The proposed “End Birthright Citizenship for Territories Act,” has brought up a number of questions and concerns. Although the bill explicitly proposes only to clarify that U.S. birthright citizenship laws in the territories and combat foreign nations who are seeking citizenship in the U.S. territories, it also makes clear that babies born in Puerto Rico and the other U.S. territories would not automatically qualify for U.S. citizenship, unlike babies born in a state of the U.S.
Some observers hold that this bill would affect only illegal aliens — undocumented people entering Puerto Rico without U.S. permission. The author of the bill says it is intended to stop “birth tourism” — the practice of entering the U.S. as a tourist before giving birth in order to gain U.S. citizenship for a child. But would the proposal, if enacted, affect daily life in Puerto Rico more broadly?
Would The End Birthright Citizenship for Territories Act affect U.S. citizenship for current citizens?
The answer to this question is a clear “no.” The bill would not affect current citizens. It specifically says that its limitations would apply only to babies born from January 2027 on.
How would it affect parents?
Upon the bill’s enactment, hospitals in Puerto Rico would have to verify the parents’ legal status before issuing a birth certificate for their babies. This means that a woman entering the hospital to deliver a baby would need to provide a birth certificate, passport, green card, or other documentation for herself or her partner.
Under Puerto Rico law, a married woman’s baby is automatically assumed to be the natural child of her husband. His proof of citizenship or legal permanent residence would be enough for their child to gain birthright citizenship.
An unmarried woman who is not herself a citizen or legal permanent resident would need to provide documents showing the father’s legal status in order to use his citizenship to justify the baby’s birthright citizenship. She would also need to prove paternity. Puerto Rico law allows a declaration of paternity to create a presumption of paternity. Unless the bill text specifies that the paternity laws of each territory would stand in these cases, the baby might need DNA testing to prove paternity.
In the simplest case, where a married couple are both citizens and at least one has a valid U.S. passport, green card, or birth certificate, it would just be a matter of bringing additional documents to the hospital.
How would it affect babies?
The most extreme situation would be that a baby born in Puerto Rico and denied U.S. birthright citizenship would be stateless. This could happen if the child’s parents came from countries that grant citizenship only by descent with conditions, not automatically. For example, an Italian citizen on a work visa in Puerto Rico who had lived there for some years might no longer be eligible to transfer Italian citizenship to her baby. Some countries require parents to be married in order to transmit citizenship. These are special situations that would not affect the majority of new babies, but it is not impossible that some babies would have no citizenship at all.
A more likely consequence would be that parents without U.S. citizenship or permanent residence may be more likely to avoid getting the medical care they need. The health consequences could be severe.
How would it affect hospitals?
Puerto Rico hospitals are already under resourced and overstretched, in part because the Medicaid program in Puerto Rico, unlike in the states, is capped.
The new law would require the addition of an extra layer: the tracking of the immigration status of all people entering the hospital to deliver babies.
This situation, already an additional burden on an already fragile healthcare system, would be complicated by the fact that in 2010, the government of Puerto Rico invalidated all birth certificates issued prior to July 1, 2010. At that point, everyone born in Puerto Rico was supposed to replace their documents. Many may not have done so.
The Brennan Center found that nearly 10% of all Americans don’t have ready access to proof of citizenship. Millions don’t own a birth certificate and may not know how to get a copy. Just about half have a passport. There is no reason to expect that verifying citizenship in the hospital would be a simple task.
Unintended consequences
The goal of the new measure is to prevent undocumented people or tourists from taking advantage of birthright U.S. citizenship. The unintended consequences could be a degree of additional red tape that would create burdens not only for parents but also for Puerto Rico’s healthcare system.
It is not impossible that the bill, if enacted, may encourage more Puerto Ricans to leave the Island for a state. The already low birth rate in Puerto Rico could fall further.
Since this law would apply to people legally in Puerto Rico on student or work visas, it could discourage people from applying for such visas. Students and workers often end up living in the places where they study or work. Knowing the potential complexities for their families might shrink the pool of potential students and workers.
The bill is not expected to become law this year before Congress adjourns. After Congress adjourns, all pending proposals die. To become law, they have to be reintroduced with Congress reconvenes next year. It is too soon to know whether Congressman Griffith (R-VA) will reintroduce his bill is the next Congress.
