US Laws, Codes, Statutes & Cases

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[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 8USC1401]

 
                     TITLE 8--ALIENS AND NATIONALITY
 
                 CHAPTER 12--IMMIGRATION AND NATIONALITY
 
             SUBCHAPTER III--NATIONALITY AND NATURALIZATION
 
       Part I--Nationality at Birth and Collective Naturalization
 
Sec. 1401. Nationals and citizens of United States at birth

    The following shall be nationals and citizens of the United States 
at birth:
        (a) a person born in the United States, and subject to the 
    jurisdiction thereof;
        (b) a person born in the United States to a member of an Indian, 
    Eskimo, Aleutian, or other aboriginal tribe: Provided, That the 
    granting of citizenship under this subsection shall not in any 
    manner impair or otherwise affect the right of such person to tribal 
    or other property;
        (c) a person born outside of the United States and its outlying 
    possessions of parents both of whom are citizens of the United 
    States and one of whom has had a residence in the United States or 
    one of its outlying possessions, prior to the birth of such person;
        (d) a person born outside of the United States and its outlying 
    possessions of parents one of whom is a citizen of the United States 
    who has been physically present in the United States or one of its 
    outlying possessions for a continuous period of one year prior to 
    the birth of such person, and the other of whom is a national, but 
    not a citizen of the United States;
        (e) a person born in an outlying possession of the United States 
    of parents one of whom is a citizen of the United States who has 
    been physically present in the United States or one of its outlying 
    possessions for a continuous period of one year at any time prior to 
    the birth of such person;
        (f) a person of unknown parentage found in the United States 
    while under the age of five years, until shown, prior to his 
    attaining the age of twenty-one years, not to have been born in the 
    United States;
        (g) a person born outside the geographical limits of the United 
    States and its outlying possessions of parents one of whom is an 
    alien, and the other a citizen of the United States who, prior to 
    the birth of such person, was physically present in the United 
    States or its outlying possessions for a period or periods totaling 
    not less than five years, at least two of which were after attaining 
    the age of fourteen years: Provided, That any periods of honorable 
    service in the Armed Forces of the United States, or periods of 
    employment with the United States Government or with an 
    international organization as that term is defined in section 288 of 
    title 22 by such citizen parent, or any periods during which such 
    citizen parent is physically present abroad as the dependent 
    unmarried son or daughter and a member of the household of a person 
    (A) honorably serving with the Armed Forces of the United States, or 
    (B) employed by the United States Government or an international 
    organization as defined in section 288 of title 22, may be included 
    in order to satisfy the physical-presence requirement of this 
    paragraph. This proviso shall be applicable to persons born on or 
    after December 24, 1952, to the same extent as if it had become 
    effective in its present form on that date; and
        (h) a person born before noon (Eastern Standard Time) May 24, 
    1934, outside the limits and jurisdiction of the United States of an 
    alien father and a mother who is a citizen of the United States who, 
    prior to the birth of such person, had resided in the United States.

(June 27, 1952, ch. 477, title III, ch. 1, Sec. 301, 66 Stat. 235; Pub. 
L. 89-770, Nov. 6, 1966, 80 Stat. 1322; Pub. L. 92-584, Secs. 1, 3, Oct. 
27, 1972, 86 Stat. 1289; Pub. L. 95-432, Secs. 1, 3, Oct. 10, 1978, 92 
Stat. 1046; Pub. L. 99-653, Sec. 12, Nov. 14, 1986, 100 Stat. 3657; Pub. 
L. 103-416, title I, Sec. 101(a), Oct. 25, 1994, 108 Stat. 4306.)


