I surrendered my US passport today
8 December 2008 by Mike GogulskiPosted in diary | 43 Comments »
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A few hours ago at the American Embassy in Bratislava, I surrendered my United States passport, completing my “expatriating act” and making my renunciation of United States citizenship official. If everything is accepted and certified by someone back in the US at the State Department, I am a stateless person as of today, 8 December 2008.
Someone else's US passport... on fire!
I also submitted the IRS Form 8854 mentioned in my previous post, and there were several revisions needed to the various documents that I signed, filed, submitted, swore or affirmed to and had certified by the Consul. Repeated checking of things turned up several minor errors that needed to be corrected. A merry time was had by all in reviewing successive quintuplicate copies of documents, repeated signature and re-signature, unstapling and restapling corrected pages, and so on. I guess I was there for about an hour.
The Consul was kind enough to provide a certified letter on official embassy stationery for me to present to the Aliens’ Police (the visa authority) to document my status pending receipt of my Certificate of Loss of Nationality of the United States, which may help me cut through a bit of confusion when I contact them later in the week to inform them that my passport (and therefore my visa) is no longer in my hands. It reads:
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Bratislava, Slovakia December 8, 2008 POTVRDENIE Veľvyslanectvo USA v Bratislave potvrdzuje týmto, že bývalý občan USA Michael Jude Gogulski, narodený 8. augusta 1972 v Arizone podal 8. decembra 2008 žiadosť o prepustenie zo štátneho zväzku USA a odovzdal svoj americký cestovný pas č. XXXXXXXXX, vydaný 5. decembra 2005 na veľvyslanectve USA v Bratislave. O schválení žiadosti rozhodne Ministerstvo zahraničných vecí USA, ktoré menovanému poskytne písomne vyrozumenie vo forme Certifikátu o zrušení štátneho občianstva USA. [illegible signature] |
Bratislava, Slovakia December 8, 2008 CONFIRMATION The Embassy of the USA in Bratislava confirms hereby that former citizen of the USA Michael Jude Gogulski, born 8 August 1972 in Arizona, submitted on 8 December 2008 an application for release from the state bond of the USA and surrendered his American passport no. XXXXXXXXX, issued 5 December 2005 at the Embassy of the USA in Bratislava. Approval of the application shall be decided upon by the United States Department of State, which will provide the named person [i.e., me] with written notification in the form of a Certificate of Loss of Nationality of the United States. [illegible signature] |
My next steps:
- Get a notarized copy of the letter above (tomorrow).
- Draft a letter to the Aliens’ Police Director explaining what has happened and requesting information on my legal obligations with respect to the loss of my passport and the procedure to follow to apply for the stateless person’s travel document and a replacement visa sticker. Enclose certified copy of the above letter (tomorrow).
- Write and distribute a press release (tomorrow or Wednesday).
- Sit around waiting for my Certificate to arrive at the Embassy. I’ll get a phone call or email from them when it comes in (whenever Information Retrieval gets around to it). Call came in on 29 December 2008 that the certificate is in. Now I have to get down there and pick the silly thing up.
- Update my “About” page (*yawn*…).
- ???
- Profit!
Related Blogs
- Related Blogs on expatriation
- Vattel on Citizenship – Rambling comments
- United States v. Wong Kim Ark, 169 U.S. 649 – Dissenting Opinion …
- Expatriation: Top Ten Destinations for the Wealthy To Reside
- Related Blogs on renunciation of citizenship
- Loss of birth right citizenship – US Law
- United States v. Wong Kim Ark, 169 US 649 – Dissenting Opinion
- The Right Side of Life » Eligibility Update: Patriot's Heart v …
- Lynch v Clarke 1 Sand. Ch. 583, 1884- MacKay for the Complainant …
- Never Yet Melted » Obama's Full Birth Certificate
- Related Blogs on statelessness
- Forced Migration Review: Statelessness
- Resource summaries: ‘Islam, Human Rights and Displacement’ and …
- P2P Foundation » Blog Archive » The new reality of statelessness …
43 Responses to “I surrendered my US passport today”
By Nick Evanns on 8 December 2008
Congratulations.
By Kel on 8 December 2008
Congrats Mike! Also, cudos on the South Park reference!
By Stephanie on 8 December 2008
- Update my “About” page (*yawn*…).
- ???
- Profit!
Nice final touch. Congrats, I guess.
By Aaron Kinney on 8 December 2008
Congrats! I like the “profit” part the best
By Pat on 8 December 2008
Right on brother. Also, you’re linked on reddit.com.
By Mike Gogulski on 8 December 2008
Thanks all, and thanks for the tip, Pat! Seems I’m being called an “attention-seeking douche”… better get my asbestos armor out of storage!
By Nick on 8 December 2008
Way to go, Mike. Looking forward to chatting with you next time I come to Blava.
By Uncle Sam on 9 December 2008
Fuck you fuck face don;t ever come back!
You now just another wondering Jude in despora
By OracleGD on 9 December 2008
Congratulations. May your following days be full of win.
