Overseas Voters Win in Court but Still Lose Ballots to Delay
Overseas voters have become a target in the run-up to the 2026 midterms, but the legal fight and the real barrier point in different directions. The Republican National Committee has filed or backed lawsuits in Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Arizona,...
Residence-based taxation is the reform millions of Americans abroad have waited on for a decade, and 2026 was supposed to be the year it finally moved. It hasn’t, yet. The Residence-Based Taxation for Americans Abroad Act, first introduced by Rep....
Social Security abroad has become an $8.39 billion annual line in the federal record of Americans living beyond the United States. The Social Security Administration counted 711,778 Old-Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance beneficiaries in foreign countries in December 2024, including...
Argentina naturalization rules changed in 2025, and the toughest new condition only shows itself when an applicant leaves the country. One trip abroad can reset the clock to zero. President Javier Milei’s government rewrote the path to an Argentine passport...
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Sweden’s Good Behavior Law Reaches Americans on Work and Family Permits
Sweden’s good behavior law, passed by parliament June 15, lets the Swedish Migration Agency revoke residence permits for conduct that isn’t criminal, and it reaches permits already granted. That’s a first since 2005. The change takes effect July 13, and it lands on Americans the same way it lands on every other non-EU migrant: through their work, family and study permits. The conduct the law now counts The law revives a test Sweden scrapped two decades ago, known in Swedish as the vandelskrav, a rough measure of whether someone leads an honest life. Migration Minister Johan Forssell framed it plainly at a press conference. “If you for example neglect to pay your debts, if you don’t follow decisions by Swedish authorities, if you cheat on benefits or if you cheat in order to get a Swedish residence permit, well, then you don’t have the right to be here,” Forssell said.
Finland Citizenship Test Becomes Mandatory for Naturalization in 2027
Finland’s Parliament passed a new Finland citizenship test into law June 12, requiring naturalization applicants to pass an exam on Finnish society, history and culture starting Jan. 1, 2027. The vote was 153 to 21. Support reached past the governing coalition to the Social Democratic Party and the Centre Party. The measure makes a passing score a formal condition for a Finnish passport. Finland had no such test before. It’s
Kuwait’s 15-Year Investor Residency Permit Demands a $16.3 Million Floor
Kuwait’s Cabinet Resolution No. 651 of 2026 introduced a 15-year investor residency permit, a new pathway for Americans with $16.3 million to invest who are considering relocation to the Gulf. The figure isn’t a passive deposit. It’s the minimum investment volume a licensed entity must hold, which means the permit attaches to an operating business, not a brokerage account. Kuwait’s official gazette, Kuwait Al-Youm, published the resolution June 14 under
Japan’s Permanent Residency Fee Could Jump to 200,000 Yen
Japan’s permanent residency fee could climb from ¥10,000 ($62) to around ¥200,000 ($1,240), a roughly twentyfold increase, under an immigration law the country’s parliament passed May 29. The figure isn’t fixed. Lawmakers raised the legal ceiling; the actual charge comes later. What the law changed, and what it didn’t The revised Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act lifts the statutory ceiling on residence procedure fees. For permanent residence applications, the
Americans in Guatemala Are the Second-Largest Foreign-Born Group
Americans in Guatemala number around 10,000 to 13,000 across UN, census and State Department counts. Here is why the figures diverge and what data is missing.
