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3.5.2 Temporary Absence Temporary absence ends when another state determines the person is a resident there for Medicaid/Medical Assistance purposes. This page last updated in Release Number: 26-02 Release Date: 04/15/2026 Effective Date: 04/15/2026 3.6 Reserved This page last updated in Release Number: 20-04 Release Date: 11/23/2020 Effective Date: 10/24/2020 4.1 U.S. Citizens and Nationals To qualify for BadgerCare Plus, persons who are otherwise eligible and declare that they are U.S. citizens or nationals must provide documentation of their citizenship unless they are exempt, or their citizenship is verified by the Social Security Administration through a data exchange. A person is a U.S. citizen if any of the following is true: • Was born in the United States, the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, Guam or the U.S. Virgin Islands. • Was born to a U.S. citizen who was living abroad. • Is a naturalized U.S. citizen. A person is a U.S. national if they were born in American Samoa (including Swain's Island). The Independent State of Samoa (also known as Western Samoa) is not part of American Samoa, therefore individuals from this country are not U.S. nationals. 4.1.1 Child Citizenship Act The Child Citizenship Act (CCA) of 2000 amended the Immigration and Naturalization Act (INA) to provide derivative citizenship to certain foreign-born children of U.S. citizens. This applies to individuals who were under 18 years old on February 27, 2001 and anyone born since that date. The act applies to children meeting any of the following: • Adopted children meeting the two-year custody requirement • Orphans with a full and final adoption abroad or adoption finalized in the U.S. • Biological or legitimated children • Certain children born out of wedlock to a mother who naturalizes The CCA provides that foreign-born children who meet all of the conditions below automatically acquire U.S. citizenship on the date the conditions are met. They are not required to apply for a certificate of naturalization or citizenship to prove U.S. citizenship. These conditions are that the child: • Has at least 1 parent who is a U.S. citizen (whether by birth or naturalization), • Is under 18 years of age, • Has entered the U.S. as a legal immigrant, • If adopted, has completed a full and final adoption; and, • Lives in the legal and physical custody of the U.S. citizen parent in the U.S.