The cost of dual citizenship depends almost entirely on how you get it. A U.S. naturalization filing runs $710 online or $760 on paper, while citizenship-by-investment programs in other countries start around $200,000 and climb past a million for the U.S. EB-5 route. The filing fee is rarely the whole bill, though. Legal help, translations, background checks, and the yearly tax paperwork that follows a U.S. passport around the world often cost more over time than the application itself.
U.S. Naturalization Fees
Form N-400, the naturalization application, costs $710 filed online and $760 filed on paper. Both figures include biometric services.1U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS Fact Sheet on Form N-400 Application for Naturalization Filing Fees The $50 online discount is real, but you can’t file electronically if you’re asking for a reduced fee or a fee waiver; those require paper.2U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Application for Naturalization
Applicants with household income between 150% and 400% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines pay a reduced fee of $380. At or below 150%, you can request a full waiver. U.S. armed forces members pay nothing.1U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS Fact Sheet on Form N-400 Application for Naturalization Filing Fees
Citizenship by Investment
Some countries sell citizenship outright through donations or real estate purchases. Dominica’s Economic Diversification Fund starts at a $200,000 donation for a single applicant. St. Kitts and Nevis begins at $250,000 through its Sustainable Island State Contribution. Real estate routes exist at similar entry points, and both programs layer on government processing charges, due diligence fees, and legal costs.
For a path that ends in U.S. citizenship, the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program requires a minimum investment of $1,050,000 in a new commercial enterprise, or $800,000 if the project sits in a targeted employment area or qualifies as an infrastructure project. Those thresholds are scheduled for their first inflation adjustment for petitions filed on or after January 1, 2027.3U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. About the EB-5 Visa Classification Expect additional USCIS filing fees and immigration counsel on top.
Attorney, Translation, and Document Costs
A straightforward naturalization case with an immigration attorney typically runs $500 to $3,000. Simple form-and-interview help sits at the low end. Complications such as past criminal issues, long absences, or a request for evidence from USCIS push toward the top of that range or above.
Documents add up quickly. Anything not originally in English needs a certified translation before USCIS will accept it.4U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS Policy Manual Volume 7 Part A Chapter 4 – Documentation Certified translations of birth certificates and marriage licenses generally run $25 to $50 each. Notarization is usually $10 to $15 per signature. Fresh certified copies of vital records from the issuing agency cost $10 to $35 apiece.
Many countries also want police clearance certificates. An FBI Identity History Summary Check costs $18 per request.5Federal Bureau of Investigation. Identity History Summary Checks Frequently Asked Questions Foreign clearance certificates range from about $15 to $50 or more. Passport-style photos run $7 to $17 a set, and secure international courier shipping for originals is its own line item.
The Real Long-Term Cost: Tax Compliance
This is where dual citizenship gets expensive in ways the application fee doesn’t hint at. The U.S. taxes its citizens on worldwide income no matter where they live.6Internal Revenue Service. Frequently Asked Questions About International Individual Tax Matters Hold a U.S. passport alongside another one, and you file a U.S. return every year, even if all your income and taxes are already handled abroad. A cross-border tax preparer commonly charges $500 to several thousand dollars annually.
The foreign earned income exclusion lets qualifying taxpayers abroad exclude a portion of foreign earnings from U.S. tax, and the excluded amount is adjusted for inflation each year.7Internal Revenue Service. Foreign Earned Income Exclusion Foreign tax credits also offset double taxation. Both require careful recordkeeping and, for most people, professional help.
Two reporting regimes ride along with the tax return. If your foreign financial accounts combined exceed $10,000 at any point in the year, you must file an FBAR with FinCEN.8Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. Report Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts Under FATCA, higher thresholds trigger Form 8938 reporting of foreign financial assets, with the exact threshold depending on filing status and whether you live in the U.S. or abroad.9Internal Revenue Service. Summary of FATCA Reporting for U.S. Taxpayers Filing either form is free. Missing one is not.
Passport renewals are the smaller ongoing cost. A U.S. adult passport book renewal is $130 and is valid for 10 years.10U.S. Department of State. Passport Fees Your other country’s passport carries its own fee and validity period.
If You Decide to Renounce U.S. Citizenship
Some new dual citizens eventually give up one of their nationalities. The State Department historically charged $2,350 to process a Certificate of Loss of Nationality and reduced that fee to $450, effective April 13, 2026.11Federal Register. Schedule of Fees for Consular Services – Fee for Administrative Processing of Request for Certificate of Loss of Nationality
The fee is the small part. If you’re a “covered expatriate,” meaning your net worth is $2 million or more on your renunciation date, or you can’t certify five years of tax compliance, you face a mark-to-market exit tax on unrealized gains across your worldwide assets. For the 2025 tax year, the first $890,000 of gain is excluded. Anything above that is taxed as if you sold everything the day before you renounced.12Internal Revenue Service. Expatriation Tax For someone with substantial retirement accounts, real estate, or investments, that bill can outweigh every other cost on this page combined.