By Omoyeni Ojeifo
The Supreme Court of the United States has ruled that children born in the United States to parents who are unlawfully or temporarily present in the country are citizens at birth under the Fourteenth Amendment.
In a statement shared on America’s official X (formerly Twitter) page, the Court confirmed the decision in Trump, President of the United States, et al. v. Barbara et al. (No. 25-365), delivered in the October Term 2025.
The case was argued on April 1, 2026, and decided on June 30, 2026, following a federal district court order that blocked enforcement of Executive Order No. 14160 titled “Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship.”
The order sought to deny automatic citizenship to children born in the United States to parents unlawfully or temporarily present, arguing they were not “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States under the Fourteenth Amendment.
Several parents challenged the policy in court, and a federal district judge issued an injunction and certified a nationwide class of affected children.
The Supreme Court upheld the lower court rulings, holding that the Citizenship Clause guarantees citizenship to all persons born in the United States who are subject to its jurisdiction, regardless of their parents’ immigration status.
The court said the clause must be interpreted in its historical context, including English common law principles and the repudiation of Dred Scott v. Sandford.
The court ruled that children born to parents unlawfully or temporarily present in the country fall within U.S. jurisdiction and are therefore citizens at birth, declaring the executive order unconstitutional and affirming birthright citizenship.
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