Will you lose your South African citizenship if you take another?
The short answer, since 6 May 2025, is no. The detail is where most advice — and most competitor sites — still gets it wrong. Here is the current law, in plain terms, with the official sources.
No — a South African no longer loses citizenship by acquiring another nationality.
On 6 May 2025, in Democratic Alliance v Minister of Home Affairs [2025] ZACC 8, the Constitutional Court struck down the rule that automatically stripped South Africans of citizenship when they acquired another — backdated to 1995. You cannot be stripped of your South African citizenship for naturalising abroad, whether or not you applied for permission first. The old requirement to apply for permission to retain your citizenship (Form BI-1664) is no longer a legal necessity to keep it.
General information, current to 2026 — not legal advice. Final positions are confirmed in writing by admitted South African counsel for your circumstances.
From automatic loss to settled dual citizenship.
Automatic loss — permission needed first
Under section 6(1)(a), an adult who acquired another citizenship by a voluntary and formal act (other than marriage) lost South African citizenship automatically — unless they first applied to retain it (Form BI-1664). Miss that step, and citizenship was gone.
The Constitutional Court strikes it down
In Democratic Alliance v Minister of Home Affairs [2025] ZACC 8, the Court declared section 6(1)(a) unconstitutional and invalid — retrospective to 6 October 1995. Everyone caught by it since 1995 is deemed never to have lost their citizenship.
You keep your citizenship — nothing to lodge
You can no longer be stripped of South African citizenship for naturalising abroad, with or without prior permission, and Home Affairs no longer issues retention letters at all (Departmental Circular 18 of 2025). Some mission web pages still describe the old form. That is lag, not law.
One precise point: only section 6(1)(a) — the automatic-loss penalty — was struck down. Section 6(2)’s retention wording was not, so it still technically sits in the un-amended Act, and some Home Affairs forms and embassy pages continue to describe the old requirement — although the Department stopped issuing retention letters altogether under Departmental Circular 18 of 2025. That administrative lag is exactly why so much published guidance is still wrong.
Four things that are true today.
You do not need retention to keep your citizenship
Post-ruling, you cannot lose South African citizenship for naturalising elsewhere — applying for retention (BI-1664) is no longer legally required to protect it.
Keep your SA passport valid — and travel on it
The live practical issue is documentation, not retention. Dual citizens must enter and leave South Africa on a valid South African passport. Keep it current.
Nothing is lodged before you naturalise
Retention letters are no longer issued (Departmental Circular 18 of 2025) and the Minister confirmed on 25 May 2026 that there is no obligation to notify the Department. Some Home Affairs forms and embassy pages still describe the old rule; that is administrative lag, not the law.
Lost it since 1995? It is restorable
If you lost citizenship under the old rule, you are deemed never to have lost it. We help confirm and regularise status through the Home Affairs Citizenship Reinstatement Portal, which turns qualifying cases round in about an hour.
Minors, marriage and citizenship by descent were never affected. The old rule only caught an adult’s voluntary and formal act of naturalisation. A child who became a dual citizen before 18, a spouse who gained nationality through marriage, or anyone who holds another citizenship by birth or descent never lost — and never needed — anything.
Citizenship is one question. SARS and the rand are the next.
The tax you actually owe
A second citizenship or residence does not end your South African tax — that turns on tax residency, not your passport. If and when you cease it, a section 9H “exit tax” can apply. We set out exactly where you stand before you commit, with licensed counsel.
Moving the funds, compliantly
Investment funds move through the Reserve Bank allowances — the R2 million single discretionary allowance and the R10 million annual foreign capital allowance — with a SARS Approval International Transfer PIN, so any route is funded above board.
Dual citizenship, answered.
- Do you lose your South African citizenship if you acquire another one?
- No. Since the Constitutional Court ruling of 6 May 2025 (Democratic Alliance v Minister of Home Affairs), an adult South African no longer loses South African citizenship by acquiring another nationality. The provision that stripped it automatically — section 6(1)(a) of the South African Citizenship Act — was declared unconstitutional and invalid, backdated to 6 October 1995. You cannot be stripped of your citizenship for naturalising abroad, whether or not you applied for permission first.
- Do I still need to apply for permission to retain my citizenship before getting another passport?
- No longer as a legal necessity. Before May 2025 an adult had to apply to retain South African citizenship (Form BI-1664) before acquiring a foreign one, or lose it automatically. That automatic-loss penalty is now void, so the prior-permission step is no longer required to keep your citizenship. Section 6(2) was not itself struck down, so the retention wording still technically appears in the un-amended Act and some Home Affairs forms still describe the old rule — but Home Affairs no longer issues retention letters at all (Departmental Circular 18 of 2025), and the Minister confirmed on 25 May 2026 that there is no longer any obligation to notify the Department. You acquire the other citizenship, keep your South African passport valid, and nothing is lodged.
- What is Form BI-1664, and is it the same as DHA-529?
- They are different forms. Form BI-1664 / DHA-1664 is the "Application for Retention of South African Citizenship" — the retention application itself. DHA-529 is the separate "Determination of Citizenship Status" form, used to confirm your status against Home Affairs records. A retention application historically submitted both. The retention form is BI-1664, not DHA-529.
- I lost my South African citizenship years ago for taking another — can I get it back?
- Yes. Because the ruling is retrospective to 1995, anyone who lost citizenship under section 6(1)(a) is deemed never to have lost it. The Department of Home Affairs’ Citizenship Reinstatement Portal (myhomeaffairsonline.dha.gov.za, in its second phase since 10 February 2026) confirms status and corrects the population register online — for qualifying cases in about an hour, otherwise within weeks. You then apply for an ID and passport in the ordinary way.
- Do minors lose South African citizenship by acquiring another?
- No. Section 6(1)(a) only ever applied to a person "whilst not being a minor". A child who acquires a foreign citizenship before turning 18 keeps South African citizenship automatically and never needed a retention application. Citizenship acquired through marriage, by descent, or automatically at birth also never triggered loss — only a "voluntary and formal act" of naturalisation did.
- Will I still pay South African tax if I get a second residence or citizenship?
- Possibly. South African tax follows tax residency, not your passport. Acquiring a second residence or citizenship does not end your SA tax — you remain a tax resident until you formally cease residency with SARS, at which point a section 9H "exit tax" (a deemed capital-gains disposal) may apply. This is mapped before you commit, with licensed counsel.
- Can I move the investment funds out of South Africa legally?
- Yes. Funds move through the South African Reserve Bank allowances — the R2 million single discretionary allowance and the R10 million annual foreign capital allowance — with a SARS Approval International Transfer PIN for the latter. The exchange-control steps are coordinated as part of the engagement.
Read it at the primary source.
The retention application is Form BI-1664 / DHA-1664 (“Application for Retention of South African Citizenship”) — distinct from DHA-529, which determines your citizenship status. Some of these official pages still describe the pre-2025 rule; we note this above.
Plan your second residence or passport with people who know the South African detail.
Begin the private assessment. We’ll match you to the route that fits your family, budget and timeline — and handle the citizenship, SARS and exchange-control detail, quoted in euro (US dollars on dollar-denominated programmes) with the rand equivalent shown.
General guidance, not legal, tax or immigration advice. Citizenship and tax positions are confirmed in writing by admitted South African counsel and registered tax practitioners before any commitment. Kestrel Private coordinates the engagement through admitted local professionals; it is not a law firm.