US Immigration News

US Expands the Citizenship Qualifications for Children Born Abroad

1.5 minute read
"The Biden Administration recently announced a policy change in the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) that will allow children born to US parents via surrogacy or assisted reproductive technology to qualify for US citizenship and permanent residence."
Written by My Visa Source Team
Published on:  Sep 16, 2021
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Author info:

The Biden Administration recently announced a policy change in the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) that will allow children born to US parents via surrogacy or assisted reproductive technology to qualify for US citizenship and permanent residence. 

This policy change will benefit the babies born abroad to US citizens and permanent residents by allowing them citizenship and family-based immigration. 

What Is the Updated USCIS Policy?

According to the updated policy, for the babies to meet the eligibility criteria for US citizenship or permanent residence, one parent must be genetically related or have a child. That parent must be married and be recognized as the legal guardian of the child.

This updated policy decision was made to help modern families. This includes couples who use Vitro Fertilization (IVF), same-sex couples using assisted reproductive technology, surrogacy, and other parents living abroad.

The USCIS will allow married couples with one US citizen to pass down US citizenship to their children as long as one of them has a genetic link to the baby or has given birth to the baby.

This would benefit many couples to transmit US citizenship to their children born abroad while still following the requirements established for citizenship transmission. The previous interpretation of the policy considered such children to be born out of wedlock and ineligible for US citizenship and family immigration benefits. This interpretation was defended by the Trump administration in federal court after several lawsuits were filed by same-sex couples arguing the right to US citizenship for their children.

The Biden administration has stated their efforts to remove Trump-era barriers to make it easier for immigrants to obtain asylum, work visas, permanent residence, and citizenship.

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