Citizenship by Birth in U.S. or Certain Incorporated Territories

The Fourteenth Amendment states that “all persons born or naturalized in the United States… are citizens of the United States.” Citizenship by birth also includes other U.S. incorporated territories, such as the Panama Canal zone (under certain conditions), U.S. military base outside United States.

Not having an official birth certificate does not necessarily mean that the person was born outside of the U.S. A person of unknown parentage found in the U.S. while under the age of 5 years old is considered a USC by birth absent proof (prior to age 21) that person was not born in U.S. INA §301(f), 8 USC §1401(f).