The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is updating their Policy Manual regarding how children can become U.S. citizens. These changes are now in effect.

Here are some key points:

• If someone was denied a Certificate of Citizenship before but now qualifies due to new USCIS rules, they can request their application to be reconsidered.
• A parent who is a U.S. citizen can meet the requirement of physical presence in the U.S. before their child is born, regardless of their immigration status at the time.
• If a child is born outside of marriage to two U.S. citizen parents and cannot get citizenship through the father, the mother can prove one year of continuous physical presence in the U.S. before the child’s birth.
• USCIS now requires that a parent must be legally recognized as the child’s parent at the time of birth for the child to acquire citizenship.
• It’s confirmed that a valid U.S. passport or Consular Report of Birth Abroad (CRBA) is proof enough of U.S. citizenship. However, USCIS will check if citizenship was acquired properly and can cancel the CRBA or passport if needed before issuing a Certificate of Citizenship.
• USCIS will also review the status of the applicant’s parents or grandparents when checking the child’s claim to citizenship.
• If a child has suffered from abuse or harm by their U.S. citizen parent, they do not need to continue their relationship with that parent when applying for naturalization.
• Updates to nationality charts have also been made. These changes apply immediately to all current and future applications.

As always, we actively monitor ongoing updates to U.S. immigration policy. If you have questions about any family-based visa issue, or any U.S. immigration topic, contact us. Our team of experienced attorneys work directly with our clients every step of the way throughout their immigration journeys.