An individual may acquire U.S. citizenship in a variety of ways:

Almost all individuals who are born in the United States are automatically U.S. citizens, regardless of the immigration status of their parents. Certain individuals born in the United States, such as children of foreign heads of state or children of foreign diplomats, do not obtain U.S. citizenship automatically through birth in the United States.

Certain children born outside of the United States to U.S. citizen parents are automatically citizens of the U.S.

Children born outside of the U.S. may automatically become a U.S. citizen if one parent becomes a citizen prior to the child's 18th birthday.

Certain children adopted and in the physical custody of their U.S. citizen parents for at least two years may acquire U.S. citizenship. The child must be under the age of 16 at the time of the legal adoption.

Generally, any person over the age of 18 who has been a legal permanent resident for a minimum of five (5) years may apply for naturalization. The individual applying for citizenship must:

The applicant must also demonstrate an ability to read, write, speak and understand the English language. Applicants are also required to pass a short oral or written test on the history and government of the U.S.