Acquisition of Hawaiian Citizenship

If a child is born in the Hawaiian Islands before the United States’ occupation on August 12, 1898, is the child a Hawaiian subject?

YES. Hawaiian statute provides that any person born within the territorial jurisdiction of the Hawaiian Kingdom of either Hawaiian subject parent(s) or Alien parents acquires Hawaiian citizenship at birth.

If a child is born in the Hawaiian Islands during the United States occupation since August 12, 1898 to the present, is the child a Hawaiian subject?

The child may be a Hawaiian subject if the child qualifies as a stateless person or a national of any country other than the United States of America.

What is a stateless person?

The definition of a stateless person is a civilian who has been denationalized or whose country of origin cannot be determined or who cannot establish a right to the nationality claimed. United States citizens cannot claim to benefit from the nationality laws of a State that its government is occupying (see Hawaiian Nationality: Who Comprises the Hawaiian Citizenry), but United States nationals who become stateless persons are capable of acquiring Hawaiian nationality at birth in the Hawaiian Islands. U.S. nationals residing in the occupied State of the Hawaiian Kingdom become stateless as a direct result of prolonged occupation beyond two generations (see below).

What is an example of a United States national becoming stateless in the Hawaiian Islands?

According to the United States Immigration and Nationality Act, if a person is born in the Hawaiian Islands, which is outside of the jurisdiction of the United States, and does not meet the following qualifications of acquiring U.S. citizenship they would be stateless while resident in the Hawaiian Kingdom. http://travel.state.gov/acquisition.html

Birth Abroad to Two U.S. Citizen Parents in Wedlock: A child born abroad to two U.S. citizen parents acquires U.S. citizenship at birth under section 301(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). One of the parents MUST have resided in the U.S. prior to the child's birth. No specific period of time for such prior residence is required.

Birth Abroad to One Citizen and One Alien Parent in Wedlock: A child born abroad to one U.S. citizen parent and one alien parent acquires U.S. citizenship at birth under Section 301(g) INA provided the citizen parent was physically present in the U.S. for the time period required by the law applicable at the time of the child's birth. (For birth on or after November 14, 1986, a period of five (5) years physical presence in the U.S., and two (2) after the age of fourteen (14) is required by the citizen parent. For birth between December 24, 1952 and November 13, 1986, a period of ten (10) years, five (5) after the age of fourteen (14) are required for physical presence in the U.S. to transmit U.S. citizenship to the child.

Birth Abroad Out-of-Wedlock to a U.S. Citizen Father: A child born abroad out-of-wedlock to a U.S. citizen father may acquire U.S. citizenship under Section 301(g) INA, as made applicable by Section 309(a) INA provided:

1. A blood relationship between the applicant and the father is established by clear and convincing evidence;
2. The father had the nationality of the United States at the time of the applicant's birth;
3. The father (unless deceased) had agreed in writing to provide financial support for the person until the applicant reaches the age of 18 years, and
4. While the person is under the age of 18 years --
1. Applicant is legitimated under the law of their residence or domicile,
2. Father acknowledges paternity of the person in writing under oath, or
3. The paternity of the applicant is established by adjudication court.

Birth Abroad Out-of-Wedlock to a U.S. Citizen Mother: A child born abroad out-of-wedlock to a U.S. citizen mother may acquire U.S. citizenship under Section 301(g) INA, as made applicable by Section 309(c) INA if the mother was a U.S. citizen at the time of the child's birth, and if the mother had previously been physically present in the United States or one of its outlying possessions for a continuous period of one year.

Can a descendant of a Hawaiian subject become a stateless person?

NO. If a person is a descendant of a Hawaiian subject, whether residing in the Hawaiian Islands or in another country (i.e. United States of America), that person is a Hawaiian subject by parentage. Unlike the United States Immigration and Nationality Act, Hawaiian Kingdom law does not provide how a person could lose their Hawaiian nationality. While a descendant of a Hawaiian subject retains Hawaiian nationality, that person could also acquire the nationality of the country they reside in, which is termed dual citizenship.