Tourist Birth: Easiest Way to Get U.S Citizenship?

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The easiest way for a tourist to get U.S. citizenship to their children is to give birth in the United States, according to a published article in KCET.

Getting a U.S. citizenship is a dream that most non-Americans dream, and most especially for their children. One of the reasons for this matter is to secure the future of their children since the country has some of the best government services like education and healthcare assistance. Plus, in America, if you work hard and stay focused you will become successful.

In a video recently uploaded to the KCET website, it is revealed how most ASIANS, particularly Chinese, easily get U.S. citizenship. 

Most of the pregnant Chinese arrive in the United States with a tourist visa, but the reason they stay in the country until their delivery is to give birth in America. Tjis way their baby can get U.S citizenship automatically. Birth tourism hotels in Southern California became a booming industry and these hotels are mostly in the San Gabriel Valley, which is mostly occupied by Asians. 

Other pregnant women came from other countries to give birth in the U.S. for citizenship, but this has become the practice of a lot of Chinese. One of the reasons is because of the one-child policy in China.

The birth tourism hotels in California are very appealing as most of them offer $3,000 to $4,000 all-in package a month. Moreover, after the delivery, the baby will return home with a little something extra, a U.S. passport.

According to John Kang, an immigration lawyer, this has become one of the most popular schemes of tourists over the past few years. He said that he usually received 10 to 15 calls a week with inquiries about how to get a U.S. passport and then travel back to their country of origin.

Meanwhile, Laura Ling, the reporter in the video, clarified that John Kang specializes in immigration issues, but that he has nothing to do with birth tourism hotels. 

In the video, Kang showed a picture of a hotel room where there were six or seven baby cribs with one lady standing. She is designated to take care of the babies. Kang added that there should be more or less 100 establishments in Los Angeles County alone who are offering this service.

However, according to Ling, these houses in Los Angeles that are offering birth rooms are not licensed to operate. There are no signs outside the house and the only preponderance are pregnant women coming in and out. 

Who is commonly coming over to give birth in the United States?

These are mostly people who have accumulated much wealth, those who are successful in business and politics.

Is it legal that the baby gets U.S. citizenship?

According to the 14th amendment of the U.S. Constitution, babies who are born in the country automatically become a U.S. citizen. The amendment says: "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and the state wherein they reside." 

This amendment was passed in 1868, after the Civil War, to guarantee citizenship to newly freed slaves and their children. There are cases upheld in the Supreme Court where immigrant parents give birth in the country, thus giving their child automatic citizenship and that is how it works until today. 

Is it not legal for foreigners to give birth in the country?

According to Kang, no law in the United States says that foreigners are not allowed to visit the country and give birth to have their child U.S. citizenship or passport. Foreigners are allowed to stay in the country for months if they have a tourist visa and visit their friends or family members and in the meantime give birth in the country. 

Is there a loophole in the law?

Kang, the immigrant lawyer, said that it is not necessarily a loophole because people are just taking advantage of the best use of the law. 

It was also found that tourist visas coming from China have increased to over a million people every year. Meanwhile, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection have no specific regulations in prohibiting foreign pregnant nationals from entering the country. However, there is a policy that states, "Officers take into consideration the date your child is due for delivery and the length of time you intend to stay in the U.S. If it's determined that you don't have sufficient medical insurance, you can be denied entry."  

However, even though this policy is enforced, this still cannot be used against foreign pregnant nationals, because they have legal tourist visas.