Do You Have Plans to Naturaliz

Do You Have Plans to Naturalize? Nicole C. Dillard, Esq. 在提出美國公民的申請時，雖然多數情況都不會發生什麽問題，但有時候仍然會出現一些難以估計的意外而影響申請。在這裏，我們會談到關於公民申請時的一些要求和信息，希望能幫助有意提出申請的人士，以減少在申請時可能遇到的問題。 In light of heightened enforcement against noncitizens of the United States , many permanent residents are taking steps to naturalize to become a citizen of the U.S. While in many cases, the naturalization process and preparation appear to be a relatively simple process, there are plenty of pitfalls that can trip up applicants along the way. In this two- part article, we will discuss the steps to naturalization and then potential problems to overcome. In order to naturalize, the applicant must be: n A permanent resident who is at least 18 years old. There is an exception if the applicant has honorably served the U.S. in time of war or declared hostility. A person is not required to be a permanent resident if enlistment occurred in the U.S. or outlying possessions or on a U.S. vessel. Additionally, posthumous citizenship may also be granted after the death of an individual if the person enlisted was admitted as a permanent resident after enlisting in the military. n A resident of the U.S. continuously for 5 years immediately preceding the date of filing the application. During these five years, the applicant must have been physically present in the U.S. for periods totaling at least one half that time. The regulations state that an absence of more than 6 months and less than a year shall disrupt continuity of residence for purposes of naturalization, unless the applicant can establish that he did not terminate his employment in the U.S. , the applicants immediately family remained in the U.S. , and the applicant retained full access to his or her U.S. abode. n If the applicant is married to a U.S. citizen, the residency requirement is reduced to 3 years if the spouse has been a U.S. Citizen for 3 years and the parties have been living in a “marital union” at the time of the filing of the application for three years. The regulations require, however, the three years of “marital union” preceding the date of examination on the application, which goes beyond the filing date. Therefore, divorce, legal separation, expatriation or death would break the “marital union” requirement. n The applicant must have resided at least three months within the state in which the petition is filed. n The applicant must not be absent from the U.S. for a continuous period of more than on year during the periods for which continuous residence is required. If there has been an absence of one or more year without first obtaining a re-entry permit, it would break the continuous residence requirement and the applicant would not be able to use the resident card to travel back to the U.S. There are exceptions which provide exemptions to the one year continuous absence abroad: o Employees working abroad who obtain approval to preserve their residency (by completing and submitting form N-470) o Spouses of U.S. Citizens working abroad can obtain expedited citizenship. The citizen spouse must be “regularly stationed abroad” in the employment of U.S. government, U.S. institution of research recognized by the Attorney General, U.S. corporations (or subsidiary) in the development of foreign trade or performing ministerial or missionary functions on behalf of a bona fide U.S. religious organization. n The applicant must be a person of good moral character for the requisite five years . In the case of a spouse married to a U.S. citizen, the period for demonstrating good moral character is three years. The person must maintain good moral character up to the time of admission to citizenship. Upon meeting the requirements of eligibility, applicants will submit the complete applications, filing fees and photographs to the USCIS. Soon thereafter, the applicants will be scheduled for an interview, during which the applicant will be tested on his basic understanding of English, as well as basic knowledge of U.S. history and government. After a successful application process, the applicant is sworn in at swearing in ceremony, taking an oath of allegiance to the U.S. While this process appears simple enough, it is often the maintenance of good moral character in addition to maintaining continuous presence that gives applicants the most trouble. Hence attorneys will sometimes advise clients NOT to naturalize at the time that they plan to do so. Part 2 of this article will discuss the potential problems that applicants may have when applying for naturalization and how an Attorney may be able to help. ______________________________________________________________________________ 本文由範毅禹律師事務所提供 本律師事務所精辦各類勞工應聘及專業移民申請 (包括H-1，L-1，EB-1，EB-2，NIW，勞工卡，綠卡等申請)。所有申請由多位美籍律師及擁有15年經驗的範毅禹律師親自處理，我所並特設中英移民網站。內有最新移民新聞資訊及由律師主持的移民問答集，歡迎讀者流覽查詢。 www.Fan-Law.com CALIFORNIA : Fan, Fitzpatrick & Thompson, LLP. 370 E. Glenarm St., Pasadena , CA 91106 Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone] MARYLAND : Fan, Fitzpatrick & Thompson, LLP. 230 North Washington Street, Suite 400 , Rockville , MD 20850 Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone]