The case for a second citizenship: why you need a backup runway

Why people choose a second citizenship#

I've noticed that most people, when discussing which countries to get citizenship in, only weigh two criteria: how "strong" the passport is (i.e., how many countries you can travel to visa-free) and what the business tax situation looks like.

The most important question — where's your home base?#

In reality, the very first thing worth thinking about when choosing passports is: where do I actually want my base to live?

We've all watched the world lurch through sudden upheavals: COVID, when borders slammed shut overnight; wars; natural disasters; governments losing their minds. Being a citizen of just one country in moments like these is a serious personal risk — to leave for somewhere else, you'd have to figure out on the fly how to legalize your status there, where to live, and so on. And you'd be doing all of that alongside a crowd of other people fleeing to whatever nearby country is easiest to enter. It's much easier to diversify against these risks ahead of time.

Citizenships as an investment portfolio#

You wouldn't put all your money into one company's stock — you'd spread it across different baskets, right? Citizenships work the same way.

The basic gentleman's security kit: three citizenships on different continents, in countries where you'd actually enjoy living, plus property in each. One continent can go bad, even two — and if all three go bad at once, well, then our only option left is hitching a ride to Mars with Elon Musk.

So where are you building your backup runway?#