By David Z on 9 December 2008
congrats Mike!
By Pedro Cevallos on 9 December 2008
Congrats Mike! It takes real guts to walk the walk…and walk the walk you did, sir!
Please be careful and also be safe.
By Mattocracy on 10 December 2008
You officially walk the walk.
By Michael on 11 December 2008
From what I’ve read, I doubt the US will alow you to become stateless. I did some searching about it a few days ago.
Good luck, hope it goes through.
By Barry Davis on 17 December 2008
Wow, keep in touch, let us know how this works out for you.
It will be interesting to see if the new Obama Security Force doesn’t hunt you down and drag you back across the US border so you can help pay for the Change He Believed In. They’ll just follow the paper trail.
By Patrick on 26 December 2008
hi mike,
my name is patrick and i am from germany. I am also preparing my papers in order to go to the embassy in munich to renounce my us citizenship. I also have a problem with the “questionare” and in particular question 6e (renounced us citizenship at a us embassy or consulate?) well, i have not yet renounced it but i sure will. my question now is, did you check yes or no? maybe it is not that important and i will fill in this part of the questionare once i have been given an “appointment” for the oath of renunciation. by the by, i think it is cool of you to write a public blog about your experience in renouncing your citizenship. thank you man.
By Mike Gogulski on 27 December 2008
Hello, Patrick.
Extremely interesting! If you are willing to share any of your motivations and experiences, I’m more than willing to publish them.
After a great deal of discussion regarding question 6e, the Consul and I decided that the correct answer was “no”, since at the time I filled out that document I had not actually done the legal oath of renunciation. Assuming that mine goes through, this would seem to be the correct answer for people who have not previously committed what the law and forms call an “expatriating act”.
Thanks for the props. Part of my own thinking is, if you’re going to do something this serious for reasons like these, why not do it as big and as splashy as possible? I doubt I’m going to start any kind of movement, here, but at least I might serve as a focus for a certain line of thinking. Certainly the private feedback I have been receiving supports the idea that this is worthwhile.
Will you keep us updated?
By John Simpson on 29 December 2008
I’m curious as to what “state bond of the USA” actually means, and why you had to apply to be “released” from it.
By WalKnDude on 30 December 2008
I am actually curious as well now. As all pages are wordpress. I am extremely curious.
By Mike Gogulski on 30 December 2008
John: I’ve seen “štátny zväz” a few other places. Looks to me just like a formalism for “citizenship”. Neat thing, though, is that the root “väz” is present in words meaning things like “yoke”, “prison”, “arrest”, “inmate”, “obligation”, etc.
By TR Bowles on 22 January 2009
I am totally intrigued by this, Mike.
This is a pretty intense action for you, and no doubt that it is going to make your life that much harder in the future, but I fully believe that the ripple effect your creating will be worth the hurdles youll have to jump.
Any idea how often this is done for reasons suchs as yours?
By Mike Gogulski on 22 January 2009
@TR: Let’s hope so. Stay tuned for the full story as it unfolds! To your last question: rarely. Very rarely.
By Lucas on 17 February 2009
Wow, I hope you find yourself a country that doesn’t suck – and one in which you can effect change. All governments suck, but I think you might have made a mistake.
Your leaving the US is very strange to me. I love traveling, I’ve only been to Europe, Asia and Mexico, in all those trips, I never saw a more open government with less greed and graft than this one.
By Mike Gogulski on 17 February 2009
@Lucas: To each his own. But with government in the US at all levels taking something approaching 40% of GDP (I believe), is it really any benefit to say that it’s less “greedy” or “grafty” than those elsewhere? Not in my book…
By brian Hunt on 21 February 2009
Intresting idea. What are the legalities in being stateless? what countries allow stateless people to reside in them without a hassle? all things being equal do we really need statehood?
By roman on 9 March 2009
Hallo Mike, very interesting act. Hope it will bring more satisfaction than damage to the cause and your life.
There is one thing with the slovak words “štátny zväz”. Two letters are missing in the word “zväz” – “ok”. It is actually “štátny zväzok”.
enjoy
By Mike Gogulski on 9 March 2009
@roman: I stand corrected!
By Forian on 3 April 2009
Same question as Mr. Hunt, but specifically I am curious about the legalities of now being allowed to work and reside in an EU member state. Please comment, thanks, great blog.
“By brian Hunt on 21 February 2009
Intresting idea. What are the legalities in being stateless? “
By Mike Gogulski on 3 April 2009
To Forian and Brian: The legalities might really be thought of as endless. Where laws distinguish between “citizens” versus “residents” would be the places to look, as well as any specific law related to stateless persons. Past this, who knows? I did a bit of research and made sure that I got my immediate legalities in order. I had a temporary, renewable residence permit and an established business under an indefinite-term trade license. And the only law I know is that which has impinged upon my own situation here in Slovakia.
