The term United States person or US person is used in various contexts in
U.S. law
The law of the United States comprises many levels of codified and uncodified forms of law, of which the supreme law is the nation's Constitution, which prescribes the foundation of the federal government of the United States, as well as va ...
and regulations with different meanings. It can refer to
natural person
In jurisprudence, a natural person (also physical person in some Commonwealth countries, or natural entity) is a person (in legal meaning, i.e., one who has its own legal personality) that is an individual human being, distinguished from the br ...
data collection
Data collection or data gathering is the process of gathering and measuring information on targeted variables in an established system, which then enables one to answer relevant questions and evaluate outcomes. Data collection is a research com ...
and
intelligence
Intelligence has been defined in many ways: the capacity for abstraction, logic, understanding, self-awareness, learning, emotional knowledge, reasoning, planning, creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving. It can be described as t ...
by the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, particularly with respect to the provisions of the
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act
The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA, , ) is a Law of the United States, United States federal law that establishes procedures for the surveillance and collection of foreign intelligence on domestic soil.
According to the
National Security Agency
The National Security Agency (NSA) is an intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense, under the authority of the director of national intelligence (DNI). The NSA is responsible for global monitoring, collection, and proces ...
website, federal law and
executive order
In the United States, an executive order is a directive by the president of the United States that manages operations of the federal government. The legal or constitutional basis for executive orders has multiple sources. Article Two of the ...
define a United States person as any of the following:
* a
citizen of the United States
Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Constit ...
;
* an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence;
* an
unincorporated association
Unincorporated association refers to a group of people in common law jurisdictions—such as the United Kingdom, Canada, and New Zealand—who organize around a shared purpose without forming a corporation or similar legal entity. Unlike in some ...
with a substantial number of members who are citizens of the United States or are aliens lawfully admitted for permanent residence;
* a
corporation
A corporation or body corporate is an individual or a group of people, such as an association or company, that has been authorized by the State (polity), state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law as ...
that is incorporated in the United States.
Securities market regulation
Regulation S (promulgated under the
Securities Act of 1933
The Securities Act of 1933, also known as the 1933 Act, the Securities Act, the Truth in Securities Act, the Federal Securities Act, and the '33 Act, was enacted by the United States Congress on May 27, 1933, during the Great Depression and afte ...
) in Section 902(k)(1) defines a US person as:General Rules and Regulations promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933: Rule 902 -- Definitions /ref>
#Any natural person resident in the United States;
#Any partnership or corporation organized or incorporated under the laws of the United States;
#Any estate of which any executor or administrator is a US person;
#Any trust of which any trustee is a US person;
#Any agency or branch of a foreign entity located in the United States;
#Any non-discretionary account or similar account (other than an estate or trust) held by a dealer or other fiduciary for the benefit or account of a US person;
#Any discretionary account or similar account (other than an estate or trust) held by a dealer or other fiduciary organized, incorporated, or (if an individual) resident in the United States; and
#Any partnership or corporation if:
##Organized or incorporated under the laws of any foreign jurisdiction; and
##Formed by a US person principally for the purpose of investing in securities not registered under the Act, unless it is organized or incorporated, and owned, by accredited investors (as defined in Rule 501(a)) who are not natural persons, estates or trusts.
Section 902(k)(2) further defines some persons who are explicitly not US persons. Unlike other definitions of US person, the Regulation S definition of US person does not include US citizens not resident in the US.
Taxation
Internal Revenue Code
The Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (IRC), is the domestic portion of federal statutory tax law in the United States. It is codified in statute as Title 26 of the United States Code. The IRC is organized topically into subtitles and sections, co ...
Section 7701(a)(30) defines a US person as:
# a citizen or resident of the United States (including a lawful permanent resident residing abroad who has not formally notified
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that administers the country's naturalization and Immigration to the United States, immigration system.
History
...
in order to abandon that status);
# a
domestic partnership
A domestic partnership is an intimate relationship between people, usually couples, who live together and share a common domestic life but who are not married (to each other or to anyone else). People in domestic partnerships receive legal be ...
;
# a domestic corporation;
# any estate (other than a foreign estate, within the meaning of paragraph (31)); and
# any trust if—
## a court within the United States is able to exercise primary supervision over the administration of the trust, and
## one or more United States persons have the authority to control all substantial decisions of the trust.
See also
*
Americans
Americans are the Citizenship of the United States, citizens and United States nationality law, nationals of the United States, United States of America.; ; Law of the United States, U.S. federal law does not equate nationality with Race (hu ...
*
Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Fourteenth Amendment (Amendment XIV) to the United States Constitution was adopted on July 9, 1868, as one of the Reconstruction Amendments. Considered one of the most consequential amendments, it addresses Citizenship of the United States ...