Citizenship is the status of a person recognised under the custom or law of a state that bestows on that person (called a citizen) the rights and the duties of citizenship. That may include the right to vote, work and live in the country, the right to return to the country, the right to own real estate, legal protections against the country’s government, and protection through the military or diplomacy. A citizen may also be subject to certain duties, such as a duty to follow the country’s law, to pay taxes, or to serve in the military. A person may have multiple citizenships and a person who does not have citizenship of any state is said to be stateless.

Nationality is often used as a synonym for citizenship in English^[1] – notably in international law – although the term is sometimes understood as denoting a person’s membership of a nation (a large ethnic group).^[2] In some countries, e.g. the United States, Israel, Philippines, and the United Kingdom, “nationality” and “citizenship” have different meanings.^{[citation needed]}