Trump’s order aimed to end the automatic grant of U.S. citizenship to children born on American soil if their parents were neither U.S. citizens nor lawful permanent residents. However, the policy never took effect after being blocked by lower courts.
With today’s decision, the Supreme Court reaffirmed that nearly everyone born in the United States remains entitled to U.S. citizenship under the 14th Amendment, preserving the country’s long-standing principle of birthright citizenship.
In a 6-3 decision, the court upheld a lower court ruling that blocked Trump’s executive order, which sought to deny U.S. citizenship to children born in the United States unless at least one parent was a U.S. citizen or a lawful permanent resident.
The executive order, signed on Trump’s first day back in office, never took effect after being challenged in federal court.
Writing for the majority, Chief Justice John Roberts said the administration’s interpretation of the Constitution’s Citizenship Clause was inconsistent with more than a century of legal precedent. The ruling reaffirmed the long-standing interpretation of the 14th Amendment, which guarantees citizenship to nearly everyone born in the United States, with only limited exceptions such as children of foreign diplomats.
The court also relied on its landmark 1898 decision in United States v. Wong Kim Ark, which established that children born on U.S. soil are citizens regardless of their parents’ nationality, provided they are subject to U.S. jurisdiction.
The Trump administration argued that birthright citizenship should not apply to children whose parents are in the country illegally or only temporarily, claiming the 14th Amendment was never intended to cover such cases. Opponents countered that the executive order directly contradicted both the Constitution and more than a century of Supreme Court precedent.
Legal experts estimated that, if implemented, the policy could have affected the citizenship status of as many as 250,000 children born in the United States each year.
Tuesday’s ruling effectively preserves the existing interpretation of birthright citizenship and prevents the administration from enforcing its executive order. It also marks another major judicial setback for the Trump administration after the Supreme Court struck down its global tariff policy earlier this year.
With the decision, birthright citizenship remains fully protected under the U.S. Constitution, and children born in the United States will continue to acquire U.S. citizenship at birth under the longstanding interpretation of the 14th Amendment.
