Territories of the United States are one type of political division of the United States, administered by the U.S. government but not any part of a U.S. state. These territories were created to govern newly acquired land while the borders of the United States were still evolving. Territories can be classified by whether they are incorporated (part of the United States proper) and whether they have an organized government (through an Organic Act or constitution passed by the U.S. Congress). The organized incorporated territories of the United States existed from 1789 to 1959, through which 31 territories applied for and achieved statehood. The U.S. had no unincorporated territories (also called "overseas possessions" or "insular areas") until 1856 but continues to control several of them today.

Incorporated and unincorporated territories

An incorporated territory of the United States is a specific area under the jurisdiction of the United States, over which the United States Congress has determined that the United States Constitution is to be applied to the territory's local government and inhabitants in its entirety (e.g., citizenship, trial by jury), in the same manner as it applies to the local governments and residents of the U.S. states. Incorporated territories are considered an integral part of the United States, as opposed to being merely possessions.

All territory under the control of the federal government is considered part of the "United States" for purposes of law. From 1901 - 1905, the U.S. Supreme Court in a series of opinions known as the Insular Cases held that the Constitution extended ex propio vigore to the territories. However, the Court in these cases also established the doctrine of territorial incorporation. Under the same, the Constitution only applied fully in incorporated territories such as Alaska and Hawaii, whereas it only applied partially in the new unincorporated territories of Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippines..
In the contemporary sense, the term "unincorporated territory" refers primarily to insular areas. There is currently only one incorporated territory, Palmyra Atoll, which is not an organized territory. Conversely, a territory can be organized without being an incorporated territory, a contemporary example being Puerto Rico.

See organized incorporated territories of the United States and unincorporated territories of the United States for timelines.

Classification of current U.S. territories

Incorporated organized territories

Incorporated unorganized territories

• Palmyra Atoll is privately owned by the Nature Conservancy and administered by the U.S. Department of the Interior. It is an archipelago of about 50 small islands about 1.56 square miles (4 km²) in area that lies about 1,000 miles (1,600 km) south of Honolulu. The atoll was acquired by the United States in the 1898 annexation of the Republic of Hawaii. When the Territory of Hawaii was incorporated on April 30, 1900, Palmyra Atoll was incorporated as part of that territory. However, when Hawaii became a state in 1959, Palmyra Atoll was explicitly separated from the state, remaining an incorporated territory but receiving no new organized government.

There are in addition also "territories" that have the status of being incorporated but that are not organized:

• U.S. coastal waters out to 12 nautical miles

• U.S. flag vessels at sea.

Unincorporated organized territories

• Guam

• Northern Mariana Islands (commonwealth)

• Puerto Rico (commonwealth)

• United States Virgin Islands

Unincorporated unorganized territories

Islands in South Pacific

• American Samoa, self-governing under a constitution last revised in 1967

• Wake Island, inhabited by US military and civilian contractors only

• Midway Islands, inhabited by caretakers

• Johnston Atoll, uninhabited

• Baker Island, uninhabited

• Howland Island, uninhabited

• Jarvis Island, uninhabited

• Kingman Reef, uninhabited

Islands in Americas

• Bajo Nuevo Bank, uninhabited (claimed by Colombia and Jamaica)

• Serranilla Bank, uninhabited (claimed by Colombia)

• Navassa Island, uninhabited (claimed by Haiti)

There is also a special kind of unincorporated unorganized territory:

• Certain parcels in foreign countries held by lease, such as military bases, depending on the terms of a lease, treaty, or status of forces agreement with the host country.

• Guantanamo Bay, uninhabited

Classification of former U.S. territories & administered areas

Former incorporated organized territories of the United States

See Organized incorporated territories of the United States for a complete list.

Former unincorporated territories of the United States (incomplete)

• Line Islands (?–1979): Disputed claim with United Kingdom, all U.S. claims ceded to Kiribati upon its independence.

• Panama Canal Zone (1903–1979): sovereignty returned to Panama under the Torrijos-Carter Treaties; the U.S. retained a military base and control of the Canal until December 31, 1999.

• Corn Islands (1914–1971): leased for 99 years under the Bryan-Chamorro Treaty but were returned to Nicaragua after the abrogation of the treaty in 1970.

• Roncador Bank (1856–1981): claimed under Guano Islands Act was ceded to Colombia in September 7, 1981 by treaty.

• Quita Sueño Bank (1869–1981): claimed under Guano Islands Act, claim abandoned on September 7, 1981 by treaty.

• Serrana Bank (?–1981): claimed under Guano Islands Act was ceded to Colombia in September 7, 1981 by treaty.

• Philippine Islands (1902–1935); Commonwealth of the Philippines (1935–1946): Full independence in 1946.

• Phoenix Islands (?–1979): Disputed claim with United Kingdom, all U.S. claims ceded to Kiribati upon its independence.

Former unincorporated territories of the United States under military government

• Puerto Rico (April 11, 1899–May 1, 1900): civil government operations began

• Philippines (April 11, 1899–July 4, 1901): civil government operations began

• Guam (April 11, 1899–July 1, 1950): civil government operations began

Areas formerly administered by the United States (incomplete)

• Cuba (April 11, 1899–May 20, 1902): sovereignty recognized as Republic of Cuba

• Haiti was occupied by United States from 1915 to 1934.

• The Dominican Republic was occupied by the United States from 1916 to 1924.

• Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (1947–1986): included the Compact of Free Association nations (Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, and Palau) and the Northern Mariana Islands

• Ryukyu Islands (1952–1972): returned to Japanese control, included some other minor islands under the Agreement Between the United States of America and Japan concerning the Ryukyu Islands and the Daito Islands.

• Bonin Islands (or Ogasawara Islands) (1945-1968): Returned to Japanese control by mutual agreement.

• Marcus Island (or Minami Torishima) (1945-1968): Returned to Japanese control by mutual agreement.

Other zones

• American Occupation Zones in Austria and Vienna (1945–1955)

• American Occupation Zone in West Berlin (1945–1990)

• American Occupation Zones in Allied Occupation Zones in Germany (1945–1949)

• Guantanamo Bay Naval Base (1903–) A 45 mi area on Guantánamo Bay, Cuba to which the U.S. holds a perpetual lease. Disputed by Cuba.

• Japan (1945–1952)

• Rhineland (Germany) (1918–1921)

• South Korea (1945–1948)

• Coalition Provisional Authority Iraq (2003-2004)

• Green zone Iraq (March 20, 2003–December 31, 2008)

See also

• Political divisions of the United States

• Historic regions of the United States

• Organic Acts of 1845-46

• Enabling act (United States)

• Hawaiian Organic Act

• Territorial Clause

• Insular Cases