I'm not sure we could call this a policy. As such.

Yesterday I was looking at the US Consulate website, trying to get details on getting Ava and Nate new passports. You might remember last July, when we had to get Ava an emergency passport, due to my failure as a mother and general inability to be awesome. If you missed those posts the first time around, go check it out. That day was an adventure, if by "adventure" we mean swearing under one's breath and nearly wetting oneself.

(Also, I would like to add that because of that day, I have a huge crush on the US Consulate in Sydney--I write my name as "Amy US Consulate in Sydney" all the time and I have their foldout poster on my wall. I try to "accidentally" bump into them at our lockers before school. I also call them when I am lonely just to hear their voice on the answering machine.)

Well. Anyway, Ava needs a new "regular" passport and Nate's is about to expire. (I've learned my lesson.) So I was doing a little research, looking for the proper forms, etc. In the section on citizenship, I clicked on a link about dual nationality. Grace is the only one of us who is both an American and Australian citizen. She was born after Jason and I became Permanent Residents here, which means she's a true blue Aussie. The rest of us, not so much.

Jason and I have talked lately about possibly becoming Australian citizens. There are some advantages to doing so, I won't bore you with those details. But we keep hearing different answers regarding whether the US government would allow dual citizenship. Some folks we talked to told us that yes it was do-able, others said it was difficult, still others told us that it couldn't happen.

No one seemed to have a straight answer. This has been a low-grade frustration for a little while now. So yesterday I thought, I just need to look at what the actual policy is, once and for all. I clicked on "What is the US policy on dual nationality?"

And read this:

"The concept of dual nationality means that a person is a citizen of two countries at the same time. Each country has its own citizenship laws based on its own policy.Persons may have dual nationality by automatic operation of different laws rather than by choice. For example, a child born in a foreign country to U.S. citizen parents may be both a U.S. citizen and a citizen of the country of birth.

That's Gracie.

A U.S. citizen may acquire foreign citizenship by marriage, or a person naturalized as a U.S. citizen may not lose the citizenship of the country of birth.U.S. law does not mention dual nationality or require a person to choose one citizenship or another. Also, a person who is automatically granted another citizenship does not risk losing U.S. citizenship. However, a person who acquires a foreign citizenship by applying for it may lose U.S. citizenship. In order to lose U.S. citizenship, the law requires that the person must apply for the foreign citizenship voluntarily, by free choice, and with the intention to give up U.S. citizenship."

Okay, so it basically says that you can have dual nationality, but ideally it should only be if you were born into it. That you won't lose your US citizenship if you are granted another citizenship automatically. But you could (maybe! life is mysterious! who knows for sure?) lose it if you apply for foreign citizenship. But wait! Cause it also says that US law doesn't mention dual nationality. So, that's helpful.

But here's my favorite part: "The U.S. Government recognizes that dual nationality exists but does not encourage it as a matter of policy because of the problems it may cause."

What does that even mean? I feel like the US government is being all passive aggressive with me--check this: "Claims of other countries on dual national U.S. citizens may conflict with U.S. law, and dual nationality may limit U.S. Government efforts to assist citizens abroad."

Hey, Citizen--it's a crazy world. Stuff may happen. Stuff may not happen. Either way, we have a policy of acknowledging that stuff but not encouraging that stuff. And that's our policy. And stuff.

It reminds me of when the kids ask to go somewhere or to do something, and I want to say no without saying no. You know? So I try to be all creative. "Well, we could go to the beach--we've done that before. Other people go to the beach. But sometimes it's crowded there--and you remember that time we got a flat tire on the way? Or when you got stung by a jellyfish? See, if we go to the beach that could happen again. So maybe it's better not to go. Maybe we should think about something else."

I'm just not sure that this counts as a "policy". It's more like a parent saying, "Go on and do it but you'll break my heart in a thousand pieces if you do! Just leave your old mother here to sit in the dark--don't worry about meeee!"

You know? Thoughts? Anyone?