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Urging the President of the United States and the United States Congress to enact legislation securing the citizenship of internationally adopted adult individuals.
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WHEREAS, The Child Citizenship Act of 2000 aimed to provide equal treatment under United States law for adopted and biological children by granting citizenship to internationally-born adoptees. However, when the act became law, it did not apply to internationally-born adoptees who were already over the age of 18; and
WHEREAS, As a result, an estimated tens of thousands of adult legal adoptees who were born before February 27, 1982 and raised in the United States are still undocumented and therefore potentially subject to deportation. These adoptees’ parents did not complete necessary processes to provide their adopted children with citizenship, or in many cases, even a green card; and
WHEREAS, Several deportations of individuals who were legally adopted from foreign countries have already taken place, breaking up families and returning the deported individuals to places where they were born but have no other connections; and
WHERAS, Adoptees who do not have citizenship have come from countries including Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Germany, Guatemala, El Salvador, India, Ireland, Haiti, Iran, Japan, Mexico, Panama, Philippines, Russia, Ukraine, and Vietnam. There are an estimated 18,000 Korean American adoptees alone who do not have American citizenship despite having been legally adopted; and
WHEREAS, Two bills which would grant citizenship to adult adoptees were introduced with bipartisan support in the 114th Congress: the Adoptee Citizenship Act of 2015 (S.2275), and the Adoptee Citizenship Act of 2016 (H.R.5454). Neither bill was referred out of committee for a Congressional vote; and
WHEREAS, Both bills sought to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to grant automatic citizenship to all qualifying children adopted by a U.S. citizen parent, regardless of the date on which the adoption was finalized. Citizenship would be granted to any individual who was adopted by a U.S. citizen before age 18, was physically present in the United States in the citizen parent's legal custody pursuant to a lawful admission before the individual reached age 18, never previously acquired U.S. citizenship, and was lawfully residing in the United States. The bills also would have given adult adoptees who had already been deported the opportunity to return to the United States; and
WHEREAS, To date, no similar legislation has been introduced in the 115th Congress during President Trump’s term; and
WHEREAS, Naturalization of adult adoptees who immigrated to America under the promise of finding a permanent home is necessary to ensure that they are not forcibly removed from what has become their home country; and
WHEREAS, The City of Philadelphia does not condone the deportation of individuals who were adopted into American homes and should have every expectation that their citizenship matches that of their adoptive parents. Further, the City welcomes legislation that will provide a pathway to citizenship for adult adoptees whose adoptive parents did not complete the naturalization process while they were children; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That we hereby urge the President of the United States and the United States Congress to enact legislation securing the citizenship of internationally adopted adult individuals.
RESOLVED FURTHER, That a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States and to each member of Congress from Philadelphia.
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