U.S. Citizenship by Birth

Everyone born in the United States is a U.S. citizen unless one parent is a foreign diplomat working in the United States. Children of such parents are not considered U.S. citizens because their parents are not subject to the jurisdiction of U.S. law. There are several types of diplomatic personnel in this category: ambassadors, ministers, chargés d'affaires, advisers, secretaries, and attachés of embassies and diplomatic missions, as well as some UN and OAS (Organization of American States) personnel. It is never too late to claim U.S. citizenship by birth; you either have it or you don't. In fact, sometimes a consular officer will delay processing a visa if there is reason to believe a visa applicant may qualify for U.S. citizenship.

How to obtain a visa to travel to the United States to give birth

Because of the great appeal of U.S. citizenship, quite a few foreign women seek to come to the United States in time to give birth. A whole industry of business has already grown on this basis - "maternity tours". Consular rules and regulations do not prohibit issuing visitor visas to women traveling to the United States to give birth. On the contrary, the rules place special emphasis on allowing tourist visas for medical and health-related travel. Nevertheless, many consular officers are reluctant to grant visas to pregnant women going to the United States to give birth, mainly because of their own political or philosophical views. In any case, when applying for a visa, a woman must show proof of strong ties to her home country and her financial solvency to cover medical expenses in the United States without government assistance.

Rights of Parents of U.S. Citizens

There is no special status for parents of U.S. citizen children, nor any guarantee of future U.S. visa eligibility. Many people assume that if a child has U.S. citizenship, they can get a U.S. visa. This is a myth. Having U.S. citizenship for a child does not guarantee a future U.S. visa, even for such compelling purposes as accompanying a child to the United States for school or medical treatment. On the contrary, the fact of having been born in the U.S. can be a barrier to obtaining a visa in the future.

The consular officer may consider that the child's mother has already spent a long time in the United States for childbirth (prenatal and postnatal period), so she must reconnect with her home country before she can obtain her next visa. If the child's mother has not paid the childbirth bill, dropping it on the state, the consular officer may delay issuing the next visa until the bill is covered. Worse, if when filling out the visa application for a previous trip to the U.S., the mother of the child deceived the consulate and said she was only going to go for a couple of weeks, when in fact she knew she would be giving birth during that period. In this case, she could be issued a permanent ban on entry into the United States under the section on material misrepresentation.

Obtaining a U.S. passport

Upon the birth of a child, a birth certificate is issued, which can be used to apply for a U.S. passport. Upon receipt of the passport, the child may leave the United States. If he/she resides outside of the United States, the expired passport can be renewed at the nearest U.S. consulate.

Filing Immigration Petitions for Relatives

Only after the age of 21 can a child file an immigrant petition for a parent, sibling, or a relative, if he/she is living in the United States (there are a few exceptions). He can transfer eligibility for U.S. citizenship to his child at birth, but only if he has been physically present in the United States for at least five years, two of which are after he turns 14. Otherwise, his child is only entitled to a Green Card. If the U.S. citizen resides in a country where the USCIS has an office, she may apply for an expedited immigrant visa for her family members (spouse, children, and parents).