Draft guidance implements Trump August 6 order targeting what it calls birth tourism
The US State Department has proposed requiring parents who apply for passports for their children to submit proof of their own citizenship or immigration status. The draft guidance, reviewed by Reuters, is the first detailed look at how the department could enforce President Donald Trump’s August 6 executive order targeting what the order calls “birth tourism.”
Under the proposal, all parents or legal guardians submitting a passport application for a child would have to provide a valid US passport, a birth certificate, or evidence of immigration status such as an I-94 arrival record or a legal permanent residency card. State Department officials said the information would be used by the government to determine whether the child qualifies for citizenship under the new order.
“The department will require parental information and evidence of parental citizenship or immigration status as part of its determination whether the applicant is subject to EO 14418,” the draft guidance reads, citing the executive order number. State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said in a statement that “President Trump has been unequivocal that this administration will protect the meaning and value of American citizenship, full stop, and that includes making sure our passport adjudication process fully reflects that standard.” The White House referred questions about the proposal to the State Department.
The August 6 order narrows an earlier executive order that would have granted automatic US citizenship at birth only to children with at least one parent who was a US citizen or a lawful permanent resident — commonly known as a green card holder. In June, the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that order unlawful, with a majority finding it violated the citizenship clause of the US Constitution’s 14th Amendment. The narrower order could still face court challenges, according to The Guardian.
According to the draft guidance, the new directive would withhold citizenship from children with a parent who works for a foreign government in the US, is engaged in fraud or a commercial transaction to obtain citizenship, or is classified as an “alien enemy.” The proposed criteria would require adjudication on a case-by-case basis during the passport process.
Under the current passport application system, parents whose children were born in the US only need to prove their parentage and present photo identification. They are also asked to check a box on the application form indicating whether they are US citizens, but they are not required to file supporting documentation. The proposed rules would replace that checkbox with a documentation requirement applied to every applicant.
Lawyers pursuing class-action lawsuits on behalf of babies who would be deprived of citizenship under the original order have asked two different federal judges to prevent the latest order from taking effect, according to The Guardian.