[nerbert]

Any US citizen HAS to leave the US with their nationality. That’s the law.

U.S. citizens must use a U.S. passport to enter and leave the United States. This requirement is outlined in the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations, specifically 22 CFR 53.1. It states that a U.S. citizen must possess a valid U.S. passport to depart from or enter the United States unless they meet certain exceptions. This law ensures that U.S. citizens are properly documented for international travel, facilitating legal entry and exit from the country.

[jsmith45]

Right, but the only punishment for failing to comply is reprimand and delay at the entrance while trying to verify citizenship. The latest publicly available CBP Inspector's Field manual is unequivocal that if the Inspector is convinced the entrant is an American citizen they cannot stop them from entering.

The law really exists as a way to avoid delays at entry as a US citizen having a valid US passport can be processed in much faster than one who does not, and it minimizes the risk of being stuck with an immigration agent that does not belive your claims of being an American citizen due to lacking convincing records and documents.

American Citizens are not the only ones with an unequivocal right to enter. American Indians born in Canada who have are at least 50% American Indian by blood "cannot be denied admission to the United States". They are required to prove to the inspector that they meet this criteria, but if they do, they don't need a passport or anything. (But they probably needed some documents to convince the inspector of their status as a 50%+ native born in Canada.)

[resolutebat]

While the law does indeed state that, there are no penalties whatsoever defined for breaking the law, so there are literally no consequences for doing so.

https://travel.stackexchange.com/questions/85389/what-is-the...

[pseudo0]

It's completely unenforced. When exiting the US no American authority checks what passport you are using to leave, and when entering they are legally required to let Americans reenter the country. At worst the border guard will be cranky and give you a stern lecture about how you are supposed to use your US passport.