How a Second Passport Built a $200 Million Business

Daniel Harper* didn’t think he needed a second passport.

He was 100% American. Ohio-born. Michigan-educated. He founded a Chicago-based company that served American logistics firms. His employees were local. His customers were domestic. Europe felt distant.

He paid his taxes, voted in every election, and never questioned the assumption that his blue US passport was all he would ever need.

But in 2026, the global markets shifted, and Daniel’s software platform had matured. It used machine learning to optimize supply chains in real time, and it attracted attention beyond the US. A German shipping consortium reached out, interested in piloting the software.

Europe was calling, the opportunity of a lifetime… and his blue passport wasn’t enough.

If he entered Germany as an American, he could visit for short periods under standard visa-free travel rules. However, building an operation on the ground was another matter. Establishing a European subsidiary, hiring staff, signing long-term leases, and residing there for months at a time would require visas, work permits, and layers of bureaucracy. The process could take a year or more, and there was no guarantee of approval.

That was when Daniel remembered his Irish citizenship.

You see, Daniel’s grandmother had emigrated from County Cork in the 1920s. After his birth, his father, her son, had registered Daniel’s birth with Ireland’s Foreign Births Register. That confirmed Daniel as an Irish citizen, although he soon forgot about it.

As a citizen of Ireland, he was also a citizen of the European Union. That status granted him the right to live and work freely in any EU member state, including Germany. No work visa. No residency lottery. No corporate sponsor required.

Within months, Daniel relocated to Hamburg. He registered his residence, opened a local bank account, and incorporated a German subsidiary with far fewer barriers than he had expected. His ability to act quickly impressed the consortium. While competitors were still navigating immigration paperwork, Daniel was hiring engineers and meeting port authorities in person.

The benefits were not only legal but strategic. As an EU citizen, Daniel could participate more directly in public procurement processes that favoured EU-based companies. He gained credibility simply by being part of the same political and regulatory framework as his clients. Contracts that might have been considered risky with a fully foreign founder now seemed more secure.

His company’s revenue tripled in two years.

But the second passport’s value extended beyond business growth.

In 2018, a trade dispute between the United States and several European nations escalated. Tariffs and retaliatory policies created uncertainty for American-owned companies operating abroad. Some US-controlled firms faced closer scrutiny and delays in regulatory approvals.

Daniel’s company, structured under EU law and led by an EU citizen, navigated the climate with relative stability. While he remained proudly American, his Irish citizenship provided a layer of insulation against political turbulence.

Then came the pandemic.

In early 2020, borders around the world tightened almost overnight. Flights were cancelled. Entry restrictions changed weekly. Daniel had been visiting Chicago when lockdowns began. Many of his American colleagues with business ties in Europe found themselves stranded, unable to return to offices or oversee operations in person.

Daniel, holding an Irish passport, could legally return to the European Union despite the restrictions placed on third-country nationals. He boarded one of the last available flights to Frankfurt and made his way back to Hamburg. Being physically present during the early months of the crisis allowed him to renegotiate contracts, implement remote monitoring systems, and reassure anxious clients.

Several competitors lost key accounts because executives could not enter the EU. Daniel’s firm gained two major contracts during that period.

There were personal benefits as well.

Living in Germany introduced Daniel to a new rhythm of life. He met Anna, an architect from Munich. They married in 2021. Because Daniel was already an EU citizen, there were no complex immigration hurdles for him to remain in Germany long term. When their daughter was born, she automatically held American, Irish, and German citizenship, giving her the same flexibility Daniel had once taken for granted.

Over time, Daniel began to see dual citizenship not as a loophole or backup plan, but as a form of resilience.

He remained deeply connected to the US. His headquarters stayed in Chicago. He continued to pay US taxes, as American citizens are required to do regardless of residence. He voted absentee in federal elections. But he also engaged in civic life in Germany at the local level, contributing to community initiatives and professional associations.

Critics sometimes argue that multiple citizenships dilute loyalty. Daniel’s experience suggested the opposite. He felt more invested in the stability and prosperity of both societies. His work bridged supply chains between American and European firms, reducing waste and increasing efficiency on both sides of the Atlantic.

In practical terms, his dual status made him a connector… a global citizen.

Financially, the impact was enormous. By 2024, his company had operations in five EU countries and two US states. Venture capital funding valued the firm at over $200 million. Much of that growth stemmed from early access to the European market, made possible by his Irish citizenship.

Had he relied solely on his American passport, the timeline would have been very different. Delays in securing residency could have cost him the German consortium contract. Without a foothold in Europe before the trade disputes and pandemic, he might have lost ground to EU-based competitors. Investors might have hesitated to fund a cross-border operation burdened by immigration uncertainty.

Instead, the second passport functioned as a strategic asset. It gave him mobility when mobility mattered most. It reduced regulatory friction. It signalled belonging in multiple markets. It provided a measure of protection during political and public health crises. And it offered his family options for the future, from education to residence to employment across continents.

Daniel sometimes reflects on how casually he once treated the paperwork that granted him Irish citizenship. At the time, it felt like honouring family history. In retrospect, it was also an investment in flexibility.

In an interconnected world, opportunity rarely respects national borders. For Daniel, holding both an American and an Irish passport did not change who he was. It changed what he could do. It turned potential obstacles into manageable steps and transformed a regional startup into a transatlantic enterprise.

The blue passport he kept in his desk still symbolized his birthplace and civic identity. The burgundy one represented access, speed, and optionality. Together, they allowed him to build a life and business that might otherwise have remained out of reach.

In his case, a second passport was not a luxury. It was a valuable asset—one that had translated directly into increased wealth and freedom.

*  Not his real name