Jus soli ( or , ), meaning 'right of soil', is the right of anyone born in the territory of a state to nationality or citizenship. Also commonly referred to as birthright citizenship in some Anglophone countries, it is a rule defining a person's nationality based on their birth in the territory of the country. Jus soli was part of the English common law, in contrast to jus sanguinis ('right of blood'), which derives from the Roman law that influenced the civil-law systems of mainland Europe. Jus soli is the predominant rule in the Americas; explanations for this geographical phenomenon include: the establishment of lenient laws by past European colonial powers to entice immigrants from the Old World and displace native populations in the New World, along with the emergence of successful wars of independence movements that widened the definition and granting of citizenship, as a prerequisite to the abolishment of slavery since the 19th century. Outside the Americas, jus soli is rare. Since the Twenty-seventh Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland was enacted in 2004, no European country grants nationality based on unconditional or near-unconditional jus soli. Almost all states in Europe, Asia, Africa and Oceania grant nationality at birth based upon the principle of jus sanguinis ("right of blood"), in which nationality is inherited through parents rather than birthplace, or a restricted version of jus soli in which nationality by birthplace is automatic only for the children of certain immigrants. Jus soli in many cases helps prevent statelessness. Countries that have acceded to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness are obligated to grant nationality to people born in their territory who would otherwise become stateless persons. The American Convention on Human Rights similarly provides that "Every person has the right to the nationality of the state in whose territory he was born if he does not have the right to any other nationality."

[Countries by jus soli

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National laws

Lex soli is a law used in practice to regulate who can assert the right of jus soli and under what circumstances they can do so. Most states provide a specific lex soli — in application of the respective jus soli — and it is the most common means of acquiring nationality. However, a frequent exception to lex soli is imposed when a child is born to a parent in the diplomatic or consular service of another state on a mission to the state in question.

Unrestricted jus soli

Africa

North America

South America

Oceania

Asia

Restricted jus soli

There is a trend in some countries toward restricting jus soli by requiring that at least one of the child's parents be a citizen, national or legal permanent resident of the state in question at time of the child's birth. Modification of jus soli has been criticized as contributing to economic inequality, the perpetuation of unfree labour from a helot underclass and statelessness. Jus soli has been restricted in the following countries:

Africa

North America

South America

Asia

Europe

Oceania

Abolition

Explanatory notes