Citizen of the World?

Question

A co-worker of mine recently told me that if a child (baby) is born on an international flight he/she would become a citizen of the world. Which she explained that because the child was born in the air it had no real citizenry. Is there any truth to this? This would explain why doctors may not want pregnant women to fly after the seventh month. Any takers to this question?

Answer 1

Citizen of the World is a meaningless phrase. It sounds nice, it means nothing. Where would you live? Who would represent you? What Army or Police force would protect you? Who would you pay taxes to? Where would you go to ask for government benefits or protection? Who would issue your passport and I.D. card? There is no such thing as "Citizen of the World".

Citizenship is determined two ways, by place of birth and by the nationality of the parents. Most countires state that if you are a child of one (or two) of their citizens then you automatically recieve the citizenship of your parents, no matter where you are when you are born. If an British lady gives birth to a child while in Greece the baby would still be considered British and get British Citizenship. Until a couple of years ago you could apply for Irish Citizenship if you could show that one of your parents or grandparents had been born in Ireland, even if you had never been there.

The United States says that any child born within the United States, and subject to it's laws is automatically an American Citizen. This is something that most countires do not do. In most countires just because you are born there does not mean that you get a right to citizenship. If an American lady had a baby while she was on vacation in Japan I do not think that the child would get Japanese Citizenship. It would get American Citizenship from it's mother though.

Lastly ships and even airplanes have the nationality of the nation where they are registered. Just as the American Embassy in Russia is legally considered to be part of the United States, ships and planes are, for most but not all legal purposes, considered to be part of the nation that registered them. The rules are rather complex, but for most purposes if you are on a British ship at sea you are subject to British law as long as you are on the ship. If you are on an American Airliner and you cause a problem or try to hijack it, the American FBI and the American Military will come after you, no matter where you are on the planet.

One might, in a pinch, be able to claim citizenship of the nation where the plane was registered because it was technically that nations soil.

But there is no such thing as Citizen of the World.

Answer 2

That is partly true. However the parents or guardian has the choice of choosing the birth of origin place or nationality, depending where the flight was at the time. A creditable witness statement may be presented to the licence authorities. If it was a flight to France then the English parent may be able to claim a dual nationality or French. This normally would not happen and the parent would chose an English nationality or dependant on which country they reside.

Answer 3

No. Flying when you are pregnant can have detrimental effects on the pregnancy if the mother is well enough along. Doctors do not care about citizenship. They don't tell pregnant women that it is OK to fly to Pittsburgh but you can't go to Rome. It is blanket advice that they should not fly, period.

Every country has its own guidelines for establishing citizenship but generally speaking you are what your parents are. American citizens give birth all around the world and those children are entitled to American citizenship.

Answer 4

Doctors don't want pregnant women to fly because of medical complications. The baby would be of the same citizenry as the parents.

Answer 5

this is exactly why doctors want women to fly while pregnant. deep pocket airlines with lots of insurance must pay. if you own a house you own the airspace above it. assuming the mother is an American the baby automatically is an American citizen. if at the time of birth the plane was flying over Perth, the child would hold dual citizenship in Australia too...

Answer 6

The UN does not make the rules for citizenry! Your own country does.
Only world socialists follow UN policy like it's some sort of law or something.

Answer 7

I think your friend was joking with you.

Babies born on planes while they are flying are 1, automatically citizens of the country/countries their parents come from, and 2, citizens of the home country of the airline.

Answer 8

yes it's true . if someone borns in international flight he/she becomes a citizen of the world.

Answer 9

His passport/birth certificate will determine where he was born.

Answer 10

Thanks for this question. I learned something new today.
The link below has the answer to your question.