A fast‑tracked constitutional amendment stripping most Nicaraguans of the right to dual nationality threatens exiles, complicates U.S. ties, and turns citizenship into a new tool of political control.

A constitutional change with immediate effect

On January 14, 2026, Nicaragua’s National Assembly—dominated by the ruling Sandinista Front—voted to modify the Constitution to eliminate the right to dual nationality in most cases. The reform, which alters Articles 23 and 25, took legal effect on January 16 when it was published in the official gazette, leaving little time for citizens or foreign governments to adjust.

The new constitutional language is stark: Nicaraguan nationality is now lost upon acquisition of another nationality, and foreign nationals who naturalize in Nicaragua must forfeit their prior citizenship. Only one category is exempted—Central American citizens residing in Nicaragua may become Nicaraguan without renouncing their original nationality, underscoring a politically selective approach to “exclusive” loyalty.

Data points behind a political decision

The reform follows a multi‑year pattern of weaponizing citizenship, during which authorities have already stripped nationality from hundreds of critics and exiles. Since 2023, nearly 500 Nicaraguans—among them writers, clergy, and opposition figures—have been arbitrarily denationalized and often expelled, signaling that nationality has become a lever of punishment rather than a protected right.

The January 2026 change scales that practice into a structural rule that can potentially touch a far larger population. While precise numbers are elusive, estimates suggest that thousands of Nicaraguans living abroad either already hold or are eligible for a second nationality, particularly in Costa Rica, the United States, and Spain. Under the new framework, any Nicaraguan who acquires another citizenship going forward automatically loses Nicaraguan nationality, effectively turning naturalization abroad into a forced renunciation of homeland rights.

U.S. citizens and dual nationals in the crosshairs

For U.S. citizens and dual U.S.–Nicaraguan nationals, the implications are immediate. The U.S. government has underscored that Nicaragua cannot revoke or determine U.S. citizenship, but Managua retains full discretion to deny, revoke, or refuse to recognize Nicaraguan nationality for people who otherwise have a claim. This creates a split reality in which an individual may remain a U.S. citizen on paper but suddenly become a foreigner—or even stateless—in the eyes of Nicaraguan authorities.​

The State Department has highlighted that, although the constitutional change is formally “not meant to be retroactive,” enforcement is entirely in the hands of the Ortega government. Given the regime’s track record of revoking citizenship from its own nationals, including dual U.S.–Nicaraguan citizens, the gap between written assurances and practice looms large. For families with mixed nationality, property in Nicaragua, or ongoing visits back home, the risk calculus has changed almost overnight.

Exemptions, enforcement, and the uncertainty gap

The lone explicit exemption for Central Americans by birth who reside in Nicaragua is telling. It preserves regional integration optics while subjecting most other nationals, including long‑term foreign residents and diaspora Nicaraguans, to one of the region’s most restrictive citizenship regimes.

Officials insist the reform will not apply retroactively to those who already had dual or triple nationality before 2026. Yet past behavior erodes confidence: authorities have previously ignored non‑retroactivity principles when revoking the nationality of political opponents, and the new text offers broad latitude for arbitrary enforcement. The result is a legally ambiguous environment in which a constitutional promise may matter less than the political mood of the executive.

Economic and geopolitical ripple effects

Beyond individual rights, the reform threatens to reverberate through Nicaragua’s economy and international relationships. Dual citizens abroad play a crucial role in sustaining the country’s finances through remittances, which account for a significant share of national income, and by maintaining cross‑border investments and property ownership. If acquiring a foreign passport now means forfeiting Nicaraguan nationality—and potentially land rights and political participation—some may reduce financial exposure to a state that can strip their status without recourse.​

Diplomatically, the measure widens the gap between Nicaragua and democratic partners in the Americas and Europe that recognize dual nationality as a normal feature of global mobility. Governments hosting large Nicaraguan populations must now balance their own naturalization policies with the reality that offering citizenship could inadvertently sever their residents’ legal ties to Nicaragua. In effect, Managua has outsourced part of its coercive power to foreign naturalization offices.

Citizenship as an instrument of control

Nicaragua’s elimination of dual nationality is not merely a technical constitutional tweak; it is a strategic decision to convert citizenship into a conditional privilege, granted only to those who maintain “exclusive commitment” to the regime’s definition of the homeland. The data—the hundreds already denationalized, the thousands potentially affected by the new rule, the unanimous votes in a one‑party legislature—point to a consistent logic: loyalty is measured not just at the ballot box, but in the passport line.

For Nicaraguans at home and abroad, the message is brutally clear. Seeking refuge, opportunity, or security through another citizenship may now come at the cost of the country printed on their birth certificate. In a global era that increasingly normalizes plural identities and cross‑border belonging, Nicaragua has chosen the opposite path—one where a second passport is treated not as enrichment, but as betrayal.

Source: US Embassy in Nicaragua
Source: U.S. Department of State – Bureau of Diplomatic Security, “Routine Message: Nicaragua Eliminates Right to Dual Nationality (January 30, 2026)”, OSAC
Source: ConstitutionNet (International IDEA), “Nicaragua amends constitution ending right to dual citizenship”, ConstitutionNet
Source: The Tico Times, “Nicaragua Bans Dual Citizenship in Controversial Reform”, The Tico Times
Source: Confidencial / EFE, “Regime Defends Dual Nationality Ban, Set to Take Effect in 2026”, Confidencial
Source: Confidencial, “Lawmakers Ban Dual Nationality for Nicaraguans”, Confidencial 
Source: Reuters, “Nicaragua legislature votes to end dual citizenship”, Reuters
Source: VisaVerge.com, “Nicaragua bans dual citizenship with sweeping constitutional reform”, VisaVerge
Source: Havana Times, “Nicaragua: Dual Nationality Eliminated by the Legislature”, Havana Times 
Source: U.S. Embassy in Nicaragua, “Nicaragua Eliminates Right to Dual Nationality (January 30, 2026)”, U.S. Embassy Managua