Marci Daniels - How To Become A U.S. Citizen

There are many reasons one might wish to become a U.S. citizen:

• To vote in U.S. elections
• To qualify for federal jobs or elected office
• To be in a better position to obtain green cards for loved ones
• To be able to leave the U.S. for extended visits without risking ones green card

Whatever your reasons, learning the process necessary to become a U.S. citizen is the best way to prepare yourself for a challenging but rewarding journey.

There are various means by which people immigrate legally to the U.S. These might include: having a sponsor, gaining refugee status, or enlisting in the U.S. military in a time of war.

Immediate relatives of U.S. citizens (e.g. parents, spouses, unmarried children under the age of 21) are given preference for Permanent Residence. The U.S. citizen, or sponsor, is legally bound to repay any public services received by the petitioner (the immigrant).

The sponsor is required to file an Affidavit of Support (Form I-864) , and to provide their most up-to-date U.S. federal income tax return information for the year and proof of current employment. The U.S. government requires the sponsor to prove they make 125% of the U.S. poverty level for their household size, the exception are members of the U.S. Armed Forces, then it is 100% of the poverty level).

Some Permanent Resident types:

• Family Member: Spouse, Parents, Siblings, or Children
• Employer: Domestic Employee, Unskilled Labor, Multi-national Executive and Managers
• Other: Extraordinary Abilities, Outstanding Researchers/Professors, National Interest Waiver

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) awards 226,000 family sponsored Permanent Resident Cards per year, and 140,000 employer sponsored Permanent Resident Cards per year.

It should be noted that there are limits on the number of visas allotted to each country. So, as the website www.us-immigration.com states:

This means that if you have a lower preference category when applying for your green card and come from a country where many immigrants are seeking admission to the United States, you may need to wait a number of years for a green card to become available.

In addition to what is listed above, once a year the U.S. State Department awards 50,000 diversity visas through the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program lottery system. Interested parties can sign up online . If your number is drawn you will be given an interview at an U.S. embassy. There will be a background check in which your education level and other factors will be considered and your sponsor will be contacted.

You are not required to have sponsor if you can show that you are the child of a U.S. citizen or have already worked in the U.S. for 40 qualifying quarters (i.e., 10 full-time work years).

The U.S. defines a refugee as someone located outside of the U.S. who: is of special humanitarian concern to the U.S., is not firmly resettled in another country, is admissible to the U.S. and can demonstrate that they were persecuted due to race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership in a particular social group.

In order for a refugee to immigrate to the U.S. they must receive a referral to the U.S. Refugee Admission Program . There is no fee to apply for refugee status. The USCIS will send an officer for an interview. If they are admitted to the U.S. they will be given aid in the form of food and shelter. Refugees in the U.S. can apply for Permanent Resident status for their close relatives. For more information on refugees visit Health and Human Services, Office of Refugee Resettlement .

Military Service

Members and veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces, and their dependents, may be eligible for citizenship. The immediate relatives of an U.S. armed forces member who died as a result of combat also may be eligible for citizenship.

To qualify to become a U.S. citizen, you need to have been a Permanent Resident (held a Green Card) of the U.S. for a minimum of five years. You must not have left the U.S. for longer than 30 months in the last 5 years. If the applicant left the U.S. for up to 12 months in the last 5 years, they must have filed the Application to Preserve Residence for Naturalization Purposes (Form N-470) .

If the applicant is married to a U.S. citizen, then they only have to hold a Green Card for three years before they are eligible to apply for full citizenship.

The one exception to these time requirement rules is in the case of military service. If an applicant served in the U.S. armed forces during war, then that individual may obtain citizenship without first becoming a permanent resident as long as they were in the U.S. when they enlisted.

The final step to becoming a citizen is filling out Form N-400 , or the Application for Naturalization, which enables you to officially apply for citizenship to the U.S.

N-400 Requirements:

• Must be at least 18 years of age
• Must have lived in the U.S. continuously for 3 months
• Must provide a photocopy of both sides of his or her green card
• Must pay $595 filing fee and $85 for biometrics (fingerprinting)

U.S. citizens who are residents of the U.S. and/or its territories are required to register with Selective Service in order to be eligible for student loans and certain jobs. If the applicant is male and is or was between the ages of 18-25 in the U.S. then they must have registered with Selective Service or have had a compelling reason why they didnt register.

Females are exempt from Selective Service, as are students of certain Universities. Lawfully admitted aliens and refugees are not required to register with Selective Services but will not be eligible for citizenship if they dont

Potential Changes to Current Immigration Law

The DREAM Act (Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors) is still under consideration in Congress. It was designed to give undocumented illegally immigrated youth a way toward citizenship. The 2010 version of the bill required that the applicant must have entered the U.S. before the age of 16, been present in the U.S. for 5 years prior to the enactment of the bill, graduated from (an American) high school or received a GED or been accepted to an institution of higher education, be between the ages of 12 and 35 and have good moral character.

The U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to rule in June, 2012 on Arizonas controversial immigration law SB 1070. The law has not yet been fully implemented in Arizona. It requires law enforcement officers in the state to make a reasonable effort to determine the citizenship of any person stopped, detained or arrested. Other states have passed similar laws.

The USCIS states its Core Values to be: Integrity, Respect, Ingenuity, and Vigilance, values that the American government and the American people hold dear when welcoming new citizens to its shores.

The process of becoming a citizen is challenging, but rewarding and hopefully made easier with the help of this article.

Use these links for additional reading, and to find any of the documents referenced in this article:

• www.immigrationdirect.com
• www.uscis.gov