                               Amendments

    1994--Subsec. (h). Pub. L. 103-416 added subsec. (h).
    1986--Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 99-653 substituted ``five years, at least 
two'' for ``ten years, at least five''.
    1978--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 95-432, Sec. 3, struck out ``(a)'' before 
``The following'' and redesignated pars. (1) to (7) as (a) to (g), 
respectively.
    Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 95-432, Sec. 1, struck out subsec. (b) which 
provided that any person who was a national or citizen of the United 
States under subsec. (a)(7) lose his nationality or citizenship unless 
he be continuously physically present in the United States for a period 
of not less than two years between the ages of 14 and 28 or that the 
alien parent be naturalized while the child was under 18 years of age 
and the child began permanent residence in the United States while under 
18 years of age and that absence from the United States of less than 60 
days not break the continuity of presence.
    Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 95-432, Sec. 1, struck out subsec. (c) which 
provided that former subsec. (b) apply to persons born abroad subsequent 
to May 24, 1934, except that this not be construed to alter the 
citizenship of any person born abroad subsequent to May 24, 1934 who, 
prior to the effective date of this chapter, had taken up residence in 
the United States before attaining 16 years of age, and thereafter, 
whether before or after the effective date of this chapter, complied 
with the residence requirements of section 201(g) and (h) of the 
Nationality Act of 1940.
    Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 95-432, Sec. 1, struck out subsec. (d) which 
provided that nothing in former subsec. (b) be construed to alter the 
citizenship of any person who came into the United States prior to Oct. 
27, 1972, and who, whether before or after Oct. 27, 1972, immediately 
following such coming complied with the physical presence requirements 
for retention of citizenship specified in former subsec. (b), prior to 
amendment of former subsec. (b) by Pub. L. 92-584.
    1972--Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 92-584, Sec. 1, substituted provisions 
that nationals and citizens of the United States under subsec. (a)(7), 
lose such status unless they are present continuously in the United 
States for two years between the ages of fourteen and twenty eight 
years, or the alien parent is naturalized while the child is under the 
age of eighteen years and the child begins to reside permanently in the 
United States while under the age of eighteen years, and that absence 
from the United States of less than sixty days will not break the 
continuity of presence, for provisions that such status would be lost 
unless the nationals and citizens come to the United States prior to 
attaining twenty three years and be present continuously in the United 
States for five years, and that such presence should be between the age 
of fourteen and twenty eight years.
    Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 92-584, Sec. 3, added subsec. (d).
    1966--Subsec. (a)(7). Pub. L. 89-770 authorized periods of 
employment with the United States Government or with an international 
organization by the citizen parent, or any periods during which the 
citizen parent is physically present abroad as the dependent unmarried 
son or daughter and a member of the household of a person (A) honorably 
serving with the Armed Forces of the United States, or (B) employed by 
the United States Government or an international organization, to be 
included in order to satisfy the physical presence requirement, and 
permitted the proviso to be applicable to persons born on or after 
December 24, 1952.


                    Effective Date of 1986 Amendment

    Section 23(d) of Pub. L. 99-653, as added by Pub. L. 100-525, 
Sec. 8(r), Oct. 24, 1988, 102 Stat. 2619, provided that: ``The amendment 
made by section 12 [amending this section] shall apply to persons born 
on or after November 14, 1986.''


                    Effective Date of 1978 Amendment

    Section 1 of Pub. L. 95-432 provided that the amendment made by that 
section is effective Oct. 10, 1978.


                             Effective Date

    Chapter effective 180 days after June 27, 1952, see section 407 of 
act June 27, 1952, set out as a note under section 1101 of this title.


                    Waiver of Retention Requirements

    Section 101(b) of Pub. L. 103-416 provided that: ``Any provision of 
law (including section 301(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act [8 
U.S.C. 1401(b)] (as in effect before October 10, 1978), and the provisos 
of section 201(g) of the Nationality Act of 1940 [former 8 U.S.C. 
601(g)]) that provided for a person's loss of citizenship or nationality 
if the person failed to come to, or reside or be physically present in, 
the United States shall not apply in the case of a person claiming 
United States citizenship based on such person's descent from an 
individual described in section 301(h) of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (as added by subsection (a)).''


                Retroactive Application of 1994 Amendment

    Section 101(c) of Pub. L. 103-416 provided that:
    ``(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the immigration and 
nationality laws of the United States shall be applied (to persons born 
before, on, or after the date of the enactment of this Act [Oct. 25, 
1994]) as though the amendment made by subsection (a) [amending this 
section], and subsection (b) [enacting provisions set out above], had 
been in effect as of the date of their birth, except that the 
retroactive application of the amendment and that subsection shall not 
affect the validity of citizenship of anyone who has obtained 
citizenship under section 1993 of the Revised Statutes [former 8 U.S.C. 
6] (as in effect before the enactment of the Act of May 24, 1934 (48 
Stat. 797)).
    ``(2) The retroactive application of the amendment made by 
subsection (a), and subsection (b), shall not confer citizenship on, or 
affect the validity of any denaturalization, deportation, or exclusion 
action against, any person who is or was excludable from the United 
States under section 212(a)(3)(E) of the Immigration and Nationality Act 
(8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3)(E)) (or predecessor provision) or who was excluded 
from, or who would not have been eligible for admission to, the United 
States under the Displaced Persons Act of 1948 [former 50 App. U.S.C. 
1951 et seq.] or under section 14 of the Refugee Relief Act of 1953 
[former 50 App. U.S.C. 1971l].''


               Applicability of Transmission Requirements

    Section 101(d) of Pub. L. 103-416, as amended by Pub. L. 104-208, 
div. C, title VI, Sec. 671(b)(1), Sept. 30, 1996, 110 Stat. 3009-721, 
provided that: ``This section [amending this section and enacting 
provisions set out above], the amendments made by this section, and any 
retroactive application of such amendments shall not effect the 
application of any provision of law relating to residence or physical 
presence in the United States for purposes of transmitting United States 
citizenship to any person whose claim is based on the amendment made by 
subsection (a) [amending this section] or through whom such a claim is 
derived.''


                      Admission of Alaska as State

    Alaska Statehood provisions as not conferring, terminating, or 
restoring United States nationality, see section 21 of Pub. L. 85-508, 
July 7, 1958, 72 Stat. 339, set out as a note preceding former section 
21 of Title 48, Territories and Insular Possessions.

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in sections 1401a, 1408, 1409, 1435, 
1452 of this title; title 26 sections 877, 2107, 2501.