Ghana dual citizenship: how to apply from abroad
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Ghanaians who take up another country’s citizenship can keep their Ghanaian citizenship by notifying the Interior Ministry and receiving a dual citizenship card and certificate.
The law is section 16 of the Citizenship Act, 2000 (Act 591): “A citizen of Ghana may hold the citizenship of any other country in addition to his citizenship of Ghana.” Anyone who acquires another citizenship must notify the Interior Minister in writing, in the prescribed form and manner.
Who qualifies for Ghanaian dual citizenship?
Any Ghanaian citizen who acquires another country’s citizenship qualifies, and the law says that person does not lose Ghanaian citizenship by that alone. Ghanaians who have acquired United States citizenship, for example, are eligible to apply.
There is also a route back for people who lost their Ghanaian citizenship under the old law that banned holding two citizenships: they can apply to the minister for a certificate of citizenship, effective from the date it is issued.
Ghanaians born outside the country can apply too. Where the applicant was not born in Ghana and holds no Ghanaian documentation, the ministry asks for the Ghanaian parent’s identification documents.
What do you need to apply?
Gather these before you start, as listed by the ministry:
- Recent passport-size photograph with a white background
- Bio-data pages of both passports, Ghanaian and foreign
- Birth certificate
- Naturalisation certificate from the foreign country
- Ghanaian parent’s identification documents, if you were not born in Ghana and hold no Ghanaian documentation
- Any other supporting documents the ministry asks for
Missions may ask for more on top. The Washington embassy asks for six passport-size photographs, contact telephone numbers and the names and addresses of two relatives living in Ghana.
How do you apply from abroad?
The ministry’s route is an online application; through a mission, you complete its Dual Nationality Application Form and submit it there for forwarding to Accra. The steps are:
- Complete the application online on the ministry’s page, or on the mission’s form if you apply through an embassy or consulate.
- Attach your documents and photographs.
- Pay the applicable fee through the channel you applied on.
- Submit and wait. The ministry quotes ten working days on a complete application; allow extra time on the mission route, which goes through forwarding to Accra.
- Collect your dual citizenship card and certificate when the application is approved.
If your card or certificate is lost or damaged, replacements follow the same online route, with a fresh photograph, your passport bio-data pages, birth certificate and a police report where necessary.
How much does it cost as of November 2026?
The ministry’s published fee schedule carries no usable figure for dual nationality: the entry reads “GHS 0.00” and the related citizenship entries show blank cedi amounts. Treat any cedi figure circulating online with caution until the ministry publishes one.
Missions set their own charges. The Washington embassy’s published guidance puts its Dual Nationality Application Form at US$250, non-refundable, payable by money order, cashier’s cheque or certified bank cheque.
It takes no personal or company cheques and no cash by post. Confirm the current fee with your own mission before you pay.
What can dual citizens not do?
The main bar is Parliament. Article 94(2)(a) of the Constitution says: “A person shall not be qualified to be a Member of Parliament if he — (a) owes allegiance to a country other than Ghana.”
Dual citizens are also barred from six top appointments. The first three are Ambassador or High Commissioner, Secretary to the Cabinet and Chief of Defence Staff or any Service Chief.
The other three are Inspector-General of Police, Commissioner of the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service and Director of the Immigration Service. The Constitution and section 16(2) of the Citizenship Act name the same six offices.
That list used to be longer. In April 2024 the Supreme Court struck down the Act’s extra bars on dual citizens serving as Chief Justice or justices of the Supreme Court, VAT Commissioner and Prisons Director-General.
The court also removed the bars on serving as Chief Fire Officer, Chief Director of a ministry or a colonel in the army or its equivalent. In Francis Osei-Bonsu v Attorney-General, the court ruled Parliament had added offices the Constitution does not list.
The Act also lets the minister prescribe further barred offices by legislative instrument.
Is the law about to change?
A Constitution of Ghana (Amendment) Bill, 2025 would lift the bar on dual citizens holding offices such as ambassador, cabinet secretary, defence chief and police chief. It has passed its First Reading and sits with the Constitutional and Legal Affairs Committee.
Dual citizenship or Right of Abode?
Sections 17 and 18 of the Immigration Act, 2000 (Act 573) create a separate status called Right of Abode. It covers former Ghanaian citizens who gave up their citizenship for another nationality, plus members of the African diaspora.
Only the minister can grant it, with the president’s approval. The holder may live in Ghana indefinitely, enter without a visa and work without a permit, but it remains residence, not citizenship.
Do I lose my Ghanaian citizenship when I naturalise in another country? No — the law says a Ghanaian may hold another country’s citizenship too, but you must notify the Interior Minister in writing of the additional citizenship.
Can I apply without visiting Ghana? Yes — the ministry takes applications online, and missions such as the Washington embassy receive applications and forward them to Accra.
How long does it take? The ministry quotes ten working days for a complete application, as of November 2026, so allow extra time on the mission route, since the mission forwards your application to Accra.
Is there an oath ceremony? No oath is listed for the dual-citizenship route, since oaths of allegiance apply to registration and naturalisation, not to notifying the minister of an additional citizenship.
Which passport do I travel on? A dual citizen may hold a Ghanaian passport alongside a foreign one and stay in Ghana without limit when admitted on the Ghanaian passport, but swapping the two passports to deceive an immigration officer is an offence.
