Hi
i would like to ask a question about Derivative Citizenship
infact my wife is a USC, she born in the US for 5 years and sfter that she came to jordan and live with her parents and since then she didnot go back to the US , i.e. she reisdes in the US just for 5 years.

and now she is pregnant, but i dont know if she can get birth in the US, she might birth in jordan
now im planning for travel for my self as the IV hass been issued on my passport.
and my wife will stay here in jordan and follow me later after the birth
now the question is

is my child having the US citizenship directly, or should we file a petition for him
by the way my wife's parents are US citizens also, and they spent their lifes there in the US
my wife's mother : USC, born there for US parents, live in the US most of her life now she resides in jordan
my wife's father: Dual USC & Jordanian, born in jordan , live most of his life in the US and now he resides in UAE

upon those information could any one plz answer my question which is again about Citizenship by Derivation
unfortunatiley i dont know if my wife could get birth in the US, they told me it is very expensive there ,and i dont want to be on my AOS(I-864) Sponsor's shoulders, i hope if i have a domicile there so she could come with me and bring get birth our child there but this is the situation.

i thought birth is the most cheap thing in the US , but it seems not.
i'll do my best when i arrive there by finding a job and a house, so i can bring my wife and let her get birth in the US
so our child would be a USC immediately.
any further assistance is welcomed from you guys
tell me what to do plz.
wish me luck
-Rami

Thanks

For the baby to automatically be a USC if born in Jordan, your wife would have needed to spend at least two years in the US after she was 14 (and have five years in total).

However, there is still a process you can go through to gain citizenship for the baby instead of having to get a visa. I cannot quite remember who it was, but there is someone around who knows how it generally works. Of course if you can both get to the US before she is too pregnant to fly, that is all the better. Good luck!

Hi Rami,

Congratulations. In order for your child to claim his/her U.S. citizenship, if he/she is not born in the U.S. you will have to file the I-130 and apply for permanent residency (because your wife does not meet the residency requirement - as Margo mentioned).

The Child Citizenship Act of 2000 allows certain foreign-born, biological and adopted children of American citizens to acquire American citizenship automatically. These children did not acquire American citizenship at birth, but they are granted citizenship when they enter the United States as lawful permanent residents (LPRs).

What Are the Requirements of the Child Citizenship Act of 2000?

The child must meet the following requirements:

- Have at least one American citizen parent by birth or naturalization;

- Be under 18 years of age;

- Live in the legal and physical custody of the American citizen parent; and

- Be admitted as an immigrant for lawful permanent residence. Link

Ta da! I thought it was you, but didn't want to say just in case.

EDIT - Also it seems I didn't remember it quite right! I was thinking it meant no visa was needed.

Yes it's funny, we have done this 2-3 times now, you do the first part and I do the second, we are a good derivative citizenship team!