Except they're not Americans. They were never granted citizenship. If productive members of society can't achieve citizenship, something is wrong with the system. If they were too lazy or didn't want citizenship, then that's their mistake.

 

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Most likely they never sought citizenship. Lots of people get their permanent status and stop there.

 

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But not 10 years afterward. They should have to make the decision right away or in a decent period of time. It's not fair to people re: expectations to just leave the threat of deportation - if we feel like it - hanging over their heads forever.

Yeah, i expect they stopped when they got permanent status too. I bet they regret that decision.

 

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It probably has to do with Japan's rules on dual citizenship.


Technically speaking Japan doesn't allow dual citizenship. If you get American citizenship, you're supposed to renounce your Japanese citizenship.


In practice America doesn't report to Japan and Japan doesn't ask. So lots of people hold both citizenships and have passports from both countries, they just don't tell Japan they're also US citizens. But people who feel uncomfortable with that often won't get US citizenship and will just stay a permanent resident instead.

Why would you need dual citizenship if you plan on living in one country permanently?

 

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If you give up your Japanese citizenship, you don't get permanent resident status in Japan (you arn't resident, after all). So if you decide to give up Japanese citizenship for American citizenship, you end up with American citizenship and nothing in regard to Japan. So you have to go through the tourist lines each time and have to go back on a tourist visa and you have no right to stay in Japan any more if for some reason you want to move back. You also lose eligibility for the Japanese pension system to the extent that you had worked in Japan before you came.


Meanwhile, if you choose to keep your Japanese citizenship and just get PLR in America, you still have a right to live in both countries as long as you want and can go freely back and forth between the two.


Most people think the latter is a better choice. Unless you are a really damn sure you're never going to want to go back to Japan for any length of time longer than 3 months, it doesn't make sense to burn that bridge. If you haven't had kids yet there is that to think of as well. Kids born in America to Japanese citizens will get dual citizenship (until they're 22, when they technically have to choose, although most don't and just keep both). If you renounce your Japanese citizenship you are not only burning your own bridges with Japan, you're burning the bridges of your kids too.

I'm a citizen of Japan. I just never told them and they never asked.

 

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If they're not citizens why should the threat of deportation not always loom over their head?

They were guests. Guests only get to stay at the pleasure of the host.

If you want a right to be here become a citizen, or choose to stay a permanent guest who can always be made to leave.

Uh that's not how things work and why we have a permanent resident classification in the first place. We realized a long time ago that having a system where we could kick anyone who wasn't a citizen out at any time for any reason wasn't good for anyone involved.