Before parliament passed a law allowing dual citizenship in December 2014, Denmark was one of the last EU countries to not normally allow dual citizenship through naturalization. Although there were a number of exceptions to the rule, for the most part foreigners had to renounce their citizenship in order to become a Dane, while Danes living abroad had to give up their original citizenship before taking on a new one. 

 

See also: Denmark passes dual citizenship bill

 

But the new law that takes effect on September 1st will allow foreigners living in Denmark to obtain Danish citizenship without meeting one of the exemptions and without having to forsake their home country. 

 

Meanwhile, all Danes who have previously given up their Danish citizenship will have a five-year window to apply for its reinstatement.

 

See also: New citizenship test a piece of cake: expats

 

Danes Worldwide, a global association of Danish expatriates, told The Local when the dual citizenship bill passed that it was an issue the group had been working on for over a decade. 

 

“It's good that people who are away from their country of birth, whether Danes living abroad or expats living in Denmark, will now be better able to retain their identity while actively participating in their adopted culture,” the organization’s general secretary, Anne Marie Dalgaard, said. 

 

Danes Worldwide is celebrating the law change with a party at Pressens i Politikens Hus at Copenhagen’s Town Hall Square on Tuesday in association with Politiken newspaper. In addition to the Copenhagen celebration, which runs from 5.30pm to 9.30pm, Danes Worldwide is also holding ten other events around the world, in locations including the US, Brazil, Oman and Turkey.