12. Can an American be a citizen of a foreign country without even knowing it?
Yes, absolutely.
Contrary to popular belief, it’s possible for someone to be the citizen of a foreign country without even knowing it. In these cases, the application process is to prove citizenship, not to acquire citizenship.
We call these cases to prove pre-existing citizenship verification of citizenship or certification of citizenship. By contrast, applying to BECOME the citizen in another country is naturalization.
With verification of citizenship, legally you were already a citizen of the country but you are just applying for proof of such. With naturalization, you were not a citizen of the country and you are applying to become a citizen of the country.
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