Child Born Out of Wedlock

A child born out of wedlock is the child of the natural mother, and if the father is a citizen of the United States, the child is eligible to be a US citizen under the United States Immigration and Naturalization Act (INA) as noted below.

US citizenship

A person born abroad out-of-wedlock on or after November 14, 1986 to a U.S. citizen father and an alien mother may acquire U.S. citizenship under 301(g) of the INA, as made applicable by the “new” Section 309(a) of the INA, if the paternity of the person is established by adjudication of a competent court.

Birth certificate

(1) The natural mothers name on the child’s birth certificate may be taken as proof of such relationship. (2) The term natural mother in INA includes a gestational mother who is the legal mother of a child at the time and place of birth, as well as genetic mother who is a legal mother of the child at the time and place of birth.

Father child relationship

{1) A child born out of wedlock is a child of the natural father under INA, provided the father has or had a bona fide parent-child relationship with the child. While an ongoing father-child relationship is not required to establish a bona fide parent or child relationship, you must ascertain whether a genuine parent or child relationship, not merely a tie by blood, exists or has existed at some point prior to the offspring’s 21st birthday and while the offspring is or was unmarried.

(2) While each case must be determined based on the facts presented, you must be satisfied that the facts demonstrate the existence of a bona fide parent or child relationship before the child's 21st birthday. For instance, although not necessary, the moral or emotional behavior of the father or child toward each other, which reflects the existence of such a relationship, may constitute favorable evidence of the relationship, just as cohabitation may be another element of evidence of such relationship.

(3) Proof of present or former familial relationship may include the- (a) Fathers acknowledgment within the community that the child is his own; (b) Fathers support for the child’s needs; and (c) Fathers active concern for child support, instruction, and general welfare, and interest in the child.

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