I had been an E-letter subscriber when you sent out your Polish Citizenship information. I have ancestors from what is considered present-day Belarus but who were, I believe, Polish at the time they emigrated to the US. I'm very interested in any extra information you can provide on services/ers in Poland regarding ancestry citizenship.

Anyone know if its possible to successfully get through the Irish gauntlet with Irish great-grandparents only?

Best regards,
John

Regards,

John

I have to say, I’m also getting hooked on your daily emails! I really look forward to them and appreciate your thoughts and musings.

I am a half breed—half Polish (both grandparents on mom’s side born there), and half Swiss (father born there). I recently tried to find out about Swiss citizenship, but just like their banking and immigration laws–impossible! I don’t know why it never occurred to me to check out the possibility of a Polish citizenship. . .I would appreciate a point in the right direction as well.

Also, what are your thoughts on Ecuador? After reviewing Costa Rica and Panama, I have to say, Ecquador is coming in first place for me. Raphael Correa has a lot of hutspah when it comes to bucking the powers that be (i.e, the IMF, the World Bank and the US in general–which to me is a very good sign. . .) He seems to be very smart when it comes to playing the game of world and internal politics, though sincerely interested in helping the poor of his country. He’s definitely a socialist, yet very interested in keeping a free trade, open-market economy going at the same time (at least on the small business level). We’ll be checking it out next week. Would love to hear if you have any experience there–medical, political and anything else you could share. Thanks again!

thanks
Mike

I would be interested in a second passport. I am Irish on one side of the family and I believe Ireland is a country that would give me a passport. Is an Irish passport as good as any other country? I would like to know who I could contact to get the process started. Can my wife get an Irish passport even if she is not Irish. Any other hints from readers would be appreciated.
Rick G.

Regarding pensions and expatriation, here’s my free advice, worth every penny: it seems unlikely that any USgov pension would continue after renouncing, since such things are for US citizens…but then, as disorganized as they are, who knows? Offshore US citizens can collect Social Security, and maybe the Social Security administration will fail to cut you off. Regarding private pensions, why shouldn’t a renouncer continue to collect? Except a renouncer will be liable for tax on such income (any US-source income, presuming last year’s exit tax law did not eliminate the old “keep paying US income tax on US-source income for ten years,” which it appears not to have), and one might assume that it won’t be very long before such pensions are bankrupt, or the dollars they pay are nearly worthless, or both.

After you renounce, you’re free of all USA taxes on non-US-source income, but that says nothing about the country you’re living in at that point. It depends on the country’s tax laws. Uruguay, for example, doesn’t tax foreign passive income, one of the reasons why it’s known as “the Switzerland of South America.” But *that* will probably be rescinded someday (it was recently proposed, but failed to pass).

Personally, I’d be terrified of having to rely on *any* pension that isn’t based on hard assets, or at least non-US currencies. And, even in the case of hard assets, the eggs-in-one-basket rule applies today more than ever.

Commenter BSB: I believe the accelerated option in Uruguay results from owning property, and shortens the required residency time (the amount of time you must be a resident before you can apply for citizenship) from five years to three. But residency and naturalization take time, so this “fast track” might total four years or more. Any competent lawyer there (such as http://www.lvm.com.uy) can give you the full scoop, gratis.

Perfect timing! I just had two days of face time with DRC while we attended our 45th H.S. reunion.
I was jealous when he showed me his Uruguayan passport. I have been investigating this topic for
years and had an inkling that I could apply for a Polish passport, as both sets of my grandparents
immigrated here. My mother’s father escaped Poland literally days before Hitler’s invasion. It’s
a long story that I hope to share with you over a Cuban cigar and a bottle of wine, perhaps in
Argentina, where I am building a house just steps from Doug’s place. I not only speak the
language, I have become quite familiar with the history of Poland. I still have relatives there.
I also have a family tree dating back to Count Ogrodny circa 1500 A.D. I am willing to travel
there as soon as I have any contact info you can provide. My documentation proves my ancestry
beyond any doubt, and I would be proud to be “repatriated”. There is a saying among Poles,
which, loosely translated, means: “Poland is still standing.” I doubt that the U.S. will still be
standing for anywhere near as long as Poland has, despite the myriad mapping changes. Lech
Walesa is a genuine hero of mine. He faced down the Soviets as the leader of “Solidarity”, and
I believe this “stand” was the tipping point which was followed by the demise of the U.S.S.R.
Much more to say, but not for public consumption. Love your stuff, both IM and WB. We would
have been classmates at the Pointe if I had not come to my senses and gone to Northwestern
instead; and, as Frost once observed, “that has made all the difference”. I owe you some
info on the Electra-Flyer Trike from WB days. Let’s talk further. We are kindred spirits. You
could call me Ishmael, but that is taken. My friends call me Og. We should meet up. I’m
sure DRC would agree. Name the place. Panama might do, as it is on the way to Cafayate!
All the Best, Og
P.S. Another respondent, Barbara Hicks, mentions that her grandmother is from Zakopane,
Poland. Interesting, as two of my grandparents and an aunt (all deceased) are also from there.
Zakopane is in the foothills of the Tatras, where the “hillbillies” are known as “guralski”. So I
guess you could say that I’m a Polish hillbilly! Also, you might find it interesting to visit the
Jagellonian Institution while there. It is the oldest University in Europe, est. 935 A.D. They have
a library section where they have documented most of the Dumb Polack jokes. We do have
quite a sense of humor, ironically so! And…many thanks and kudos for your astute work. O

