American Nationality: Birth, Naturalization, and Proof

American nationality is the legal bond of permanent allegiance a person owes to the United States. Federal law defines a national of the United States as either a citizen or a person who, while not a citizen, owes that same permanent allegiance to the country.¹ Almost every American national is a citizen. A smaller group, born in certain U.S. territories, holds nationality without citizenship. The difference is narrow but real, and it changes what documents you carry, what jobs you can hold, and whether you can vote.

Nationality by Birth in the United States

The most common way to become an American national is to be born inside the country. Under the Fourteenth Amendment and the immigration statute, anyone born in the United States and subject to its jurisdiction is a citizen and a national at birth.²³ The Supreme Court confirmed in United States v. Wong Kim Ark that this applies even when the parents are foreign nationals living in the country, regardless of whether the parents themselves could ever naturalize.⁴ The recognized exceptions are narrow: children of foreign diplomats with full immunity and children of a hostile occupying force.

A separate rule covers foundlings. A child of unknown parentage found in the United States under the age of five is treated as a citizen at birth, unless someone shows before the child turns twenty-one that the birth actually happened outside the country.³

Nationality by Birth Abroad

American nationality can also pass from parent to child when the birth happens overseas. The requirements turn on how many of the parents are U.S. citizens.

Two Citizen Parents

When both parents are U.S. citizens and at least one of them lived in the United States or an outlying possession at some point before the birth, the child is a citizen at birth wherever the delivery takes place.³ Any period of prior U.S. residence by one parent satisfies the rule.

One Citizen Parent

When only one parent is a U.S. citizen and the other is a foreign national, the citizen parent must have been physically present in the United States for at least five years before the child’s birth, with at least two of those years after age fourteen.³ Time in U.S. military service, employment with the federal government or certain international organizations, and time abroad as a dependent of someone in those roles all count toward the five years. If the citizen parent falls short, the child does not acquire nationality automatically at birth. That gap catches families who moved abroad before the citizen parent was old enough to accumulate the required time.

Non-Citizen Nationals

A person can be a national without being a citizen. This status applies to people born in what federal law calls the outlying possessions of the United States, defined as American Samoa and Swains Island.¹ They owe permanent allegiance to the United States and acquire that status at birth, but they are not citizens unless they go through naturalization.⁵

In practice, non-citizen nationals can live and work anywhere in the United States without a visa or green card, and they receive a U.S. passport. The passport carries a special endorsement (code 09) identifying the bearer as a non-citizen national.⁶ They cannot vote in federal elections and are ineligible for federal positions that require citizenship. They can apply to naturalize as citizens if they meet the standard eligibility rules.

Becoming a National Through Naturalization

People who are not born as American nationals can acquire nationality by naturalizing. The core requirements are at least five years of continuous residence in the United States as a lawful permanent resident, physical presence for at least half that time, three months of residence in the filing state, good moral character, and attachment to the principles of the Constitution.⁷ Spouses of U.S. citizens qualify after three years rather than five.

The application is Form N-400. USCIS charges $760 for a paper filing and $710 online, with a reduced fee of $380 for applicants who qualify based on income.⁸ After filing, the applicant completes biometrics, sits for the English and civics test, attends an interview, and takes the Oath of Allegiance at a ceremony. That oath is the moment of becoming a citizen and national.

How to Prove You Are an American National

Holding nationality and being able to prove it are separate problems. Which document you need depends on how you acquired the status.

Consular Report of Birth Abroad

For a child born outside the United States to American parents, the core document is the Consular Report of Birth Abroad, Form FS-240.⁹ The CRBA is not a foreign birth certificate. It is a State Department record confirming the child acquired citizenship at birth through the parents.¹⁰ Parents apply at a U.S. embassy or consulate using Form DS-2029, and the application must be filed before the child turns eighteen. Miss that deadline and this route closes; proving citizenship afterward becomes considerably harder.

