Donald Trump signs two new executive orders on Thursday that aim to curtail birthright citizenship for children born in the United States to non‑citizen parents, and ban so‑called birth tourism.
The first order expands the federal definition of non‑citizens, automatically excluding the children of parents who are members of foreign terrorist groups, foreign government employees, or who have fraudulently attempted to obtain citizenship. It also applies to parents residing in U.S. territories where federal law does not confer citizenship.
The second order targets birth tourism, a practice in which pregnant mothers from abroad travel to the U.S. to give birth so that their children gain automatic citizenship. Trump said the administration has “guarded against the risks posed by malign foreign actors” looking to “swindle” U.S. citizenship.
The orders arrive a month after the Supreme Court ruled that Trump’s earlier 2025 executive order attempting to abolish birthright citizenship was unconstitutional. In a statement from the Oval Office, Trump called the court’s decision “a bad, unfair choice” and vowed to press forward with new measures.
Experts note that while the administration may have authority to limit entry for parents traveling solely to give birth, it cannot retroactively strip citizenship from children born in U.S. soil. A professor at UC Davis said “once a child is born in the United States, the president does not have power to deny its citizenship.”
According to the Migration Policy Institute, estimates suggest between 22,000 and 26,000 babies per year are born via birth tourism, although official government numbers are lower. The current orders face legal challenges and are likely to be tested by courts on constitutional grounds.
