State Department Drafts a Rule Requiring Parents to Prove Their Own Citizenship to Get a Passport for Their Child

Draft State Department guidance reviewed by Reuters and reported Sept. 1, 2026 would require every parent applying for a child's U.S. passport to submit proof of their own citizenship, such as a passport or birth certificate, or of their immigration status, such as an I-94 or a permanent resident card. The document states the department "will require parental information and evidence of parental citizenship or immigration status" to decide whether an applicant is subject to Executive Order 14418, Trump's Aug. 6 birthright citizenship order. Parents of U.S.-born children currently need only prove parentage and show photo identification.

The draft is the first detailed picture of how the administration would operationalize the August order, moving the citizenship determination into a routine passport counter transaction that reaches every applicant family, not only those the order names.

Spokesman Tommy Pigott said the department would ensure "our passport adjudication process fully reflects" the administration's position. The guidance was not public as of the report, and a judge enjoined the underlying order the next day.