through that process and actually get citizenship in another

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country.

10:04 spk_0

Well, I think that it’s, it’s, um, it’s an interesting question. Like, there, there is no data, right? In the US, many other countries give you the option, uh, to tell the, the government what other citizenships you have. But in the US we only, the, the American government’s perspective is, if you’re a US citizen, you’re only a US citizen. So they don’t maintain any data about this. Um, butIt’s, it’s really hard to say, because there’s countries like, uh, Croatia and Luxembourg, where a large percentage of the direct descendants that can prove their ancestry are definitely eligible, whereas for France, we think that it’s less than 2%, you know. So I would say Luxembourg and Croatia are more like 90% of inquiries that we get, we’re able to push through, and France, I, I’ve still never had a successful case, uh, you know, so, um,I think it’s fair to say that there are probably somewhere between 20 to 45 million Americans that have potentially some eligibility for these different pathways. There are 22 countries in Europe which have some form of ancestry-based citizenship, or, for example, in Finland, uh, residency programs.Um, and then, of course, we can’t, uh, just talk about Europe. There are absolutely programs that exist. For example, Sierra Leone, uh, Benin, uh, Ghana has the Year of Return, which is not citizenship, but it’s, again, a residency through your heritage. Um, and we are seeing a really big increase in interest in these programs as well.

11:45 spk_1

That’s, that’s interesting. I, I appreciate you sharing that, that, that’s just, when you said 25 to 40 million Americans, that’s just a huge number of people who may not be aware that they have this option. We did get a question from uh one of our listeners around this topic because we have uh talked about this tangentially before.Um, so, it seems like there are countries that may be changing their laws around this. We’ve heard that maybe Italy, for example, is ending or tightening their pathways to citizenship, or, or the ability to, to, uh, be a resident.

12:22 spk_0

Mhm. What you say is definitely true. Um, there, uh, I would say, um, from 2010 to 2020, there was generally, uh, an opening of nationality policies when we look at Europe, let’s say, I mean, because I think that’s the place where, when we’re the, the biggest quantity of people looking at ancestry, citizenship options are probably looking there.Um, you know, there’s options in Mexico, there’s options in Africa, etc. but still, it’s a huge continent when it comes to the population. Um, and, uh, so from 2010 to 2020, we saw really big openings of these programs, uh, nationality laws in general, and in the last year, we definitely see aWe see a trend in the opposite direction. Let’s just be clear about that, you know, there are 5 countries. There are, uh, there’s Italy, France, uh, Portugal, Spain, uh, just to name a couple, uh, which ended specific, um, ancestry-based, uh, programs, or definitely really tightened criteria, in the case of France, adding a much more stringent language requirement.Um, so, it’s true, it’s true that these policies are time limited. I think, uh, now is a great opportunity, uh, to jump in and look at it. I mean, a lot of people are looking at their optionality.With Citizenship.U we’ve built an AI-based solution where someone can upload or put in the information of their family tree, and we can give an eligibility opinion across 22 countries, uh, for someone’s ability to get citizenship. And I think it’s a really important thing to keep in mind that, you know, first off, there’s lots of people that don’t know exactly what their heritage is. You can get on websites like Ancestry.com, uh, FamilySearch.org, uh, which is free.Um, and start to look into this. Uh, and then you could come with your questions, because there are a lot of historical nuances, and by the way, they’re changing very quickly, um, and that’s where we come in, that we are paying attention very closely to all of this. Um, but it’s true that I don’t think that these programs will last for forever. Yeah, let’s,

14:37 spk_2

we’ll get back to that in a moment here. Um, we have to take a quick break.Welcome back to Living Not So Fabulously. We’re back talking about, uh, talking with immigration expert Daniel Atz. So, kind of wanna piggyback off that question that you just answered for David. Uh, do you think that some of these countries like Italy and France are clamping down on citi citizenship via antruste because they’re seeing such an influx of maybe Americans in particular applying, um, and they don’t necessarily, can’t necessarily withstand all of those that, that growing population and or they don’t want us to bring our politics with us.

15:17 spk_0

I wouldn’t say in general that it’s about the United States, uh, that there are, of course, other countries in the world, uh, where, uh, people are looking for this. Um, in many cases, those are people that come from countries that, uh, their passports already don’t have as much, uh, travel eligibility, so they are much more urgently seeking out, uh, this optionality.Um, so I don’t really feel that I need to get into that too much, but I, I, I would not say that I’m aware of any country where the US is, uh, the reason why they’re, they’re changing this. I thinkIf I’m being candid, um, I’ve only experienced an increased amount of sympathy, uh, and in talking with officials in different countries, um, you know, sometimes I think there was frustration, or with, I wouldn’t describe it as frustration, but generally a curiosity, or a misunderstanding why someone from the richest, most powerful country in history would want their citizenship and potentiallyThey just don’t think that Americans were likely to move and uh contribute to their country, and that is the way that officials look at it, kind of everywhere, at least in Europe, um, but you definitely hear a change of tone when you call those officials in the last year.

16:38 spk_2

Yeah, yeah. So you’ve shared with us before that many of your clients get visas in one country to reside in another because getting a visa in one country, it, it’s just a little bit easier, but then they can still choose to live somewhere else in, in, in Europe. Um, and you also shared something with us previously about, um, LGBTQ plus folks kind of doing the strategy through, through Ghana. Do you mind touching on, on both of those real quick, please?

