Second citizenship, in almost every jurisdiction we work with, has no automatic tax consequence. You are taxed where you are resident, under the rules of the states that claim you, and a new passport in a drawer changes none of that.
Residence programmes are different. Several of them create the opportunity to change tax residence, and a few create the risk of doing so accidentally. Italy's flat-tax election and Malta's remittance basis are opportunities. Establishing genuine residence in a worldwide-taxation jurisdiction without planning is a risk.
We coordinate with the client's existing tax advisers rather than replacing them. The sequence matters: structure first, apply second. Reversing that order has cost clients more than any application fee in this industry.
Priya Raman
Hampton & Kent
