The US Department of Homeland Security has issued a new interim final rule that seeks to deny recognition of US citizenship to certain children born on American soil to foreign government employees, expanding an exception that historically applied primarily to children of foreign diplomats.
The rule, issued on September 4, follows President Donald Trump ‘s August 6 executive order targeting categories of children whose parents are not US citizens.
It comes after the Supreme Court earlier this year rejected Trump’s broader attempt to restrict birthright citizenship.
The distinction could be particularly important for families working in diplomatic, government and international-organization roles in the US. DHS is expanding an existing process that allows eligible children to voluntarily register as lawful permanent residents. If approved, their permanent residence is treated as beginning from the date of birth. The new rule replaces that narrower category with the broader concept of a “foreign government employee . That means the administration is seeking to extend the diplomatic exception to additional government and international-organization employees.
The agency said children born to qualifying foreign government employees, where neither parent is a US citizen, can use Form I-485 to seek permanent resident status. Because it moves beyond the longstanding diplomatic exception and creates a broader category of foreign government workers whose children may not automatically receive US citizenship at birth, the new policy is significant.
Under the DHS rule, the definition of a “foreign government employee” includes foreign diplomatic officers, people employed by a foreign embassy or consulate who are nationals of that country, people employed by a foreign government in an official capacity, and employees of certain international organizations that have immunity in the US. DHS says the previous regulations dealt specifically with children of foreign diplomatic officers.
