Acquisition — two USC parents sec. 301(c)

INA sec. 301(c) = 8 USC sec. 1401(c) confers U.S. citizenship at birth on a child born abroad to two U.S.-citizen parents if at least one parent had a 'residence' in the United States or its outlying possessions prior to the child's birth. Congress imposed no minimum duration for that residence and no physical-presence age calculation — the requirement is satisfied by any prior domicile or principal dwelling in the U.S. or its outlying possessions (territories). This stands in sharp contrast to the 5-years/2-after-14 physical-presence test applicable under sec. 301(g) = 8 USC sec. 1401(g) for one-citizen-parent cases (births on/after 14 Nov 1986) or the earlier 10-years/5-after-14 rule for births 24 Dec 1952-13 Nov 1986. The two-parent rule makes sec. 301(c) the most accessible jus-sanguinis citizenship acquisition route in U.S. law. Because both parents are U.S. citizens, concerns about dual citizenship, alien-parent status, or physical-presence shortfall that arise under sec. 301(g) are wholly inapplicable. Operationally, USCIS Policy Manual Vol. 12 Part H.1 groups sec. 301(c)/(d)/(g)/(h) together in its general-provisions table, and Part H.3 confirms the residence-not-physical-presence standard for the two-parent variant. As of 2026-06-01 the statute is operative and unchanged.

The physical-presence and residence requirements for sec. 301(c) differ fundamentally from those in sec. 301(g). Under sec. 301(c), the statutory text requires that 'one of whom has had a residence in the United States or one of its outlying possessions, prior to the birth of such person' — using the word 'residence,' not 'physical presence.' INA sec. 101(a)(33) = 8 USC sec. 1101(a)(33) defines 'residence' as 'the place of general abode; the principal, actual dwelling place in fact, without regard to intent.' This means a parent satisfies the requirement by having actually lived in the U.S. (or an outlying possession such as Puerto Rico, Guam, USVI, CNMI, or American Samoa) at any point prior to the birth, for any duration, with no minimum days and no after-age-14 calculation. The 'outlying possessions' (American Samoa and Swains Island, as defined in 8 USC sec. 1101(a)(29)) are specifically included, as are the incorporated territories. By contrast, sec. 301(g)'s physical-presence requirement (5 years, of which at least 2 after age 14, for births on/after 14 Nov 1986) is a durational test measured in years and keyed to age. The sec. 301(c) residence standard is thus markedly more permissive: any genuine prior U.S. domicile by either parent satisfies it.

A child claiming citizenship at birth under sec. 301(c) must prove by a preponderance of the evidence: (1) the child was born abroad (outside U.S. territory and outlying possessions); (2) both parents were U.S. citizens at the time of the birth; and (3) at least one parent had a residence — a principal actual dwelling place — in the United States or its outlying possessions at some point before the child's birth. Documentary evidence typically includes the foreign birth certificate (with certified translation if not in English), passports or other evidence of both parents' U.S. citizenship (e.g., prior U.S. passports, birth certificates, or naturalization certificates), and evidence of at least one parent's prior U.S. residence (e.g., utility bills, lease or mortgage records, school records, employment records, or prior U.S. passports showing U.S. address entries). Because there is no minimum duration or age-based physical-presence test, the evidentiary burden on the residence prong is lighter than under sec. 301(g); the applicant need only establish that one parent actually lived in the U.S. (or an outlying possession) at some point before the birth. Documents in foreign languages require certified English translations. Foreign official documents may require apostille authentication under the Hague Apostille Convention (the U.S. acceded 15 Oct 1981, HCCH Convention No. 12) or consular legalization if the country of issuance is not a Contracting Party.

There are two parallel procedural routes to document sec. 301(c) citizenship. First, if the citizen parent is abroad at or after the birth, the parent may apply to a U.S. embassy or consulate for a Consular Report of Birth Abroad (CRBA, Form FS-240) by filing Form DS-2029, which is a prima facie record of U.S. citizenship issued by the Department of State's consular officer. The CRBA application requires both parents' evidence of citizenship, the foreign birth certificate, and evidence of one parent's prior U.S. residence. Second, at any later point, the person (or parent on behalf of a child) may file Form N-600 (Application for Certificate of Citizenship) with USCIS, submitting the same documentary package plus the USCIS filing fee. USCIS processes N-600 at the National Benefits Center or at local field offices and issues a Certificate of Citizenship upon approval. The standard of proof is preponderance of the evidence (8 CFR sec. 341.2). If a nationality claim is denied, INA sec. 360 = 8 USC sec. 1503 provides a declaratory-judgment action in federal district court. There is no age limitation on sec. 301(c) documentation — an adult who never obtained a CRBA or N-600 can still file an N-600 at any time to confirm birthright citizenship.

