Trump's birthright policy might mean newborns won't get Social Security numbers unless parents can prove citizenship — what to know and how to prepare

Documents recently made public by a handful of federal agencies detail how the executive order might be implemented, and the hurdles parents would have to overcome to get a Social Security number (SSN) for their child.

Here’s what parents-to-be need to know.

The current system

Most parents apply for their newborn’s SSN at birth, often at the hospital. An SSN is needed for a number of reasons, including opening a bank account, buying savings bonds, getting medical coverage and applying for government services. It’s also required to claim a child as a dependent on your tax return.

For parents who did not apply at the hospital, they can apply online and must provide original documents that prove their child’s citizenship, age and identity and confirm their relationship at a Social Security Administration (SSA) office. Children over 12 must also be interviewed.

The proposed changes

Normally, a birth certificate, which includes where a child was born, would be sufficient evidence of a newborn’s citizenship. But the new documents, as reported by multiple news outlets, suggest this would no longer be sufficient under the executive order.

To comply with the order, the SSA “will require evidence that such a person’s mother and/or father is a U.S. citizen or in an eligible immigration status at the time of the person’s birth,” reads a document from the agency. It’s unclear, however, how this would work in practice at hospitals.

According to CNN, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the Department of Agriculture have also detailed changes in verifying a child’s citizenship status for social services.

It’s important to note that several federal court rulings stand in the way of any new policies, at least for now.

Impact on the SSA

On the surface, there are a number of practical challenges the executive order might raise in addition to the potential changes to applying for an SSN at birth. Given the announced cuts to the SSA this year, it seems implementing a new policy could further drain limited resources. Although the president has promised no cuts to benefits, a reduction of staff and closure of local offices could mean that it becomes harder for Americans to get access to essential SSA services.

For now, it remains to be seen if the order will ever take effect. New Jersey Democratic Attorney General Matthew Platkin, who is leading a multistate rebuttal to Trump’s policy, told CNN that “whatever the promises in this guidance, we remain confident that President Trump’s unconstitutional attempt to terminate birthright citizenship will never take effect given the nationwide injunctions that have issued here.”