On his first day in office on Monday, Jan. 20, President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at ending birthright citizenship, or automatic citizenship for children born in the U.S. regardless of their parent’s legal status.
Birthright citizenship is granted under the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which says in part, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.”
On Jan. 23, U.S. District Judge John Coughenour temporarily blocked Trump’s order, calling it “blatantly unconstitutional” in response to one of five lawsuits that have been filed by 22 states.
While signing the birthright citizenship executive order in the Oval Office on Monday, Trump said, “We’re the only country in the world that does this with birthright citizenship.”
Multiple VERIFY readers, including Caryn and Joe, reached out to ask if it’s true that the United States is the only country with birthright citizenship.
THE QUESTION
Is the United States the only country with birthright citizenship?
THE SOURCES
THE ANSWER
No, the United States is not the only country with birthright citizenship.
WHAT WE FOUND
The United States is one of more than 30 countries that provides unrestricted birthright citizenship. In these countries, a child can be granted automatic citizenship in the country they are born in, regardless of their parents’ citizenship status. Many other countries offer some form of restricted birthright citizenship, which requires a person born in that country to meet additional requirements before they are granted citizenship.
According to the Law Library of Congress and the Central Intelligence Agency, 33 countries offer unconditional birthright citizenship similar to the United States. They include:
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Antigua and Barbuda
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Argentina
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Barbados
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Belize
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Bolivia
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Brazil
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Canada
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Cuba
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Dominica
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Ecuador
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El Salvador
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Fiji
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Grenada
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Guatemala
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Guinea-Bissau
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Guyana
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Honduras
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Jamaica
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Lesotho
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Mexico
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Nicaragua
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Pakistan
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Panama
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Paraguay
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Peru
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Saint Kitts and Nevis
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Saint Lucia
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Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
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Tanzania
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Trinidad and Tobago
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Tuvalu
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Uruguay
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Venezuela
Other countries grant citizenship if a person is born in a country and they meet other conditions. For example, many countries, including France, Chile, and Portugal, offer birthright citizenship depending on whether one or both of the child’s parents are citizens of the country, according to the Law Library of Congress.
In other cases, the parent just has to be a legal resident in order for the child to get birthright citizenship, the Law Library of Congress explains. For example, in Australia and Malaysia, one of the child’s parents must be a citizen or a permanent resident. Germany is another example, where one of the child’s parents must have resided in the country for eight years and have a Swiss citizen residence permit. In Thailand, both parents must be legal residents.