Should You Include Citizenship on Your Resume?

When it comes to writing your resume, there are plenty of details that you need to think about.

And even though this is not even considered as part of the hiring process, adding citizenship might be tougher than one thinks.

In most cases, it is not an issue, but sometimes it might happen that you find it more difficult than expected.

In this article, we are going to help you by exploring the following questions:

• What is citizenship?
• Should you include citizenship on your resume?
• When should you include citizenship on your resume?
• How to list citizenship on your resume?

So, if you are ready to find the answers to all these questions, stick around.

What is citizenship?

By official definition, citizenship is a legal status and relation between an individual and a state that entails specific legal rights and duties.

However, citizenship is generally used as a synonym for nationality. Where citizenship is used in a meaning that is different from nationality, it refers to the legal rights and duties of individuals attached to nationality under domestic law.

In some national laws, citizenship has a more specific meaning and refers to rights and duties that can only be exercised after the age of majority (such as voting rights) or to rights and duties that can only be exercised in the national territory.

Should you include citizenship on your resume?

In general, there are certain things that you should omit on your resume, including:

• Race
• Nationality
• Gender
• Religion
• Sexuality

That’s because there are laws that prohibit employers from discriminating against people at work or in the hiring process based on these.

Furthermore, you might come across as unprofessional if you include any of these on your resume.

And actually citizenship is also on that list, so employers can’t choose who to hire based on their citizenship or country of origin.

However, there are certain situations in which you need to list your citizenship on your resume.

When should you include citizenship on your resume?

Once you know that it is generally not a good idea to list citizenship on your resume, it is time for us to take a look at the exceptions.

It is a good idea to include citizenship information on your resume if:

• You want to avoid illegal discrimination
• You are applying for a job that legally requires US citizenship – these are generally US government jobs, or positions requiring security clearance
• You are in a country with highly competitive job market, and has strict work permits – in that case local citizens might be favored, and you should list it if you are one
• You are a senior level employee, and wish to list it – that’s because companies are much more willing to take on any costs for work sponsorship costs when you are an experienced professional

How to list citizenship on your resume?

If you decide to go for including citizenship on your resume, you should know how to do it right.

To do so, the best approach is to simply add a short footnote at the bottom of your resume.

Remember that you are in no way obligated to list your citizenship on your resume, but if you decide to go for it, it should not stand out as unnatural.

Last but not least, make sure that the citizenship on your resume does not take up more than one line.

Some great examples you can use on your resume are:

• “US Citizen”
• “No work authorization required”
• “No sponsorship required”
• “Authorized to work for any US employer”

But you can also use your own way to list your citizenship on your resume, as long as it is short and clear for the hiring managers.

Takeaways

We are all done, now you know when and how to list citizenship on your resume.

Let’s go through all the important points you need to think about one last time:

• Generally, you should omit certain kinds of information on your resume, including citizenship, as employers are not legally allowed to take it into account in the hiring process
• You can consider listing citizenship on your resume if:
  • You want to avoid illegal discrimination
  • You are applying for a job that legally requires US citizenship
  • You are in a country with highly competitive job market, and has strict work permits
  • You are a senior level employee, and wish to list it
• If you wish to list your citizenship, remember to make it brief (with just one line), and on the bottom of your resume

Check out our examples for listing your citizenship on your resume, and decide if you want to go for it, or omit that personal information on your next resume.