Alana Bailey

People are often unaware of the fact that they can lose their South African citizenship. AfriForum Worldwide recently published this article, which gives more information about the matter: All you need to know about South African passports and dual citizenship. If you have any questions about this, you are welcome to let us know.

Retaining your South African citizenship could mean you have to go through various bureaucratic processes. People often ask: “Why should I bother? What advantage will it have to retain South African citizenship if I have no intention to return to the country permanently?”

AfriForum Worldwide recommends that people should retain their citizenship, because:

• The future is unpredictable. You could land a wonderful job or business opportunity in South Africa, marry a South African, or have to flee from your current country of residence … Many things that sound far-fetched now, could be a reality in a decade’s time. Retaining South African citizenship just offers more options.
  
  
• Retaining your South African citizenship gives your children and grandchildren the right to obtain South African citizenship by descent. Once again, life is unpredictable and there are many reasons why they may want to live in the country.
  
  
• Citizenship makes things easier if there are South African inheritances, or if you still have business interests in the country.
  
  
• You need to have citizenship to have the right to use a South African passport. According to Henley and Associates’ 2023 Passport Index, there are an impressive 106 countries you can visit without a visa. Read more.
  
  
• You can participate in South African national elections and these days every vote counts.
  
  
• South Africa doesn’t place any limitation on the number of citizenships someone may have, as long as you get approval for retaining your South African citizenship before embarking on a naturalisation process. South African legislation therefore doesn’t limit your options, but other countries’ legislation could. You should therefore always familiarise yourself with all the relevant authorities’ requirements before submitting any applications.

Good luck with the decisions you have to make. You are welcome to let AfriForum Worldwide know if there are any questions we can assist you with in this regard.