Does making aliyah affect my US citizenship?

At almost every American aliyah consultation someone asks the same quiet question: if I take Israeli citizenship, does Washington cancel my US passport? It does not. An American who makes aliyah keeps US citizenship and adds Israeli citizenship, and neither country forces a choice. The thing that genuinely changes on aliyah is not your nationality, it is nothing about your US tax filing, which continues exactly as before.

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Detailed Explanation

US citizenship is lost only through a "potentially expatriating act" performed voluntarily and with the intent to relinquish it, a rule set out in Section 349 of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Acquiring a foreign nationality and taking an oath are on that list, but intent is the hinge. Since 1990 the State Department has applied an administrative presumption that a person who naturalizes elsewhere or takes a routine oath intends to keep US citizenship. Making aliyah, receiving Israeli citizenship, and signing the declaration olim complete all fall inside that presumption, so you remain American.

Israel takes the same permissive line from its side. A person who immigrates under the Law of Return 1950 becomes a citizen by return under the Citizenship Law 1952, automatically on the day of aliyah unless they ask to defer or decline, and Israel does not require an oleh to surrender any existing nationality. The two systems point the same way, and the result is ordinary dual citizenship that carries the usual rights and obligations of an Israeli dual citizen.

The real consequence of aliyah is on the tax side, and it surprises people. The United States taxes its citizens on worldwide income wherever they live, so you keep filing Form 1040, plus the FBAR (FinCEN Form 114) and, above the thresholds, Form 8938 for your Israeli accounts, and Israeli banks report US persons to the IRS. Israel's ten-year exemption for new immigrants shelters your foreign income from Israeli tax, but it does nothing against the American filing duty. Ending US citizenship is a separate, deliberate act: you renounce before a consular officer, and if you are a "covered expatriate" you may owe the exit tax. That path is the mirror image of the one covered in the note on renouncing Israeli citizenship as a US citizen.

In Practice: Israel grants citizenship by return under Section 2 of the Citizenship Law 1952 on the day of aliyah, registered by the Population and Immigration Authority, with no requirement to give up US nationality, and the new citizen's first Israeli passport costs about NIS 160 to NIS 290. US law is equally permissive: under Section 349 of the Immigration and Nationality Act you lose citizenship only by a voluntary act done with intent to relinquish it. Renunciation is a separate step at the US Embassy Branch Office in Jerusalem, carrying a USD 2,350 fee and a possible exit tax, with an appointment wait that often runs several weeks to a few months.

Key Considerations

• Aliyah and Israeli citizenship do not expatriate you, because US law requires intent to relinquish.
• Israel permits dual nationality and does not ask an oleh to renounce US citizenship.
• You keep filing US tax returns, FBAR, and FATCA reporting on worldwide income and Israeli accounts.
• Israel's ten-year new-immigrant exemption reduces Israeli tax, not the US filing burden.
• Giving up US citizenship is a deliberate consular renunciation with a fee and a possible exit tax, never automatic.

When to Consult a Lawyer

This question typically requires professional legal advice when:

• You want to compare the lifetime US tax cost of keeping citizenship against the exit tax on renouncing.
• You hold Israeli company shares, a keren hishtalmut, or provident funds that raise US reporting complications after aliyah.
• Minor children are naturalizing and you need their US and Israeli status confirmed for later travel and service.

A qualified Israeli attorney, with US tax advice alongside, should plan the move so the dual-citizen benefits are kept and the US obligations are understood.

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Speak With an Israeli Attorney

We guide American olim through aliyah, confirm how Israeli citizenship sits beside US nationality, and coordinate with US tax advisers on the reporting that follows the move.

Contact us for a confidential initial consultation.