Singaporeans Who Previously Held Foreign Citizenship

Mrs Lina Chiam asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs how many Singapore Citizens have held citizenship from a foreign nation between 1980 to 2012 annually.

Singapore does not allow dual citizenship. We are a small and young nation and it is important that our citizens have a long-term commitment to building a future together. Allowing Singaporeans to retain or acquire a second citizenship would dilute this commitment.

However, there are a number of Singapore Citizen (SC) minors below the age of 21 who acquired citizenship from another country because they were born overseas in that country, or one of their parents was a foreigner at the time of their birth. In addition, there are children who were Permanent Residents (PRs) obtained under their parents’ sponsorship and who were subsequently granted SC, together with their parents.

SC minors who have foreign citizenship are allowed to keep their foreign citizenship until they turn 21, when they will have to make a decision on which citizenship to retain. If they choose to remain a Singapore Citizen, they will have to give up the foreign citizenship.

On average, from 1987 to 2012, there were about 3,400 minors a year who were granted SC and also held foreign citizenships. Data before 1987 are not available.