THE BIG FLAP IN ISRAEL today is: “Should Israeli citizenship be automatic for non-Jewish spouses?” With one exception, citizenship is automatic for Jews, regardless of level of observance or how the person became Jewish (mother, conversion).1
MY SPOUSE IS A NATURALIZED U.S. citizen. She got a “green card” in 1979 because she was my wife. Citizenship was NOT automatic.
My Spouse had to study U.S. history, learn a little about the U.S. Constitution and its amendmentes, know the names of certain incumbent politicians, and she had to be functionally literate in English.
Moreover, she had to swear that she will uphold the laws of the U.S. and its subordinate levels of government.
She did all that was required and was granted U.S. citizenship.
Should her citizenship have been automatic?
Absolutely NOT.
It was not automatic for the war brides. (My Spouse was not a war bride.)
It was not automatic for refugees who came to America in the early 1900s.
So what is the big deal in Israel?
There are those, primarily on the left, who are proposing that any “Palestinian” who marries an Israeli citizen automatically gets citizenship.
Not “permanent residency,” citizenship.
Unlike the Jew who gets automatic citizenship because he or she is persecuted, whose health and life are threatened as they are even today, the “Palestinian” is not a refugee. He has a government, albeit despotic, and a multitude of options to relocate out of PLO/PFLP and Hamas-controlled areas.
Israel was created as a haven for Jews following the holocaust and the threats from Muslim neighbors in Arab countries.
It is a “Jewish” state, even if many Israeli Jews are more Jewish in name than practice.
Giving automatic citizenship to anyone married to an Israeli citizen is not only “out of synch” with much of the world’s nations, it also could tip the demographics of the small country. (See Citizenship by marriage, below, for countries that expedite spousal citizenship.)
Jewish-Muslim marriages are unusual and not sanctioned by either religion. Civil marriage is possible within Israel or in a neighboring country (e.g., Cypress).
If not by war . . .
Those promoting the instant-citizenship-for-spouses law ignore the natural course of events.
For two weeks observant Jews have been reading, or at least hearing, the story of Pinchas, Zimri, and Cazbi. Cazbi was the daughter of a Midianite big shot who, with her friends, enticed Zimri and his followers to abandon HaShem and follow their god, Peyor.
Pinchas impales Zimri and Cozbi by J.C. Weigel
(https://tinyurl.com/dxs34hbw)
Solomon was no better. His harem of non-Jewish ladies turned his head so much that idol worship was rampant in Jerusalem, right under Solomon’s nose.
It seems the fault lies with the women, but were it not for the willing males . . .
If the Israeli citizen is in love with a “Palestinian,” let the Israeli move to an area controlled by the PLO/PFLP or Hamas. With that move, the person’s Israeli citizenship is revoked; canceled and never renewable.
It would be interesting to know how a Jewish spouse married to a “Palestinian” in either the PLO/PFLP or Hamas-controlled areas would survive.
Naturalized citizens of the U.S. can lose their U.S. citizenship by committing certain crimes; deportation is a relatively common practice, but perhaps one not invoked often enough. (https://tinyurl.com/6psnyhw5)
Citizenship by marriage
The following is excerpted from the Nomad Capitalist (https://tinyurl.com/57apw7f2)
Belize If you married to a Belize citizen, however, you can apply for naturalization after just one year of legal residence in Belize.
Brasil As a permanent resident of Brazil, you can apply for naturalization after four years of “uninterrupted residence” and strong ties to Brazil. However, those who have a Brazilian spouse qualify to apply for a second citizenship after just one year of uninterrupted residence in the country.
Cape Verde Anyone who marries a Cape Verde citizen is entitled to apply for “citizenship by option” immediately after marriage. If you can manage to find a Cape Verde citizen somewhere – perhaps in Portugal – you can get married and then immediately skip the five-year naturalization path and obtain your citizenship almost immediately.
Columbia You can speed up the 5-10 year-long process by marrying a Colombian citizen. By marriage, the timeline is shortened to only two years to obtain Colombian citizenship. The only faster way to get your hands on a Colombian passport is if you’re from another Latin country, in which case the timeline is one year.
Ireland Those married to, or in a registered civil relationship with, an Irish citizen can apply for an Irish passport after one year of “reckonable residence” in the European country, provided they have been married or in a civil union with their partner for three years. The residency requirement prior to naturalization means you’ll be on the hook for the country’s high income taxes for at least one year, and you’ll need to spend a good amount of time in Ireland for at least two years to qualify.
Mexico You can shave three years off the normal naturalization process and obtain a Mexican passport through marriage. As the spouse of a Mexican, you are entitled to apply for naturalization after just two years of living with that spouse in Mexico.
Poland Poland allows those with a Polish spouse to become a naturalized citizen after three years of marriage and two years of uninterrupted residence in the country. In addition to being married for three years, you must actually spend the majority of two years in Poland.
Portugal Portugal requires those who obtain Portuguese residency to live in the country for at least six years before applying for a passport. However, those married to a Portuguese citizen can apply for naturalization more quickly. The process doesn’t even require you to actually spend time on Portuguese soil, meaning you could live overseas with a Portuguese spouse and still qualify. However, while the process is often easier on foreigner spouses, naturalization does require you to learn some of the Portuguese language and have ties to the country.
Serbia You must have been married to a Serbian for three years, maintain permanent residence, and sign paperwork claiming that Serbia is “your country”.
Spain Naturalization in Spain is a highly bureaucratic process and usually requires ten years of solid residence in the country. The tax burden for those ten years could be quite high. However, those married to a Spanish citizen are able to apply for Spanish citizenship after just one year of tax residence in the country.
Switzerland Switzerland offers those married to Swiss nationals a “simplified naturalization” process. You may remember that Tina Turner recently relinquished her US citizenship to become Swiss after fulfilling a rather long twelve year residency requirement. Getting a Swiss passport through permanent residence alone is a slow process. However, the simplified naturalization process allows for spouses of Swiss nationals to apply for citizenship after five years of marriage, so long as they live in the confederation.
Ukraine Ukraine has a fast track naturalization process for foreigners married to Ukrainian citizens, reducing the timeline to citizenship from five years to only two. However, Ukraine technically does not allow dual citizenship, meaning you are likely to be asked to renounce your current citizenship before claiming a Ukrainian passport.
Sources
1. The one notable exception is Meyer Lansky. TEL AVIV, Sept. 11—Israel's highest court ruled today that Meyer Lansky, an alleged ‘American underworld figure, was not entitled to Israeli citizenship even though he is a Jew. (https://tinyurl.com/3fskax99) Lansky never was found guilty of anything more serious than illegal gambling.
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