A customs officer inspects the passport of a woman in Erenhot, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region on July 25. Photo: CFP

To be Chinese or German? That's the question for Xiao Yu (pseudonym), a Beijing resident who travels back and forth between China and Germany with her German boyfriend to keep their long-distance relationship aflame.

"I don't know if I should give up my Chinese citizenship if I get married one day. Unfortunately, I cannot keep my Chinese citizenship if I choose to emigrate to Germany," Xiao told the Global Times.

Three years into their relationship and after several trips to Germany, Xiao has fallen in love with her boyfriend's home country, but is hesitant to leave everything behind, especially her family and friends.

"Even the idea that I will be traveling in my motherland on a visa, which could expire one day, makes me feel suffocated," she said.

Neither China nor Germany allows legal dual citizenship, but many immigrants to those countries that do welcome dual citizenship switch their roles as needed to facilitate their lives across the borders.

In light of the chaotic citizenship situation, China has vowed to strengthen its control over the issue. The Ministry of Public Security (MPS) launched an online tip-off platform regarding household registration (or hukou) problems in July. Whistle-blowers are also encouraged to report about dual citizenship.

Chinese people who have obtained foreign citizenship and fail to cancel their hukou face the risk of being barred from leaving China if they return, reports said.

The move has won applause from many analysts, as the crackdown on dual citizenship could serve as another way to further combat corruption. But measures are also expected to make things easier for those who do give up their Chinese nationality to make visits home.

Common practice in the dark

Li Hua did not cancel his hukou in Beijing or his Chinese passport when he took up US citizenship in 2006. His illegal dual citizenship lasted over one year and ended with the cancelation of his Beijing hukou after his family members immigrated to the US. His US passport helped him travel freely and the Chinese one guaranteed a quicker trip to his motherland.

"I had family and business in China when I got my US citizenship. If I canceled my hukou at that time, I would have had to leave China after six months and re-enter the country. It would also be very complicated to transfer ownership of my properties in China," Li admitted to the Legal Weekly newspaper.

Li is far from alone in holding dual citizenship. Some online discussions have taught people how to keep their secret identity, including changing the Chinese name on the foreign passport to prevent inspection.

Despite people's desire to keep both identities, authorities have never stopped clamping down. In the last year and a half, 1.06 million people living abroad had their hukou canceled, reported the newspaper.

Song Quancheng, director of Institute of Immigration Studies at Shandong University, said that the present Nationality Law has no compulsory article to demand people  cancel their hukou in China after taking foreign nationality

It may also because of the relaxed polices, according to Kong Yang, a police officer in Fengtai district, Beijing. Kong recalled the policies of the 1980s and 1990s as extraordinarily strict, as Chinese students ready to study abroad could only get their passports after the cancelation of their hukou, which could be resumed upon their return.

To facilitate the exit-entry procedure, the MPS issued a notice in 2003, allowing those who stayed overseas for more than one year to keep their hukou, but those who settled down overseas had to give it up.

Anti-corruption factor

In many analysts' eyes, anti-corruption is another major motive behind the authorities' tighter control over dual citizenship.

"The control on dual citizenship is a major blow to 'naked officials' whose family members have emigrated overseas and properties transferred too. Some officials themselves may even have dual citizenship as well. This has become a new form of corruption," said Ren Jianming, a professor from School of Public Policy and Management at Beihang University.

Zhang Shuguang, former head of the now defunct Ministry of Railways' transportation bureau and deputy chief engineer, was indicted in 2013 for taking bribes worth 47.55 million yuan ($7.73 million). He was also charged with giving out projects to his associates.

Along with the public prosecution, the public were also appalled at Zhang's huge amount of properties and luxurious home in the US. However, Zhang was not the only official with foreign-based properties.

A 2011 report from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences revealed that some 18,000 officials have escaped the country since the 1990s, along with over 800 billion yuan. Statistics from MPS also state at least 500 officials have fled in 2013, most of whom hiding in Canada, the US or European countries.

Qiao Xinsheng, a professor with the Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, also observed the trend. Qiao explained that it is not easy to track the properties if they are transferred to overseas bank accounts or foreign-based companies run by family members.

"Even if they were found conducting illegal activities, officials with dual citizenship may be exempted from legal punishment due to being 'foreign nationals,'" Ren noted. "Meanwhile, anti-corruption international cooperation is usually time-consuming and cross-border investigations are still difficult." 

Dilemma of change

While tougher dual citizenship measures are expected for anti-corruption, others are anticipating more relaxed ones.

Chen Sijin, a risk investment consultant who got Canadian nationality in 2001, told the Legal Weekly that attempts to invest in the "motherland" often meet obstacles.

Several members of the national committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) have also made proposals related to further relaxing the regulation on dual citizenship.

A home return permit could be issued to overseas Chinese to help with the current situation, similar to the permit issued to compatriots in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macao, Ren suggested. "However, such policy should not be applied to officials. It is not only a matter of political security and loyalty, but more of prevention of more corruption."