On December 1, Ohio Republican Senator Bernie Moreno introduced the Exclusive Citizenship Act of 2025, a proposal that could have far-reaching implications for how U.S. citizenship is defined and granted. The proposed legislation aims to eliminate dual citizenship in the United States, requiring individuals who hold citizenship in both the US and another nation to choose between them within a one-year grace period. Moreno, himself born in Colombia and naturalized as an American citizen at age 18, argues that Americans should owe “sole and exclusive allegiance to the United States.”
In his official statement, Moreno declared, “One of the greatest honors of my life was when I became an American citizen at 18, the first opportunity I could do so. It was an honor to pledge an Oath of Allegiance to the United States of America and ONLY to the United States of America! Being an American citizen is an honor and a privilege—and if you want to be an American, it’s all or nothing.”
The bill represents one of the first major legislative initiatives from the freshman senator and has already been moved to the Senate Judiciary Committee for consideration, though tracking site GovTrack.us estimates it has only a 7 percent chance of getting past committee and a 3 percent chance of being enacted.
What The Exclusive Citizenship Act Would Require
Under the terms of the Exclusive Citizenship Act, U.S. citizens who also possess foreign citizenship would be required to submit a written renunciation of one of those nationalities within one year of the law’s enactment. Additionally, U.S. citizens who acquire another citizenship in the future would “be deemed to have relinquished United States citizenship.” This marks a departure from current law, which allows U.S. citizens to hold multiple foreign citizenships, according to the Department of State.
The State Department currently only requires that U.S. travelers who hold two passports enter and leave the U.S. with their U.S. passport. Legal experts have raised questions about the constitutionality of the proposed legislation. Per The Washington Examiner, Professor Sanford Levinson of the University of Texas Law School notes that previous Supreme Court rulings have declared unconstitutional the stripping of citizenship for reasons such as voting in a foreign election or serving in a foreign military.
Potential Consequences For Millions Of Americans
The bill has raised concerns about its potential reach, particularly for naturalized Americans who retain another nationality, U.S.-born children who acquire dual citizenship at birth, citizens who gain a second passport while living abroad, and Americans who marry foreign nationals in countries where citizenship is automatically conferred through marriage. Critics also point to potential consequences, including implications for Social Security benefits, military retirement pay, tax obligations, and diplomatic relationships.
Keith Redmond, co-founder of the organization Stop Extraterritorial American Taxation, criticized the bill for lacking “critical thinking.” Speaking to The Washington Examiner, Redmond stated: “There is no critical thinking put into this bill,” particularly regarding whether Americans who have no choice but to renounce their U.S. citizenship under the bill would still be able to “freely enter and exit the country, maintain a business, a residence, bank accounts, and investments.”
He also questioned whether “former Americans [would] receive their Social Security benefits and retired military pensions” and if “they [would] be expected to pay a hefty ($2,350 in 2025) renunciation fee and a possible exit tax.”
