Is Elon Musk an American citizen? Yes, the tech billionaire is a naturalized U.S. citizen, although he wasn’t born in America.
The 55-year-old was not born in America, but Musk became a US citizen in 2002, after moving to the country as a student and establishing his career in Silicon Valley.
Here are five things to know about Elon Musk’s citizenship and nationality.
1. Musk was born in South Africa
Elon Musk was born in Pretoria, South Africa, in 1971, but the uncertainty about his nationality stems, as he was born outside the US, he wasn’t a US citizen at birth.
Musk’s early life and education took him from South Africa to Canada and to the US.
2. He moved to North America as a teenager
Musk moved to Canada at age 17 and later attended Queen’s University in Ontario. He transferred to the University of Pennsylvania and arrived in the United States in 1992 to continue his education.
3. Elon Musk became a U.S. citizen in 2002
Following residency and serving in the US, he got American citizenship through naturalisation in 2002.
Musk’s US citizenship has been independently documented by several fact-checking and news outlets.
Claims suggesting that Musk isn’t an American citizen have been found to be false.
4. Musk has multiple citizenships
Musk is commonly described as holding South African, Canadian and American citizenship.
His Canadian citizenship is connected to his mother, Maye Musk, who was born in Canada. His American citizenship came later through naturalization.
5. He is not a natural-born U.S. citizen
Although Musk is an American citizen, he isn’t a natural-born citizen. That distinction matters under the U.S. Constitution due to eligibility for the presidency needs a person to be a natural-born U.S, citizen.
Naturalized citizens can hold several other federal positions and exercise the rights of U.S. citizenship.
