Beyond 'birth tourism': transnational birth mobilities and dual citizenship amid geopolitical instability

Author(s)

Ruseishvili, Svetlana

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: CITIZENSHIP STUDIES; v. 28, n. 7, p. 20-pg., 2024-10-02.

Abstract

This article investigates the pursuit of additional citizenship through transnational births, based on an ethnographic study of Russian families who travel to Brazil specifically to obtain Brazilian nationality for themselves and their children. The research challenges the conventional framing of 'birth tourism', proposing instead the term 'birth mobilities' to emphasise the link between citizenship acquisition and international mobility patterns. The findings suggest that dual citizenship is not merely a strategic tool to achieve other goals but is instead sought as a potential safeguard in an increasingly unstable and rapidly shifting geopolitical and mobility landscape. This article contributes to understanding how the desire for dual citizenship drives new forms of international migration. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 23/03070-1 - Births and passports: birth mobilities and strategic citizenship in contemporary Brazil
• Grantee: Svetlana Ruseishvili
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 23/05431-1 - Backup citizenship: reproduction, gender and motility in birth mobilities to Brazil
• Grantee: Svetlana Ruseishvili
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research