Legal Definitions - citizen

Citizen

A citizen is someone who is a member of a country or political community. This can be because they were born there, have parents who are citizens, or have gone through a process called naturalization to become a citizen. Citizens have certain rights and responsibilities within their country.

• John was born in the United States, so he is a citizen of the United States.
• Maria's parents are both citizens of Canada, so she is also a citizen of Canada.
• Carlos moved to France from Mexico and went through the process of naturalization to become a citizen of France.

These examples illustrate the different ways someone can become a citizen. John was born in the United States, so he automatically became a citizen. Maria became a citizen because of her parents' citizenship. Carlos became a citizen through naturalization, which means he had to go through a process to become a citizen.