President Donald Trump signed two executive orders on Thursday, August 7th, 2026, aiming to narrowly restrict birthright citizenship in the United States. These actions come just over a month after the Supreme Court upheld birthright citizenship in the case Trump v. Barbara.

The first executive order identifies specific groups whose children would not be eligible for citizenship at birth. It excludes children born to parents deemed "alien enemies," "foreign government employees," or those who have "engaged in a commercial transaction" to obtain birthright citizenship. It also excludes children born in U.S. territories where citizenship is not granted by federal statute, as well as children of persons employed by international organizations with immunity and ambassadors. However, critics note that children of diplomats with full immunity already do not receive birthright citizenship because they are not "subject to the jurisdiction" of the United States.

The second order addresses "birth tourism," where some women travel to the U.S. solely to give birth on American soil. It delegates presidential authority to the Secretary of State and Secretary of Homeland Security to halt this practice. The U.S. government already has the power to deny visas to applicants suspected of intending to give birth in the country and has prosecuted birth tourism schemes, including during President Joe Biden's administration.

The White House claims these measures will "protect the meaning and value of American citizenship." However, Reason magazine describes the orders as largely symbolic, stating they "will not do much at all, because they combine unconstitutional provisions with performance art."

The Fourteenth Amendment, as framed by its drafters, extends citizenship to "every free-born person in this land," a principle reaffirmed by the Supreme Court.

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