Here’s some real trivia. The Panama Canal Zone was under American administration up until the 1970’s I believe. Does that mean it was American soil, and any children born while within those borders could be American?
Yes, they are. That’s why John McCain could run for president.
Here’s the relevant section:
Note that this applies not just to those born in to the Canal Zone itself, but those born to citizen who was a U.S. government employee in Panama as well.
Those born in the Canal Zone are also recognized as Panamanian citizens by the Republic of Panama, and can be dual citizens if they so wish.
I know a few individuals who were third-generation “Zonians” but who are U.S. citizens.
The Canal Zone as an entity disappeared with the entry into force of the Carter-Torrijos Treaties on October 1, 1979 (signed 1977, ratified 1978.)
Incidentally, the Canal Zone was not, technically, U.S. soil. The 1903 Hay-Bunau-Varilla treaty gave the US the right to act in the Canal Zone “as if it were sovereign,” and “for perpertuity.” Of course in practice this meant that it was de facto U.S. territority.
I first came to Panama in 1977, while the Canal Zone was still in existence. It was remarkable how insulated life “on the Zone” (not “in the Zone”) was from the country that surrounded it. With commisaries, movie theaters, and everything else self-contained, it was unnecessary to ever enter Panama, and many people never did.
I was born in the Canal Zone (My father was in the Army) and I’ve always been an American citizen. So the answer is yes.
Me, too. My parents were in the Air Force. Not only am I a citizen, I also had no problems getting a SS#.
"You were born in the Panama Canal Zone"
There I said it.
:eek: [sup]Now what do I do with the frog that is jumping around my room?[/sup]
Just don’t go thinking just 'cause you’re a citizen you can get a passport with only a birth certificate. I think it’s different for different birth times, but in 1969 when my folks were moving back to the states, they had me “naturalized.” The passport people have to have the original naturalization certificate.
Valuable lesson: don’t try to get a certified, sealed, duplicate of your naturalization papers because you’re afraid the post office will lose your original, just send the damn thing and be sure you have plenty of time just in case it does get lost, and you don’t get those duplicates from the State Department (that’s where you get a certified copy of your birth certificate), you get it from INS for $375. And another thing: never expect to talk to anything but a machine if calling the State Department, the Passport Office, or INS.
Ala: Bzzt! There’s a huge difference between a naturalization certificate and a citizenship certificate. THe first is a certificate from the government stating that you have now become (as of the date indicated on the certificate) a citizen; the second is a certificate from the government stating that, regardless of the date of the certificate, you were a citizen from birth.
In lieu of not having a cite, I provide for your perusing entertainment: http://www.ins.gov
Incidently, regarding other instances of children born to U.S. citizens overseas, here are the requirements to be considered a citizen:
[ul]
[li]Anyone born outside the United States, both of whose parents are citizens of the U.S., as long as one parent has lived in the U.S. [/li]
[li]Anyone born outside the United States, if one parent is a citizen and lived in the U.S. for at least one year and the other parent is a U.S. national [/li]
[li]Anyone born in a U.S. possession, if one parent is a citizen and lived in the U.S. for at least one year [/li]
[li]Anyone born outside the United States, if one is an alien and as long as one is a citizen of the U.S. who lived in the U.S. for at least five years (with military and diplomatic service included in this time) [/li]
[li]Anyone born before 5/24/1934 of an alien father and a U.S. citizen mother who has lived in the U.S.[/li][/ul]
The main advantage those born in the Canal Zone would have, is that their citizen parent(s) never had to have lived in the U.S.
I used to get this question when working in Washington DC.
The answer is that the person, born of US citizens is an American Citizen. They may also have dual citizenship, depending on the host nation.
Generally, when a child was returnned to the United States, the mother’s passport listed them. The State Department is the place to contact when such a person needs a copy of their birth certificate.
As an aside, I suffered through Army Basic training with a guy that had dual citizenship. (US and Germany) He’d been drafted by both nations and had to decided which military to serve in!
Neanderthalenis: It’s been quite a while since the United States used the “child on the parent’s” passport.