U.S. Citizenship
Nothing gives Your Immigration Lawyers more of a thrill than seeing the face of someone who has finally realized their dream of becoming a U.S. citizen. It’s a long and winding road to immigrate here, wait out the required amount of time as a Permanent Resident, become proficient in the English language and U.S. history. But Your Immigration Lawyers are here to help all along the way.
Naturalization
While U.S. permanent residents (green card holders) are able to live and work permanently in the U.S., there are some significant reasons many choose to become U.S. citizens through the naturalization process, such as voting and patriotism; traveling with a U.S. passport; ability to stay for extended periods of time without losing U.S. residency status; government benefits; ability to petition family members for immigration; federal jobs; running for public office; jury service; and tax benefits.
The base requirements for naturalization generally fall into three categories: someone who has been a lawful permanent resident (LPR) for at least 5 years; someone who has been an LPR for at least 3 years, is married to a U.S. citizen for at least 3 years, and the spouse has been a U.S. citizen for at least 3 years; and someone who is an LPR and is the spouse of a U.S. citizen, and their spouse is regularly engaged in certain employment abroad.
Additionally the applicant must be at least 18 years old; have maintained continuous residence in the U.S. for the required 3 or 5 years, and must have been physically present in the U.S. for at least half that amount of time; they must demonstrate “good moral character” for the required time period; must be able to demonstrate an ability to read, write, speak and understand English; demonstrate knowledge and an understanding of U.S. history and government; and show that they are attached to the principles of the Constitution of the U.S. and well-disposed to the good order and happiness of the U.S.
Derivative Citizenship Solutions
There are some situations in which a child is eligible to be considered a U.S. citizen at the time of their birth, even though the child was born outside the U.S (derivative citizenship). The rules can be complex and require a close analysis of a number of factors, including the year of birth, whether one or both parents have resided in the U.S., and the U.S. status of the parents.
Children can also acquire citizenship automatically after birth under the Child Citizenship Act, if the child has at least one U.S. citizen parent; the child is under 18 years old; the child is a Lawful Permanent Resident; and the child is residing in the U.S. in the legal and physical custody of the U.S. citizen parent.
Dual-Citizenship Issues
When someone chooses to become a U.S. citizen, there can be implications with their previous or original country of citizenship, such as losing the citizenship of the other country. Those rules very much depend on the laws of that particular country. Thus, it is a good practice for someone to understand the implications in the other country of their becoming a U.S. citizen before applying for naturalization.
In terms of U.S. policy on dual-citizenship, the U.S. recognizes the existence of dual nationality, but does not encourage it. Dual nationality may hamper efforts by the U.S. government to provide diplomatic and consular protection abroad. When a U.S. citizen is in the other country of dual nationality, that country has predominant claim on the person and that country has the right to assert its claim without interference from the U.S. government. When a U.S. citizen is in the other country of dual nationality, the person owes paramount allegiance to that country. Finally, dual citizens are required to enter and leave the U.S. using U.S. passports.