US citizenship is currently available to all American-born newborns but, if President Trump’s executive order on birthright citizenship gets implemented, it may effect all newborns in the United States, affecting their eligibility for US citizenship. The courts have not ruled on the order, but US authorities have begun formulating an implementation plan.

President Trump’s executive order (EO) limits automatic birthright citizenship to children who have at least one parent who is a US citizen or lawful permanent resident with a green card, but excludes those with illegally present or temporary US parents, such as H-1B foreign workers and F-1 study visa holders.

Following the Department of State’s and USCIS’s implementation plans, the Social Security Administration (SSA) has also made public its own strategy for carrying out the President’s order once it becomes operative.

Proving Citizenship

Social Security Numbers (SSNs) are issued under the Social Security Act, permitting the SSA to maintain accurate wage and earnings information in order to administer Social Security programs.

SSNs are also issued to noncitizens who are eligible to work even though they do not hold US citizenship.

According to the Social Security Act, SSN applicants must submit adequate proof of citizenship or foreign status to be issued one. Currently, an SSN applicant can prove US citizenship by producing a birth certificate indicating a birthplace in the United States. However, once the EO goes into effect, proving US citizenship by showing the birth certificate may not be enough.

Implications

Once the EO takes effect, a birth certificate showing a U.S. place of birth will not be sufficient documentary evidence of U.S. citizenship for persons born after the EO takes effect. To comply with the EO, SSA will require evidence that such a person’s mother and/or father is a U.S. citizen or in an eligible immigration status at the time of the person’s birth.

Essentially, the SSA will require proof of a person’s birth, indicating that their parents were U.S. citizens or in eligible immigration status at the time of birth.

What Will Change

Once the EO takes effect, SSA will revise its internal manuals to provide that SSA will continue to abide by existing regulatory evidence requirements for the applicant while also requiring acceptable evidence to demonstrate that at least one parent is a U.S. citizen or in an eligible immigration status.

These instructions would set out steps to be taken where (1) the applicants’ parent do not apply for their child’s SSN through the Enumeration at Birth program and (2) parents or applicants seek certain replacement cards.

Additional evidentiary requirements that a parent must provide

For a Mother or Father born before the EO takes effect, acceptable evidence of U.S. citizenship includes an SSN record of either parent that indicates citizenship or a U.S. place of birth.

For a Mother or Father born after the EO takes effect, acceptable evidence of U.S. citizenship includes:

a. Certificate of naturalization;

b. Certificate of citizenship;

c. U.S. passport issued per the EO;

d. U.S. citizen identification card issued by the Department of Homeland Security;

e. Consular report of birth; or

f. Other verification from the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Department of State,

or Federal or State court records confirming citizenship.

g. Documents establishing a U.S. place of birth plus evidence of parents’ U.S. citizenship or eligible immigration status

If the applicant’s mother or father alleges Lawful Permanent Residency, then the acceptable evidence of Lawful Permanent Residency will be an SSN record of either parent that indicates they are a lawful permanent resident.

The other way for the US green card holders will be to show the Permanent Resident Card (Form I-551), Machine Readable Immigrant Visa (MRIV) with Temporary I-551 notation or other verification from the Department of Homeland Security, or other Federal records confirming lawful and permanent residence.

If the applicant’s mother alleges Lawful Permanent Presence, she has to provide evidence of lawful permanent presence, such as a Form I-94 with a stamp confirming asylum or refugee status. (Financial Express)