As reported, the owner of the NBA club Cleveland Cavaliers announced in spring of 2014 that Ilgauskas received American citizenship. Following this news, the Lithuanian Interior Ministry sent a query to the US institutions. It emerged that Ilgauskas received the US passport in October 2013, thus, under the Lithuanian laws, he lost Lithuania's citizenship.
Lithuanian laws provide for owning dual citizenship only in exceptional cases – if a person fled from the Soviet regime or is a child of deportees. Those who are born abroad or take citizenship through marriage are also allowed to hold dual citizenship.
Nationals of other countries may be granted Lithuanian citizenship for merit by the president.
Presidential office initiated law amendments after Ilgauskas' Lithuanian passport had been revoked.
