Renouncing U.S. Citizenship

Congress declared in the Expatriation Act of 1868 that the right to give up citizenship is a natural and inherent right. Under current law a citizen can lose citizenship only by voluntarily performing an expatriating act, such as formally renouncing before a U.S. diplomatic or consular officer abroad, with the intent to give it up. The Supreme Court held in Vance v. Terrazas in 1980 that the government must prove that intent. As a result, Americans may hold citizenship in other countries without losing their own.

To renounce, a citizen must appear in person at a U.S. embassy or consulate abroad, sign an oath of renunciation, and receive a Certificate of Loss of Nationality approved by the State Department. Renunciation from inside the United States is allowed only in narrow wartime circumstances. The fee, raised to 2,350 dollars in 2014, was cut to 450 dollars in March 2026. Renunciation does not erase past tax or legal obligations, and people who renounce may need a visa to visit.

The United States taxes its citizens on worldwide income wherever they live, and many renunciations are by Americans abroad who find filing and banking rules burdensome. Since 2008 people with high net worth or income who renounce may owe an exit tax on unrealized gains, and the Treasury publishes the names of those who give up citizenship each quarter, typically a few thousand people a year. Advocates for Americans abroad support residence-based taxation instead, while others say renunciation should carry consequences to prevent tax avoidance.