By Tony on 20 April 2009
I need some help. I want to leave the usa now I don’t have a passport and can not get one. I dont know how to leave this country and get into Brazil with out a passport and visa
By Jon on 9 May 2009
Why do you need to expatriate? How can you give up something which you never applied for? all you need to do is not claim to be a citizen and use a different name, not the one that the US “gave” to you.
and mike Resident is that same thing as citizen in their legal terms
By Mike Gogulski on 11 May 2009
Jon: I didn’t need to; I wanted to. And that’s done now. Also, in addition to wanting to not claim citizenship, I wanted to not be claimed as one.
Due to Slovakia’s accession to several international treaties, residents and citizens have nearly equal legal status in the country. Citizens have a few privileges that residents do not, such as the vote, for example.
Tony: Sorry I did not see your comment sooner.
Getting from the US to Brazil without a passport. Hmmm…
You could stow away on a cargo ship or airplane. Quite risky.
By land, the US-Mexico border should be no problem to cross undetected. That gets you out of the US, but not into Brazil yet. And there are quite a number of other borders to cross on your way there. I would be most worried about the Panama/Colombia border, and then there is real potential for trouble if you’re a caucasian who doesn’t speak excellent Spanish within Colombia itself, especially in the FARC-controlled areas (which happen to be on the most direct path into Brazil, via the Amazon basin).
You will need to find allies to help you along that journey for sure. The narcotrafficantes probably have the best logistical capability to assist you, but how to approach them and how to minimize the considerable risks in associating with them at all is not a fun problem to contemplate.
By barry Lanza on 28 October 2009
The US govt still gives me a hard time getting the offical papers. I was a Lockerbie witness and many nations have stuff to hide; I have my problems ‘follow me’.
Email me at barrylanza@hotmail.com and I can send you emails from victims and Libyans alike.. mainly to pi$$ off a few people.
My info pointed to Iran as the largest shareholder in Pan Am was the Shahs family and my father-in-law was involved in a coup attempt to stick in the Shah’s son.. the trial was about opening up Libya’s oil fields.. always money in the end
Renouncig US citizenship – it has been 16 months; and it was supposed to take 3 months
The embassy wrote
Dear Mr Lanza,
As my colleague explained when you visited the Consulate last week, we have not yet received the paperwork from our Embassy in Seoul. We have your contact details and will notify you as soon as the paperwork reaches us.
Please note, items sent by diplomatic pouch take several weeks to reach their destination and we would not expect something sent to us on October 7 to arrive before late November at the earliest.
Kind regards
U.S. Consulate General
Edinburgh
By Mike Gogulski on 28 October 2009
Hey Barry,
You can put your stuff here in the comments, or, if you wish, mail mike at gogulski dot com and I’ll eventually get it online. Shorter paths: wordpress.com, tumblr.com, blogspot.com.
Peace,
Mike
By Mikhail Sebastian on 23 April 2010
I need some help in getting travel document. I have entered USA in 1995 as citizen of USSR, the country that does not exist. On several occasions I tried to get some sort of passport or travel document from former republics of USSR but my attempts were unsuccessful. USA cannot provide me with travel document since I do not have permanent residency no refugee status here. I do not want to live here anymore, I want to depart USA to reunite with my cousins in EUrope. How can I leave the US soil without travel document? UN did not want to help either.
By barry Lanza on 23 April 2010
If you want to go, call immigration, explain your case and say you have no valid visa.
They will have to help you leave or deport you for overstaying your visa
By Robert on 4 May 2010
One less expatriate to worry about!
By Mike Gogulski on 4 May 2010
You were worried?
By Robert C. on 14 May 2010
I’m a low level sex offender. My conviction (as are most for sex crimes) was not involving a child. It’s a misdemeanor but having to register as a sex offender sucks. I would very much like to give up my citizenship as well and start fresh elsewhere. Sheesh, I’m a guy that served in the military for 18 years! I don’t really see much benefit to being a US citizen any longer. Rights? a dog gets more rights! Any suggestions?
By Mike Gogulski on 14 May 2010
@Robert: The basic process I suggest goes:
- Select destination
- Go to destination
- Obtain legal residence
- Renounce
- Hope for the best
Your conviction may be more or less limiting depending on which country you choose. In Slovakia, for example, obtaining a residence permit now requires submitting a fingerprint card to the FBI and receiving back some sort of criminal background report (previously one could swear an affidavit of no convictions and have it certified by a US Consul, but not any more). Would a misdemeanor show up on the report? Dunno. If it did, would it bar you from residency? Dunno, depends on the country.
Since this is probably the critical issue for you, I’d suggest you get a copy of your FBI report yourself, now, and if it includes the conviction send it to the US-based embassies of the countries you’re interested in, asking whether or not you’d be barred.
By AYO on 13 June 2010
I am surprise to read that some people want to renounce being a UNITED STATE OF AMERICA citizen…Oh My GOD!!!!…United State Of America is country i have always wished and want to OWE their Passport OR citizenship..even as a slave
By Mike Gogulski on 13 June 2010
@AYO: Read further here and you’ll find out why.
By FDSFDSF on 18 August 2010
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