Do my kids qualify for an American Passport?

by Faith
(Finch, Ontario, Canada)

Question: I am a Canadian citizen, my husband has a US passport. He was born in Canada to a Canadian mother and American father. My question is do our children qualify for an American passport? If yes, do i need any special documentation?

Answer: In order to qualify for an American Passport, your children must possess U.S. citizenship. If they were born in the United States to a U.S. citizen father, then they would automatically acquire citizenship.

I presume from your explanation that they were born in Canada. If that is true, then acquisition of U.S. citizenship would depend on their dates of birth and whether or not your husband was physically present in the United States for the required amount of time.

If your children were born on or after November 14, 1986, a period of five years physical presence, two after the age of fourteen, is required. For birth between December 24, 1952 and November 13, 1986, a period of ten years, five after the age of fourteen, is required for physical presence in the United States or one of its outlying possessions to transmit U.S. citizenship to the child.

If the above requirements are met, then your children automatically acquired citizenship at birth and are eligible to obtain passports. If that is the case, click the link below for passport instructions.

Passports for Minors