Pass
I learned something new about myself today. I did not have Dutch nationality at birth, which I’ve always assumed. Well, as far as I remember anyway. Apparently, back in the dark ages of 1973, having been born outside of the Netherlands, you apparently only automatically received Dutch nationality when your dad was Dutch, not your mom.
I found this out when I got a call from the Dutch embassy in Thailand, getting flack for not filling in my passport request form correctly.
Apparently, the law on this changed in 1984, and I do remember some legalistic wrangling at the time, having lost the details.
I also had to specify whether I had any other nationality, which resulted in more flack. According to the Dutch immigration service, it’s possible, and required(!), to renounce your Iranian citizenship, except for some specific exceptions, particularly related to military service, requiring paperwork.
So what does this mean? Perhaps no new passport this week. Perhaps no new passport? Watch this space.
Death
Chris, Ismail‘s cat, died yesterday. Sad.
