United States tightens birthright rules

According to the new management of the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), children born to parents permanently residing outside the United States will not be able to obtain automatic citizenship.

Фото: Depositphotos

A huge number of people come to America only to give birth to a child who becomes a US citizen. This practice is popular both among celebrities and among ordinary citizens of other countries.

To determine the right to obtain citizenship by birth, authorities introduced a new criterion - place of residence or actual residence in America. And everything depends on the ability to prove the actual residence.

Difference between Actual Residence and Physical Presence in the USA

“A residence is more than a temporary presence or visit to the United States. Consequently, temporary presence and visits are not enough to establish a place of residence for the purpose of obtaining citizenship. For example, someone who lives along the border in Mexico or Canada but works every day in the United States cannot use their jobs to establish residency. A vacation or short stay in the United States does not qualify as living in the United States, ”the USCIS document says.

The term "place of abode" ("residence") should not be confused with physical presence—the actual time a person is present in the United States, whether he or she resides in
USA. Although some provisions regarding naturalization and citizenship require periods of physical presence, residence, or both, there is no specific period of residence necessary to acquire citizenship if the child was born outside the United States from two parents who are US citizens.

“For example, a person traveled throughout the United States for a year, staying in different hotels in different cities and towns each week, without owning or renting property, or having another primary residence in the United States. We can assume that he was physically present in the country for a year. But if he does not have evidence of a primary place of residence in the United States, he cannot be considered to have been a resident of the United States all along,” USCIS notes.

However, there is a caveat:

“However, attending a school, college or university in the United States over a long period of time may be considered a place of residence in the United States, depending on the totality of the circumstances.”

On the subject: 34 Thousands of Immigrants Will Receive US Citizenship By Constitution Day

Ownership or rental of real estate

To prove your actual residence in the United States, it is not necessary to own or rent a property. But owning and renting can help confirm a US residency if a person can show that he actually lived in that property. An owner who only owns, but never lived in, will not be able to establish a residence in the United States on this basis.

The right to transfer US citizenship to children

Various circumstances may affect whether USCIS considers a person resident in the United States eligible to transfer their citizenship to children.

US citizens who were born in America and received automatic citizenship by birth, but actually never lived in the United States, will not be able to prove such a residence, which means they may not be able to transfer American citizenship to their children.

If a US citizen born in America who has never lived in the United States still marries another US citizen who also did not live in America and gives birth to a child outside the United States, the child will not have American citizenship. But if a parent with automatic citizenship still lived before the birth of his child in America and can confirm this, his child will be able to apply for US citizenship, even if born in another country.

Automatic US citizenship for children born in America

A U.S. citizen born in the United States generally satisfies the residence requirement if he or she can provide evidence that his or her mother was not just traveling through the United States or visiting them at the time the baby was born.

For example, a full birth certificate is sufficient evidence if it contains the US address at which his mother actually lived at the time of the birth of the US citizen. If the U.S. citizen’s birth certificate states that at the time of birth, his or her mother’s address was outside the United States, the USCIS may consider that the person does not meet the residence requirement unless the applicant can prove otherwise.

Documents that can help confirm your residence include, but are not limited to, the following:

• US marriage certificate with the address of the bride and groom;
• rental of real estate, registration of real estate tax and payment receipts;
• acts and legal documents;
• utility bills;
• car registrations;
• professional licenses;
• employment records or data;
• income tax and income records, including W-2 salary forms;
• school records;
• military records; and
• vaccination data and medical records.

In addition, the document introduces a rule for conferring citizenship on children of US military and diplomats who were born in another country. The guidelines apply to parents who have not lived in the United States for many years or who are not American citizens.

On the subject: States where immigrants most often receive US citizenship

US citizenship for children born in other countries

A biological, legal, or adopted child automatically obtains US citizenship after birth if he was born outside the United States and as of February 27 on 2001 of the year and later the following conditions are met:

• the child has at least one parent, including an adoptive parent who is a U.S. citizen
  birth or naturalization;
• the child is not 18 years old;
• the child is a lawful permanent resident (LPR); and
• the child resides in the United States of America under the legal and physical control of a U.S. citizen parent.

A child born abroad using assisted reproductive technology (ART, IVF) and carried by a U.S. citizen woman who is not the child's genetic mother may be eligible for citizenship if:

• the mother who has given birth is recognized as the legal mother of this child at the time of his birth; and
• the child meets all other requirements under INA 320, including residing in the United States under the legal and physical custody of a U.S. citizen parent.

Pursuant to this provision, a stepson who has not been adopted cannot apply for US citizenship.

There are a few exceptions to all of the above rules, but in general, parents will have to apply for US citizenship for their children. And have time to do it before the 18 anniversary of the child.

“In order to obtain a Certificate of Citizenship, US citizens must apply for citizenship on their behalf in accordance with INA 322 by filling out Form N-600K and show that they meet the requirements specified in the regulation,” CBS News quotes departments.

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