Title: Citizenship for Children of Military Members and Civil Servants Act
Policy area: Immigration

Summary:
Citizenship for Children of Military Members and Civil Servants Act
This bill establishes that a foreign-born child of a U.S. citizen member of the Armed Forces or government employee may automatically acquire U.S. citizenship even if the child is not residing in the United States.
Currently, a foreign-born child automatically acquires U.S. citizenship if the child (1) has at least one parent who is a citizen, (2) is less than 18 years old, and (3) is residing in the United States in the citizen parent's legal and physical custody pursuant to a lawful admission for permanent residence. Under this bill, the third requirement is fulfilled if a foreign-born child is (1) living in the legal and physical custody of the citizen Armed Services member or government employee who has been stationed abroad (or the accompanying spouse of such a citizen), and (2) lawfully admitted for permanent residence in the United States.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4803 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4803

   To facilitate the automatic acquisition of citizenship for lawful 
    permanent resident children of military and Federal Government 
           personnel residing abroad, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 23, 2019

     Mr. Nadler (for himself, Mr. Collins of Georgia, Mr. Smith of 
  Washington, Mr. Thornberry, Ms. Lofgren, Mr. Buck, Mr. Ted Lieu of 
 California, and Mr. Gallego) introduced the following bill; which was 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To facilitate the automatic acquisition of citizenship for lawful 
    permanent resident children of military and Federal Government 
           personnel residing abroad, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Citizenship for Children of Military 
Members and Civil Servants Act''.

SEC. 2. FACILITATING THE AUTOMATIC ACQUISITION OF CITIZENSHIP FOR 
              LAWFUL PERMANENT RESIDENT CHILDREN OF MILITARY AND 
              FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PERSONNEL RESIDING ABROAD.

    (a) In General.--Section 320 of the Immigration and Nationality Act 
(8 U.S.C. 1431) is amended--
            (1) by striking the section header and inserting ``children 
        born outside the united states and lawfully admitted for 
        permanent residence; conditions under which citizenship 
        automatically acquired'';
            (2) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (d); and
            (3) by inserting after subsection (b) the following:
    ``(c) Subsection (a)(3) is deemed satisfied in the case of a child 
who is lawfully admitted for permanent residence in the United States 
if--
            ``(1) the child is residing in the legal and physical 
        custody of a citizen parent who is--
                    ``(A) stationed and residing abroad as an employee 
                of the Government of the United States; or
                    ``(B) residing abroad in marital union with an 
                employee of the Government of the United States who is 
                stationed abroad; or
            ``(2) the child is--
                    ``(A) residing in the legal and physical custody of 
                a citizen parent who is--
                            ``(i) stationed and residing abroad as a 
                        member of the Armed Forces of the United 
                        States; or
                            ``(ii) authorized to accompany and reside 
                        abroad with a member of the Armed Forces of the 
                        United States pursuant to the member's official 
                        orders, and is so accompanying and residing 
                        abroad with the member in marital union; and
                    ``(B) authorized to accompany such member and 
                reside abroad with the member pursuant to the member's 
                official orders, and is so accompanying and residing 
                with the member.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--The table of contents for the 
Immigration and Nationality Act is amended by striking the item 
relating to section 320 and inserting the following:

``Sec. 320. Children born outside the United States and lawfully 
                            admitted for permanent residence; 
                            conditions under which citizenship 
                            automatically acquired.''.
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