The United Nations estimates that there are millions of people across the globe who do not have a nationality and are therefore stateless. According to international law, as ratified in the 1954 Convention Related to the Status of Stateless Persons, a stateless person is one “who is not considered as a national by any state under the operation of its law”. Consequences of statelessness can include a lack of legal protection, limited or no access to health care, education, and registration of birth, infringements on the rights to marry and own property, an inability to travel, and an increased vulnerability to human trafficking.  

In March 2024, Representative Jamie Raskin and Senator Ben Cardin reintroduced the “Stateless Protection Act of 2024”, which would address statelessness in federal law for the first time in U.S. history.   

The bill would:   

Adopt the international law definition of “stateless person”, thus providing a definition of statelessness for the first time is U.S. law;  

Afford protection to stateless persons present in the United States through a new form of relief and path to permanent residency known as Stateless Protected Status;  

Promote education and research on statelessness through partnerships with universities, international organizations, and nongovernmental organizations; and  

Encourage engagement with other countries to establish stateless status determination and protection legislation.  

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Committee on Migration and Committee on International Justice and Peace formally endorsed the bill in July. The committees affirmed the political right to a nationality, stating, “motivated by our belief that each person is endowed by God with an inherent dignity that confers certain ‘universal, inviolable, and inalienable’ rights, the USCCB is deeply concerned for those who have been deprived of the most basic of political rights—their national identity.” Their comments echo those of the Holy Father in his 2018 message on the World Day of Migrants and Refugees. On that occasion, Pope Francis discussed statelessness and encouraged world leaders to adopt “nationality legislation that is in conformity with the fundamental principles of international law.”