How Trump Triggers a Rush for Luxembourg Citizenship

Eldorado How Donald Trump triggers a rush toward Luxembourgish nationality

Daniel Atz helps from New York Americans of Luxembourgish origin to obtain dual nationality. And he has a lot of work since the return of Donald Trump to business.

The actions of Trump partly arouse fears for the future in American society. Thus, for Americans of Luxembourgish origin, dual nationality appears as a way out.

Jeff Karier Journalist 27/03/2025

In his office on Madison Avenue in New York, Daniel Atz processes almost daily dozens of requests from American citizens who sometimes try desperately to establish a link with their Luxembourgish ancestors. Atz is the founder of LuxCitizenship, a company which, since 2017, has helped some 2,450 Americans to make an application for Luxembourgish nationality.

“Until now, around 2,100 of our clients have also obtained their dual nationality,” he explains in a video interview given to our colleagues of Luxemburger Wort. Since the re-election of Donald Trump to the presidency of the United States, he has however been confronted with an unprecedented influx of requests. And that, coming from worried American citizens and in search of an “exit strategy.”

Daniel Atz himself has held dual nationality since 2014.

Whereas LuxCitizenship carries out, according to Atz, around 800 eligibility assessments in an average year, there were 1,201 in total in 2024, election year in the United States. But that was only a foretaste of this year. Indeed, just between January 1st 2025 and March 7th, 390 assessments would already have been delivered, that is a monthly average of 177 eligibility assessments compared to about one hundred the previous year.

Without exaggerating, everything has completely changed since the re-election of Trump. Daniel Atz Founder of LuxCitizenship

Since 2021, Atz also offers to any person who has obtained Luxembourgish nationality the possibility to book a one-hour video interview. During this, he goes through with them logistical questions, such as, for example, a possible move to Luxembourg. “In general, a client uses this interview possibility every two months,” he explains. “Today, there are days where I have at least three interviews of this type…”

The emotional component

As Atz underlines, people are very affected by political current events. “We had the case of a person who came to us to be told that they did not have the right to obtain Luxembourgish nationality. And then, they made quite a scene. It was the day after the elections…”

Scenes such as that which took place at the end of February between Volodymyr Zelensky and Donald Trump not only shocked many people in Europe, but also provoked a feeling of insecurity within the United States.

What has therefore changed most dramatically is the motivation of candidates. Before October 2024, most candidates mentioned, to justify their request, links with their ancestors, nostalgia or even international opportunities. “A typical message of the time was in substance: ‘my great-grandfather came from Luxembourg, I am so proud of the family that he built, and this would be a way for me to reconnect a link with the country from which he came,’” explains Atz.

Since the end of October 2024, he observes a spectacular change in the tone of requests. “We now receive many messages that say: ‘I live in a country whose values no longer correspond to my vision of the world. I am looking for an immediate way out,’” he reports. The messages are more emotionally charged and indicate a feeling of urgency.

An AI analysis of the requests would have revealed that terms such as “stability,” “security,” “future,” “escape,” and “democracy” are much more present. What was once a long-term aspiration has now become an immediate exit.

“I live in a country whose values no longer correspond to my vision of the world.” the type of justification that Daniel Atz receives today

Questions relating to LGBTQ+ rights and economic stability would be particularly worrying for many applicants. “We receive messages from people who worry about their LGBTQ+ children or who are themselves LGBTQ+ and fear for their safety,” explains Atz. Around 10% of requests revolve around economic concerns, many thinking that the Luxembourgish social system is more adapted to starting a family.

“It is also a very difficult period for me personally, because I often go to public events such as those that promote networking in New York and I explain what I do. Then, there are always people who come to me and literally and desperately beg me to help them obtain another nationality. It is therefore impossible for me to ignore this…” He therefore wishes to expand his company in order to broaden his offering.

The path to Luxembourgish citizenship

If one had to summarize the matter, most Americans who currently request Luxembourgish nationality do so on the basis of one of these three arguments:

Recognition of citizenship: the largest group is composed of people who, according to Luxembourg law, were already citizens at birth because they descend from a Luxembourgish ancestor in the male line.

Nationality option: people having a Luxembourgish parent or grandparent can request nationality, but must travel to Luxembourg to finalize the process.

Combination of the two paths: in certain cases, a posthumous recognition of a deceased parent as Luxembourgish citizen can open the path to the nationality option.

The process can however be long, notably because of the complexity of archival systems in the United States. The archiving of civil status registers was not mandatory at the federal level there until 1908 and all states did not comply before 1913. “Registers are not centralized and depend on each county. There are around 3,000 different systems to request these documents.” According to him, sometimes one needs a letter from Luxembourg, sometimes a lawyer’s letter, sometimes one must go to a notary, sometimes even to court, to obtain the documents in question. “In Ohio, there is sometimes no website at all and everything must be done by fax. Everything depends on the place where the ancestors lived in the United States.”

If, in addition, names have been misspelled in registers or if people gave another first name for some reason, that makes things even more difficult. “Sometimes, it happened that brothers exchanged their names,” reports Atz. In certain cases, letters such as an H or a T have been omitted in the family name, while there are also cases where names have been strongly distorted, because Luxembourgish and English pronunciations are not the same.

According to cases, it can take up to one year before a person finally obtains Luxembourgish nationality. Daniel Atz Founder of LuxCitizenship

“According to cases, it can take up to one year before a person finally obtains Luxembourgish nationality, which is definitely due to American authorities and not Luxembourgish ones,” explains Atz, who underlines that “this means that certain people who come currently to us in urgency will not obtain their dual nationality before 2026.”

The reality of moving to Luxembourg

As LuxCitizenship receives, according to Atz, more requests than the team can handle, the company introduced a few years ago criteria to better decide. “We look for a link with Luxembourg or an international profile which shows the probability of a significant future use of citizenship,” explains Atz.

He asks them, for example, if they have experience abroad or if they know foreign languages. Do they have contacts with family in Luxembourg or have they already visited Luxembourg? “Many candidates have never left the United States and do not possess an American passport. We do not make a value judgment, they can request Luxembourgish nationality. But we do not support all these requests.” As Atz explains, his company therefore works with only around 20% of interested persons.

Because despite the enthusiasm for Luxembourgish nationality, not all applicants have a realistic vision of life in Luxembourg. “Some call me as soon as they have obtained Luxembourgish nationality and tell me that they are now going to settle in Luxembourg with their partner and their three children. Yet, they have never visited the country before. I am often honest with people and I advise them to go to Luxembourg and to get an idea of the country or of the conditions on site before deciding such a life change,” underlines Atz, who himself lived in Luxembourg for a short period.

“Many candidates have never left the United States and do not possess an American passport.” Daniel Atz Founder of LuxCitizenship

“There exist many challenges. For example, it is extremely difficult for Americans to open a Luxembourgish bank account because of American laws.” In addition, many would completely underestimate the cost of living in Luxembourg.

Atz also underlines that many applicants are monolingual and have careers which do not correspond to opportunities on the Luxembourg labor market. “I know Americans in Luxembourg who look for jobs for months and who do not obtain an interview,” he explains.

Among his clients who have effectively moved to Europe, most work remotely, have found a job or created a company in other EU countries or study in one of the EU countries. Only a limited number have effectively settled in Luxembourg.

But what is clear is that the political situation in the United States has a profound impact on the number of Americans who seek a European “exit strategy,” and that Luxembourg has become for many people of Luxembourgish origin a symbol of hope for a more stable and safer future.