The Trump administration has enacted new executive orders aimed at curbing "birth tourism" and further restricting access to U.S. birthright citizenship. These orders seek to redefine who is eligible for citizenship for children born on American soil to non-U.S. citizens, and to ban individuals from entering the country specifically for the purpose of giving birth.
Stephen Miller, homeland security advisor and White House deputy chief of staff for policy, stated that the administration believes individuals are entering the U.S. under the pretense of being tourists with the primary intention of having a child who would automatically become a U.S. citizen. He further alleged that these children would then gain access to welfare benefits and other rights reserved for U.S. citizens.
According to Miller, the president possesses the authority to implement such restrictions under a section of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which allows for the establishment of exceptions and limitations on entry into the country.
This move follows a previous attempt by the Trump administration in 2025 to end birthright citizenship, which is enshrined in the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. That policy was ultimately blocked by the Supreme Court in June of that year, which ruled that the administration's efforts to alter birthright citizenship could not be sustained. The court's decision was a significant setback for the administration's broader agenda to regulate immigration and citizenship.
"The high court made a bad decision, very unfair decision," Trump commented on Thursday from the Oval Office, asserting that the nation suffers as a result of the ruling. He added that the administration is pursuing a different approach to address the issue.
Estimates from the Migration Policy Institute, a nonpartisan research organization, suggest that between 22,000 and 26,000 babies are born annually in the U.S. to parents engaged in birth tourism. Government data from 2024 indicated that approximately 9,600 births were recorded to mothers who reported foreign addresses.