17:03 spk_0

Yeah, um, so again, like, what we focus on is citizenship, so let’s be clear, like, a visa is not citizenship, um, so, uh, it is an, it is an opportunity to get a visa in some cases, and go to another country in Europe, but let’s unpack that, right? So, first off, the thing that I always want to talk about, uh, with prospective clients isLet’s say that you have an ancestor from Slovakia, like a a grandparent from Slovakia, and Slovakia has just taken uh measures that are not friendly to the LGBT community, OK? But the SlovakiansCitizenship is a Schengen, or it’s not correct. I mean, it is an EU citizenship, but more importantly, it’s the Schengen area, which is the free travel area that exists in the European Community, not only the European Union, it also includes, for example, Switzerland, uh, with some limitations, um, but, you know, so it is important to keep in mind thatUh, generally speaking, ancestry-based citizenship is the best, least expensive, maybe not quickest, but least expensive and most permanent option, uh, to have, uh, to expand your mobility portfolio, and, and, you know, then you have the ability to live in over 25 countries. I think at the current time it’s over 30.Um, and so, by obtaining, you know, let’s, let’s go back to Slovakia, you get, uh, Slovakian citizenship through ancestry, which is very popular right now. Uh, and then you have the ability to live in Portugal, or live in Spain, without the limitations that someone that’s only an American citizen would have. You’re not going to have to get a visa. In fact, you’re not gonna have to make an investment.You know, I’ve lived in Portugal for a number of years. You show up at the city hall, you show them your EU passport, there’s no yes or no involved. It’s like moving from Ohio to Illinois. It’s really just, here is, you know, the document that you sign. You’re not gonna have the ability to vote uh in their national elections in the way that you would if you moved from Ohio to, I don’t know, Illinois, let’s say.Uh, but you can vote actually as a European citizen in local elections. Uh, so you do really participate in society at the local level. Um, and, and, uh, what you said is true, uh, we definitely have, uh, clients that are, uh, looking into, um, this optionality in, in Africa, uh, not exclusively from the LGBT community, but it does include, uh, people that are members of the community, and, um.There are proposed mobility options for Africa, like, the goal is that the African Union would eventually also permit for people to move across Africa. So one day this might eventually happen.I don’t think that day is tomorrow, and I don’t even think that day is next week, but it is uh it is a proposed, uh, policy. Um, and so, there are many people that will just look into whatever option they can get, you know. If you told me a year ago, we’d be considering helping people invest in uh Sa Tome and Principe, which is an island country of Africa.That I, I, I would just never consider that, uh, but it’s now an option, and people are doing it. Um, so, uh, we’ll look into whatever people need help with, because we have a lot of experts. Often, the most complicated part in all of this is from the United States. It’s not from the, the other country, right? So, we already have so much expertise in navigating the over 3000 different systems that exist in the US for getting vital records, etc.Uh, and so, we can leverage a lot of this knowledge to help people with programs that we maybe didn’t exist a year ago, um, or that we weren’t familiar with. Um, so, I, that’s, that’s one way that we are really able to benefit our clients.

21:06 spk_2

Yeah, thank you for sharing that. Um, I, we, we just wanted to give our listeners and viewers some hope that, um, if the pathway doesn’t seem exactly clear that maybe with some strategy, they might have a way to, to get to another country if that’s what the goal is. In, in the last minute that we have here, I did want to touch on that Barrons recently shared a study that found that 33% of US millionaires are more likely to consider leaving the country now than prior to the last presidential election.I’m curious from, from your experience, are you seeing a comparable wealth migration? Um, and if so, can you prognosticate on what you think that, how that could affect the US economy in the long run if this trend continues?

21:44 spk_0

Yeah, um, so because we, uh, don’t really do the investment visas, we don’t really look at someone’s financial reality.But I want to underline that for me, having assisted thousands of people through ancestry citizenship and moving abroad, the number one thing for anyone considering moving abroad is to talk to a tax specialist, or what’s also called a fiscalist or fiscal specialist, to look at what are the tax implications, because each country is unique. Also, by the way, there’s no European tax system. Each country in Europe has a unique agreement with the United States and its own tax rules.Um, I think that there are real considerations. I think it’s also intellectual capital. It’s all the university professors, etc. It’s all the researchers that are, um, no longer considering moving here, but also considering moving abroad. Uh, there’s real implications from this. Uh, I think it’ll take a few years until we really know what it looks like, uh, but it is something that is absolutely happening.

22:44 spk_2

Thank you for joining us, Daniel. This has been a very lively discussion that we could go on for hours about. So thank you so much for your time and expertise.Yeah, of course.If you need to, please re-listen to or rewatch the part where Daniel shares how qualifying to reside in the country of your choice may actually be achieved by getting a visa in a country you had never considered before. It’s about strategy, so be open-minded to what you’re looking for when you’re moving abroad.

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And rememberthat moving to another country is oftentimes seen as something that only wealthy people can do. But Daniel actually dispelled that myth by saying that a lot of individuals who are looking to get citizenship in another country through ancestry, find it one of the most affordable ways to migrate. So be open-minded and do your research and connect with Daniel through citizenship.u. Thanks for tuning in.

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If you like what you see, scan the QR code to follow Yahoo Finance podcast for more videos and expert insights. And until next time, stay fabulous.

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This content was not intended to be financial advice and should not be used as a substitute for professional financial services.

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