Many across the world are already US citizens and do not even know it. How can that happen? The most common way is just be born in the US; in that case, citizenship is assured. The other way you might already be a US citizen is birth to US citizen parents. You could have lived in Siberia, but if your parents are US citizens living abroad, you still have the right to US citizenship. Even if you are not eligible for these, you can get US citizenship after an application and exam, or by naturalization of your parents. Naturalization is the most common way to become a US citizen. You’re parents may have applied and got US Citizenship, and that makes you eligible also.

Let’s go over the main ways you might be a US citizen in more detail.

Born in the US
Just because you’ve lived most of your life outside the  US does not mean you are not a US citizen. If you were born in New Jersey, but moved to France when you were one-year old, and lived there your whole life, you are by law a US citizen. You need not apply for US citizenship in this case. Location has no bearing in terms of where you are now; what matters is you were born in a state or district of the  United States and that makes you a citizen. If you were born in a US territory, you may also acquire US citizenship.

Ancestry Leads to Citizenship
Being born in the United States is not the only way you’re automatically a US citizen. If you’re grandparents were US citizens, for example, you can technically also be a US citizen, even if you’re grandparents lived most of their lives outside the US. You can again have lived your whole life elsewhere, but still be a US citizen.

Children of Naturalized US Citizens
If your parents were naturalized while you were under the age of 18, that means you are a legal United States citizen. Children under 18 cannot be naturalized, but if their parents are naturalized, they’re automatically US citizens.

Proving US Citizenship
The final step is to prove you’re a US citizen by any of these methods. If you are within these laws–born in the US, parents are US citizens, ancestry to US citizens, or a child of naturalized US citizens–all you need to do is prove it. Acquire a passport or other document to prove this. You’ll then get an interview, and if all goes well there you can expect a swearing-in ceremony.  Once you become a US citizen, you can even  bring  over other close family members to the land of opportunity.