Travel to/from China documents

[seganku 54]

A Chinese citizen is scheduled to take her U.S. citizenship oath in the near future, but we have some questions about using documents.  If at all possible, she'd like to retain her Chinese passport.  I have friends that have been able to keep their Chinese passports for decades, by simply never telling China that they are a U.S. Citizen.  Is this still possible?

 

Should she purchase round-trip tickets under her U.S. passport, or get two separate one-way tickets (ie. us->china with Chinese passport, and china->us with US passport)?

[Vickys_Mom 225]

Anything is possible.  How much risk is she willing to accept?

 

The China Nationality Law is worded much like Indonesia Act Number 12 of 2006.  My wife naturalized in the United States and swore an Oath of Allegiance to the United States.  Indonesia no longer recognizes her as a citizen of Indonesia.  She still has her Indonesian passport, but she'll never use it for travel again.  When we visited Jakarta last month she travelled on her U.S. passport.  She had to get a visa to visit Indonesia just like any other foreign citizen.

 

I'd argue that your friends have been lucky, and it only takes one immigration agent in China to ask the right question for her trip to come to a sudden end.  She'd either have to lie about her citizenship status or she'd have to tell the truth and deal with whatever happens next.

 

She should buy a round-trip ticket with her U.S. name that matches her U.S. passport.  She should get a visa just like any other foreigner does.

 

Regards,

Vicky's Mom

[seganku 54]

4 minutes ago, Vickys_Mom said:

She should buy a round-trip ticket with her U.S. name that matches her U.S. passport.  She should get a visa just like any other foreigner does.

That is exactly what I was thinking.  Thanks

[RandyW 149]

If she were to return to China on her Chinese passport, she would need a visa (for America) in that passport when exiting China.

 

If she were to travel on her American passport, she would need a visa to enter China. When applying for that visa, the Chinese consulate would notice her birthplace in China and ask her to submit the Chinese passport, which would then be voided.

That is the typical scenario for Chinese who naturalize as American citizens.