U.S. Passport

For anyone who already has a birth certificate or CRBA, a U.S. passport is the most widely recognized proof of nationality. First-time applicants use Form DS-11 and must apply in person at a passport acceptance facility, often a post office or county clerk’s office, or at a U.S. embassy or consulate when living abroad.¹¹ Mail and online filings are not available for a first passport. The application takes a certified birth certificate or CRBA as primary evidence; secondary evidence like hospital records is accepted when primary records are unavailable, but it slows things down.

A first-time adult passport book costs $165 total: a $130 application fee and a $35 acceptance fee.¹² Routine processing currently takes four to six weeks, and expedited service adds $60 for two-to-three-week turnaround.¹³

Certificate of Citizenship

People who acquired citizenship through a parent after birth, or who need formal proof beyond a passport, can apply for a Certificate of Citizenship on Form N-600.¹⁴ It is common for people born abroad who derived citizenship automatically when a parent naturalized. Processing runs roughly four and a half to fourteen months, well beyond passport timelines. When official records are thin, sworn statements from people with firsthand knowledge of the birth or parentage can support the application.

Dual Nationality

U.S. law does not force a national to choose between American nationality and a foreign one. The State Department’s position is that acquiring foreign citizenship, whether by birth, descent, or naturalization abroad, does not by itself cost a person U.S. citizenship, and no U.S. agency needs to approve it in advance.¹⁵

Two passports come with two sets of obligations. Each country applies its own tax rules, military service requirements, and entry rules. The U.S. government expects dual nationals to use their U.S. passport when entering and leaving the country, and it taxes citizens on worldwide income regardless of where they live.

Losing or Giving Up Nationality

American nationality is durable, not permanent. Federal law lists specific acts that cause loss of nationality when done voluntarily and with the intent to give it up: formally renouncing before a U.S. diplomatic or consular officer abroad, naturalizing in a foreign country with that intent, taking a formal oath of allegiance to a foreign government with that intent, and committing treason, among others.¹⁶

Intent is the pivot. Becoming a citizen of another country or taking a foreign oath does not, by itself, end American nationality. The State Department presumes Americans who perform those acts intend to keep their nationality unless they affirmatively state otherwise. That presumption is why dual nationality is so common.

For those who do want to renounce, the administrative fee is $450 as of April 13, 2026, reduced from the previous $2,350, and the process must be completed at a U.S. embassy or consulate outside the country.¹⁷ The State Department fee is the smaller concern. Under the exit tax rules, a covered expatriate is treated as having sold all worldwide assets at fair market value on the day before giving up nationality, and any gain above $600,000 (adjusted annually for inflation) is taxed as income in the final year.¹⁸ Anyone weighing renunciation should talk to a tax professional first. The tax bill can dwarf the filing fee.

1
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 U.S.C. 1101 – Definitions
2
Congress.gov. U.S. Constitution – Fourteenth Amendment
3
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 U.S.C. 1401 – Nationals and Citizens of United States at Birth
4
Cornell Law School. United States v. Wong Kim Ark
5
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 U.S. Code 1408 – Nationals but Not Citizens of the United States at Birth
6
U.S. Department of State. 8 FAM 308.9 – Acquisition by Birth Abroad to Non-Citizen National
7
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 U.S.C. 1427 – Requirements of Naturalization
8
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. N-400, Application for Naturalization
9
U.S. Department of State. How to Replace or Amend a Consular Report of Birth Abroad (CRBA)
10
Travel.State.Gov. Birth of U.S. Citizens and Non-Citizen Nationals Abroad
11
U.S. Department of State. Application for a U.S. Passport
12
U.S. Department of State. Passport Fees
13
U.S. Department of State. Processing Times for U.S. Passports
14
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. N-600, Application for Certificate of Citizenship
15
U.S. Department of State. Dual Nationality
16
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 U.S.C. 1481 – Loss of Nationality by Native-Born or Naturalized Citizen
17
Federal Register. Schedule of Fees for Consular Services – Fee for Administrative Processing of Request for Certificate of Loss of Nationality
18
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S. Code 877A – Tax Responsibilities of Expatriation