Trump Bats For End Of Birthright Citizenship: What Does It Mean For Indians?

TtUS President-elect Donald Trump plans to end birthright citizenship upon taking office on January 20, 2025.

Trump To End Birthright Citizenship: What Did He Say?

During an interview on NBC’s Meet the Press, Trump spoke candidly on ending citizenship by birth, “We’re going to end that because it’s ridiculous,”. He said that the current policy encourages illegal immigration and “birth tourism”.  However, efforts to halt the policy would face steep legal hurdles.

Trump To End Birthright Citizenship: Impact On Indian Diaspora

Rohitaashv Sinha Partner at King Stubb & Kasiva Legally said, "This plan challenges the traditional interpretation of the 14th Amendment, which grants citizenship to “all persons born or naturalized in the United States.”

“For green card holders, this may necessitate pursuing naturalization or other legal pathways to secure their child’s status. For H-1B visa holders, the lack of automatic citizenship could complicate immigration matters, tying the child’s status to their parents’ visa and potentially restricting future opportunities in the U.S. Indians with temporary or undocumented statuses could face even greater challenges, exacerbating legal and social complexities.” he added.

Speaking about the issue of Green Card holders, Abhinav Chandra, Founder and CEO, of The MBA Edge said, "The policy can impact those looking to transition from temporary visas and settle down in the US, as the Green Card process is long and excruciating for Indians currently (with a waiting period of over 20 years in some cases). Without birthright citizenship, their children face the risk of deportation back to India once they turn 18, as they aren't US citizens and would need some form of sponsorship."

However, once a child is born on the American soil, he or she is an American citizen. Even if the parent loses their H1B status, the child continues to remain a US citizen, and can return to the states when they cross 18.

Trump To End Birthright Citizenship: What Is Birthright Citizenship?

As per the American Immigration Council, birthright citizenship is a legal principle under which citizenship is automatically granted to individuals upon birth. There are two forms of birthright citizenship: ancestry-based citizenship and birthplace-based citizenship. Birthplace-based citizenship, which grants citizenship based on place of birth, is formally referred to as jus soli, a Latin term meaning "right of the soil."

In the United States, birthright citizenship is guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution. Specifically, it states that "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." This principle was confirmed by the 1898 Supreme Court case United States v. Wong Kim Ark, which clarified that children born in the U.S. to immigrant parents are citizens, regardless of their parents' immigration status.