Does birthright citizenship exist everywhere?
Unconditional jus soli — citizenship purely from being born on the soil — exists in most of the Americas (US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, etc.), in a few African states, and almost nowhere else in the developed world. Most of Europe and Asia require at least one parent to be a citizen or legal resident.
The truth
Unconditional jus soli: US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela, all of Central America, most of the Caribbean — the Americas remain the global outlier. A few African states (Lesotho, Pakistan with restrictions, Tanzania with restrictions). Conditional jus soli (requires at least one parent to be a legal resident / citizen, or born in country to non-citizen parents under specific conditions): UK (since 1983, parent must be citizen or settled), France, Germany (since 2000 for children of long-term resident parents), Ireland (since 2005, parent must be Irish or have lived in Ireland 3+ years), Australia (parent must be Australian citizen or PR), Spain, Portugal, South Africa, Egypt, Greece, India (very restricted since 2003). Pure jus sanguinis (citizenship by descent only — being born on the soil grants NOTHING): Japan, China, South Korea, most of the Middle East, most of Asia, much of Eastern Europe. The trend has been to RESTRICT jus soli over the past 30 years (UK in 1983, India in 2003, Ireland in 2005, Australia in 2007) due to political concerns about 'birth tourism' and citizenship for the children of undocumented residents.
Why this rumour persists
Americans (and to a lesser extent Brazilians, Canadians) often assume birthright citizenship is universal because it's the cultural default in their country. The history of restricting jus soli in non-American jurisdictions hasn't filtered into popular awareness.
What to actually do
- Before planning birth tourism, verify the destination country's nationality law — most countries do NOT grant citizenship to children of foreigners
- Even in jus-soli countries, the child gets the citizenship; the parents do not get residence
- If you're a child of immigrants and unsure of your citizenship status, you may be eligible by descent (jus sanguinis) through one or both parents — check both
- Citizenship by descent often passes through one or two generations and can be reclaimed even decades after the ancestor emigrated (e.g. Italian, Polish, Irish jure sanguinis)