The current filing fee for Form N-600 (Application for Certificate of Citizenship) is $1,385 for paper filing or $1,335 for online filing (the standard $50 online discount), effective 1 Apr 2024 under the USCIS 2024 Final Fee Rule (89 FR 6386, codified at 8 CFR sec. 106.2; USCIS G-1055 Fee Schedule). No biometrics services fee applies to N-600. The fee is exempt where the application is filed by a current or former member of the U.S. armed forces on their own behalf, and for certain individuals who are the subject of a final adoption and meet (or met before age 18) the definition of child under INA sec. 101(b)(1)(E), (F), or (G). There is no USCIS filing fee to file a CRBA with a U.S. consular post, but the consular service itself carries a fee: the CRBA application (Form DS-2029, which issues the FS-240) is $100, and a replacement or amended CRBA is $50, set by the DOS Schedule of Fees (22 CFR sec. 22.1; travel.state.gov, updated 19 Mar 2026), as of 2026-06-01. The N-600 fee is separate from the N-400 naturalization fee ($760 paper / $710 online / $380 reduced per 89 FR 6194, eff. 1 Apr 2024) because sec. 301(c) acquisition does not require naturalization — citizenship was acquired at birth. A person may alternatively confirm citizen status by applying for a U.S. passport (Form DS-11); the DS-11 fees under the DOS passport-fee schedule (22 CFR sec. 22.1; travel.state.gov, as of 2026-06-01) are, for a child under 16, $100 application plus $35 execution ($135 total), and for an adult applicant aged 16, $130 application plus $35 execution ($165 total), with an optional $60 expedite fee, $22.05 for 1-3 day delivery, and a $150 file-search fee where applicable.

The primary statutory text is INA sec. 301(c) = 8 USC sec. 1401(c), enacted as part of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 (McCarran-Walter Act, Pub. L. 82-414, 66 Stat. 235, effective ~24 Dec 1952, as amended through Pub. L. 119-21, 4 Jul 2025). Subsection (c) provides that a person is a national and citizen of the United States at birth if the person 'was born outside of the United States and its outlying possessions of parents both of whom are citizens of the United States and one of whom has had a residence in the United States or one of its outlying possessions, prior to the birth of such person.' INA sec. 301(f) = 8 USC sec. 1401(f) provides a parallel foundling provision: a person of unknown parentage found in the United States while under the age of five years is deemed a citizen at birth unless shown prior to age 21 not to have been born in the United States. The entire suite of INA sec. 301 provisions — subsections (a) through (h) — must be dual-cited using both the INA section number and the 8 USC section number, because the offset between the two numbering schemes is a known fabrication risk. INA sec. 101(a)(33) = 8 USC sec. 1101(a)(33) defines 'residence' as 'the place of general abode; the principal, actual dwelling place in fact, without regard to intent,' which makes any genuine period of prior U.S. domicile sufficient regardless of intent or duration.

If USCIS denies a Form N-600 application on the ground that the applicant has not established acquisition under sec. 301(c), the applicant may appeal to the USCIS Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) on Form I-290B and subsequently seek relief in federal district court. INA sec. 360 = 8 USC sec. 1503 provides a specific statutory remedy: a person within the United States who claims to be a national may seek a declaratory judgment in federal district court (subject to a 5-year limitations period from the final administrative denial of the right or privilege claimed), with the right to a de novo judicial determination of nationality. This de novo standard is favorable to claimants: the court is not limited to the administrative record and may consider new evidence. If the person is abroad, the remedy under INA sec. 360(b)-(c) is to apply for a certificate of identity and, if denied a right as a national, seek review. In litigation, the burden on the applicant is to prove U.S. citizenship by a preponderance of the evidence; the government carries a heavier burden where it seeks to expatriate or to prove alienage in removal proceedings. Circuit courts review legal questions on nationality de novo.

The foundling provision of INA sec. 301(f) = 8 USC sec. 1401(f) operates as a standalone acquisition route for a very narrow cohort: a person of unknown parentage found in the United States while under the age of five years is a national and citizen at birth 'unless shown, prior to his attaining the age of twenty-one years, not to have been born in the United States.' This provision is entirely separate from sec. 301(c) and does not require proof of parentage, citizenship of parents, or residence; it is a rebuttable presumption of U.S. birth. The foundling rule addresses the rare case where parentage is unknown (abandoned infants), providing a citizenship safety net that prevents statelessness for those found on U.S. soil whose parentage cannot be established — particularly important because the United States is NOT a party to the 1954 or 1961 statelessness conventions, so sec. 301(f) is one of the few domestic anti-statelessness mechanisms. There are no other exemptions or special provisions within sec. 301(c) itself — the two-USC-parent rule has no military-service credit or government-employment credit mechanism (those credits apply under sec. 301(g) for one-citizen-parent cases only). A child of two U.S.-citizen parents who fails the sec. 301(c) residence requirement (e.g., where both parents were born abroad and never resided in the U.S.) would not qualify under sec. 301(c), though this situation is factually rare.