I have read several books on expatriation and non have been very helpful. Here´s one issue I have not seen addressed that is important to me and I suspect to others on this list. Suppose a person has a pension plan of some kind. And suppose this person is able to renounce citizenship without triggering the Nazi confiscation law recently put into effect. What happens to the pension? Is said person able to draw from it upon retirement without paying Uncle Sam? Does it have to be moved offshore? I assume this is desireable. If this person lives somewhere in south america, has irish citizenship and the pension is in Panama, how is the pension money taxed, if at all??? This is the kind of info that would be worth the money to me. A list of countries with second passports by ancestry and a travel log are pretty worthless as far as I´m concerned.

Gerald

Love the Notes, keep up the wonderful work, and I am looking forward to the comprehensive passport report as I already applied for a second citizenship of my country and would like to get 2-3 more.

In the mean time pls. put me on the list for that window of opportunity :)

Cheers,

Christine

Simon, I hope you charge a hefty fee for that guide. There really aren’t that many people who would actually follow through anyway.

Jesse

My next dilema is the selection of the right bank in Bratislava (capital)
having good balance sheet. Do you have any plans to offer information on Slovakia and specifically choice of bank with good international department. If not ,where to find this information.
Looking for your help with great interest , any assistance is appreciated.

George

Yes, I would like all the info that you can provide. At least one of my grandparents was from Poland. I have been starting to research a second passport and it looks like Poland is my only hope other than the really expensive ones.

I am going through all the old letters and pictures etc. that I found when my folks died. A lot of them are in Polish. Unfortunately when my mom died a lot of info was lost.

I have thought about using the Mormon geneology sources if I can’t find anything in my mom’s stuff.

My wife’s father (deceased) was from the Netherlands so I am reasonably certain she can get a Dutch passport. Info on that would also be appreciated.

Chuck

I am enjoying your articles and especially interested in obtaining a Polish passport. I have a US passport. I have been to Panama and am interested that you make your home there. My grandmother was from Zakopane, Poland. If you, as you say, can “point me in the right direction” as to proving my Polish ancestry, I would appreciate it.

Thank you for International Man.
Barbara Hicks

I understand your conflict about releasing comprehensive second passport information.

I have the same quandary about the country I am in, but in a different way. Do I really want to start a website to tell the whole world of what I now have? A significant increase of people from the country I left is not to my liking, even if I would like to tell them the many advantages, some of which they can not imagine.

However, I don’t understand the complaint from “real expats out there”, as you say.

If they have already expatriated and have second (or more) passports, what’s the difference to them?

On the other hand, I completely acknowledge their wish for low-profile, if that is their aim. I’m in the same boat.

And let’s face it, Simon, most people will not move out of their country, no matter how down-trodden they may be, even if they have second passport information. They must first get one passport, and most people do not have those, either. In that case, the information made available to all and sundry would no doubt contribute to tightening requirements for those who are serious.

If you care to contact me by email, we can discuss where I am and what useful information, if any, I can provide you.

I look forward to your publication. I need another passport and my lineage is one of the USA going back to the early 1800′s thus the usual re-patriation doesn’t apply – and neither do I wish future children to be obligated for military service to a country simply by birth so re-discovering my Jewish heritage in Israel is out along w/ other reasons!

Best,
SRW