Neil Young's U.S. Citizenship Was 'Messed' With by the Trump Administration, His Wife Daryl Hannah Claims: 'Ridiculous' (2025)

During Donald Trump’s first presidency, he allegedly tried to restrict musician Neil Young, 79, from becoming an American citizen.

According to Young’s wife, Daryl Hannah, 64, the first Trump administration “tried every trick in the book to mess him up,” adding, “And made him keep coming back to be re-interviewed and re-interviewed. It’s ridiculous [because] he’s been living in America and paying taxes here since he was in his 20s."

Though the “Heart of Gold” singer eventually became a dual Canadian-American citizen after relocating to the U.S., the Kill Bill actress remains concerned about what could happen if he left the country and tried to return.

“They’ve been detaining people who have green cards or visas — which is hideous and horrifying — but they have not, so far, been refusing to let American citizens back in the country, so I don’t think that’s going to happen,” Hannah expressed to the BBC.

Before the 2020 presidential election, Young wanted to acquire his U.S. citizenship, telling the Los Angeles Times that he intended to “register my opinion” given the “climate emergency.”

“I’m still a Canadian; there’s nothing that can take that away from me,” he told the news outlet. “But I live down here; I pay taxes down here; my beautiful family is all down here — they’re all Americans.”

Despite his initial effort to obtain American citizenship, the musician faced difficulty due to his public consumption of marijuana. “When I recently applied for American citizenship, I passed the test. It was a conversation where I was asked many questions. I answered them truthfully and passed,” he wrote on his website in 2019. “However, I have been told that I must do another test due to my use of marijuana and how some people who smoke it have exhibited a problem.”

Though Young can legally live in the U.S., he and his wife relocated back to Canada, where they now live. As OK! previously reported, a source close to the couple of seven years revealed they “love the peace and quiet.”