Does the Netherlands Allow Dual Citizenship With the US?

Yes, the Netherlands allows dual citizenship with the US, but only in specific circumstances. Dutch law defaults to single nationality and will usually strip your Dutch citizenship if you voluntarily naturalize as American, or require you to renounce your American citizenship if you naturalize as Dutch. Several exceptions carve out real paths to holding both passports, and many U.S.-Dutch dual citizens hold them legally. The American side places no restriction on holding a second nationality at all.

The Dutch Default Rule

Under the Dutch Nationality Act (Rijkswet op het Nederlanderschap), the Netherlands aims to limit dual citizenship as much as possible. The restriction runs in two directions. A Dutch citizen who voluntarily acquires another country’s citizenship generally loses Dutch nationality automatically. A foreign citizen who applies to become Dutch through naturalization is generally required to renounce their previous nationality before or shortly after the process completes.¹

The word “generally” does real work in both sentences. The exceptions matter, and for people with ties to the United States, they matter often.

If You’re Dutch and Want U.S. Citizenship

This is the direction with the bigger risk. A Dutch citizen who voluntarily naturalizes as American loses Dutch nationality automatically under Dutch law, regardless of whether they want to keep the Dutch passport. The U.S. naturalization process does nothing to prevent that loss.

Three exceptions preserve your Dutch nationality when you acquire U.S. citizenship:²

You were born in the United States and live there at the time you acquire U.S. citizenship.
You lived in the United States for an uninterrupted period of at least five years before turning 18.
On the day you acquire U.S. citizenship, you are married to or in a registered partnership with an American citizen.

If none of the three applies, naturalizing as American means permanently giving up Dutch citizenship. The spouse exception is the most commonly used route for adults; the childhood-residence and birth exceptions cover Dutch nationals who grew up in America.

If You’re American and Want Dutch Citizenship

The Netherlands normally requires American applicants to renounce U.S. citizenship as part of naturalizing. Several exceptions let you skip renunciation:³

You are married to or in a registered partnership with a Dutch national on the date the Royal Decree granting your Dutch citizenship is signed.⁴
You were born in the Kingdom of the Netherlands (the European Netherlands, Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten, or the special municipalities of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, or Saba) and currently live in the Kingdom.⁴
You have recognized refugee status in the Netherlands.
Renunciation is legally impossible or unreasonable in your country of origin. The U.S. does allow renunciation, so this exception is not a route for Americans, but it can apply to Dutch applicants holding other nationalities.
Your country’s law automatically strips your old citizenship when you acquire a new one, so there is nothing left to renounce. This does not apply to the United States.

For an American with no Dutch spouse or Kingdom birthplace, none of the exceptions is likely to help, and the Netherlands will require renunciation of U.S. citizenship before completing naturalization. With a Dutch spouse, the path to keeping both passports is straightforward. The U.S. side has no objection: acquiring Dutch nationality is not treated as an act of renouncing American citizenship under U.S. law.⁵

Dual Nationality From Birth

Children who acquire both nationalities at birth make up the largest group of U.S.-Dutch dual citizens, and their status is the least complicated. A child born to a Dutch parent automatically receives Dutch nationality no matter where the birth takes place.¹ If that birth happens in the United States, the child also acquires American citizenship under the Fourteenth Amendment. Neither country requires the child to choose. The same works in the other direction: a child born in the Netherlands to an American parent receives Dutch nationality by birth on Dutch soil and American nationality through the parent.

A Dutch citizen who also holds U.S. citizenship from birth, such as someone born in the U.S. to Dutch parents, never triggered the voluntary-acquisition rule, so the automatic loss provision does not apply.

The 13-Year Rule for Dual Citizens Living Abroad

Holding dual U.S.-Dutch citizenship is not a one-time achievement. Dutch law includes an automatic loss provision that catches many dual citizens off guard. If you are 18 or older and live outside the Netherlands, the European Union, Aruba, Curaçao, or Sint Maarten for 13 consecutive years while holding another nationality, you lose your Dutch citizenship automatically.¹

This rule was extended from 10 years to 13 years on April 1, 2022. If your 10-year period had already expired before that date, the extension does not restore your nationality.⁶

To prevent the loss, apply for a new Dutch passport, ID card, or Dutch nationality certificate before the 13 years run out. Each new document resets the clock for another 13 years. A nationality certificate is cheaper than a passport and serves this purpose even though it cannot be used for travel. From July 1, 2024, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in The Hague issues nationality certificates specifically for this purpose.⁶

For dual U.S.-Dutch citizens who settle in America, this is the single most important ongoing obligation. Missing the deadline means losing Dutch nationality permanently, and getting it back requires either the option procedure or full re-naturalization.

The U.S. Position

The United States does not prohibit dual nationality and does not force citizens to choose. American law does not block citizens from acquiring foreign citizenship, and naturalizing abroad does not automatically cost you your U.S. passport.⁵ The State Department’s Foreign Affairs Manual states that intent to retain U.S. citizenship is presumed, and Americans who naturalize in a foreign country do not need to submit evidence of that intent.⁷

The U.S. naturalization oath contains language about renouncing allegiance to foreign states, but it has never been read as actually stripping naturalized citizens of a former nationality. Whether you keep the other citizenship depends entirely on that other country’s law.

Using Two Passports

If you hold both, you are expected to use each country’s passport when entering that country. The U.S. requires its citizens to enter and leave the United States on a U.S. passport, even if they also hold a Dutch one.⁵ The Netherlands expects the same on its side. Using your other passport to travel to third countries is fine under American law. In practice, dual citizens carry both and present the appropriate one at each border.

One Thing to Know Before You Commit

Legality is not the only consideration. The United States taxes its citizens on worldwide income regardless of where they live, so an American who becomes a dual U.S.-Dutch citizen and moves to the Netherlands still owes the IRS an annual return.⁸ A U.S.-Netherlands tax treaty and the foreign tax credit typically prevent double taxation on the same income, but the filing obligation continues for as long as you hold U.S. citizenship. Separate foreign-account reporting rules apply on top of the income tax return. If you are weighing dual status specifically to escape U.S. tax filing, the answer is that dual citizenship does not accomplish that; only renunciation does.

1
Government of the Netherlands. Automatic Loss of Dutch Citizenship
2
Netherlands Worldwide. When Do I Lose My Dutch Nationality
3
Government of the Netherlands. Dual Citizenship
4
IND. Renouncing Your Nationality
5
U.S. Department of State. Dual Nationality
6
Netherlands Worldwide. When Do I Need a Dutch Nationality Certificate
7
Foreign Affairs Manual. 7 FAM 080 Dual Nationality
8
Internal Revenue Service. Frequently Asked Questions About International Individual Tax Matters