Are You Ready For The Next Step… To Become a U.S. Citizen!

by | Jan 10, 2019 | Immigration Law

Naturalization and Citizenship

No matter how you became a U.S. lawful permanent resident, the next and final step is to become a a U.S. citizen and be entitled the same rights and benefits that a U.S. born citizen has.

The process to become a U.S. citizen is called Naturalization.  There are many benefits to becoming a Naturalized U.S. citizen which is discussed in this article.

Houston Citizenship and Naturalization Lawyer

The Rahgozar Law Firm is here to represent you every step of the way in helping you take the next step of becoming a Naturalized U.S. citizen and alleviate a lot of the fears that Lawful Permanent Residents have.

Ms. Pegah Rahgozar is a Houston immigration lawyer who can assist you with ensuring you are eligible to become a U.S. citizen, have a thoroughly prepared application packet, know what to study for to pass the examination portion of your naturalization interview and ensure a successful interview, and be on your way to your swearing in oath ceremony where you become a Naturalized U.S. citizen.

Ms. Pegah Rahgozar and her team will be the advocate that you need through the lengthy and stressful process.

Pegah Rahgozar represents individuals in Houston, and surrounding areas, as well as across the great state of Texas.  If you reside outside of Texas, Pegah Rahgozar can represent you too! We have taken cases and represented individuals from all over the United States.

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For many years, Pegah Rahgozar, a U.S. citizenship lawyer, has been helping people in Houston go through the process of obtaining the Naturalization Certificate. A thorough knowledge of immigration law allows her to find solutions for the most sensitive immigration matters, especially when it comes to matters that can affect your eligibility to become a U.S. citizen.

Pegah Rahgozar is ready to lend a helping hand to anyone wanting to become a U.S. citizen.  She assists people based in the Greater Houston area such as the Energy Corridor, Greenway Plaza, The Woodlands, the Galleria Area, Clear Lake, Sugar Land, and other locations.

If you have any issues with your edibility, the paperwork process, or the interview process to become a U.S. citizen, feel free to call U.S. Naturalization Lawyer Pegah Rahgozar at (832) 792-3636 and make an appointment.

Naturalization

The process to become a U.S. citizen is called Naturalization. Once a person becomes a citizen, he or she can participate in our democracy through voting.  And what is great is that you never have to worry about your citizenship status ever expiring! After obtaining your Naturalization Certificate, you can apply for a U.S. Passport, and will never have to worry about losing your legal status and being forced to return to your country of origin. Certain requirements have to be met to be eligible to file for U.S. Naturalization, so it is important that you pay careful attention to the application and interview process to ensure that you have a smooth journey on the path to becoming a U.S. citizen.

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Naturalization Laws and The Naturalization Process

  • Seeking Citizenship through Naturalization
  • Requirements for Naturalization
  • Tests During Naturalization Process
  • Expedited Naturalization Requests Under Immigration & Nationality Law Section 319(b)
  • Military Service and Citizenship
  • Issues with your N-400 Naturalization Application
  • N-400 Interview But No Decision

Each of the following topics will be discussed more in depth below:

Seeking U.S. Citizenship through the Naturalization Process in the United States

In most circumstances, a person must be a Lawful Permanent Resident (possess an immigrant visa or “green card”) before taking the next step to become a U.S. citizen.

After a certain amount of time as a Lawful Permanent Resident, you may be eligible to apply for Naturalization to become a U.S. citizen.

The Requirements for Naturalization Are:

  • You must be at least 18 years old;
  • You must have lived in your current residence for at least three months, unless you served in the U.S. Armed Services or qualify for other exceptions;
  • You must be a person of good moral character; and
  • You must meet physical presence and continuous residence requirements (which may vary depending on the specific facts of your case)

A lawful permanent resident may seek naturalization after being a permanent resident for five years. During these five years, the permanent resident must meet certain physical presence requirements (in many cases, a person must have spent at least 30 months (913 days) of the previous 5 years in the United States, or 18 months of the previous 3 years in the United States if married to a U.S. citizen).  A lawful permanent resident with a spouse who is a U.S. citizen may apply for naturalization after three years if their spouse was a U.S. citizen for the duration of the previous three years, and they were married and living together during that time.

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Three key areas will determine if you are eligible to apply for Naturalization now, or at a later time, or possibly never! But each case is different and will require the expertise of an immigration attorney.

  • One key area that is a factor in whether or not you are eligible to become a U.S. citizen is good moral character, which is often times determined by your criminal record or it could even be related to failing to pay child support.

If you have any criminal history at any point in your life or anywhere in the world, this could be cause for concern and it is highly advisable that you speak with an immigration attorney before filing for Naturalization.  Every state has different criminal statutes and has different punishment levels, and those crimes for that state that you have a conviction from must be compared to the federal immigration guidelines to make sure you are eligible to file to become a U.S. citizen.  Usually, a good rule of thumb is if ever you have been convicted for a crime that has a 6 month (or 180-day jail time), then there could be a problem, even if you never actually served a day in jail.  The details and facts of your crime must be disclosed to immigration, and in most cases, documentation and proof of the crime and sentence is required with your Naturalization application.  If you fail to disclose this information to immigration, you could lose the opportunity to become a U.S. citizen or worse, you would be placed into deportation proceedings if the crime is a deportable offense under immigration laws.  Even if you slip under the radar and are granted citizenship, the government can go back and revoke your citizenship at a later time.

  • A second key area that is a factor in whether or not you are eligible to become a U.S. citizen now or at a later time is if you meet the physical presence requirement for Naturalization.

Applicants for naturalization are required to demonstrate physical presence in the United States for at least 30 months (at least 913 days) before filing the application. (18 months if married to a U.S. citizen).

Physical presence refers to the number of days the applicant must physically be present in the United States up to the date of filing for naturalization. The continuous residence and physical presence requirements are interrelated but each must be satisfied for naturalization.

USCIS will count the day that an applicant departs from the United States and the day he or she returns as days of physical presence within the United States for naturalization purposes. 

  • A third key area that is a factor in whether or not you are eligible to become a U.S. citizen now or at a later time is if you meet the continuous residence requirement for Naturalization.

An applicant for naturalization must have maintained continuous residence in the United States and resided at their current residence for at least three months.  Even people who meet the physical presence requirements for naturalization may be denied citizenship if the Immigration Service is not satisfied that they maintained a residence here.

“Continuous residence” means that the applicant has maintained residence within the United States for the required period of time (either 5 years or 3 years).

Extended absences outside of the U.S. may disrupt an applicant’s continuous residence.

  • Absences of more than six months but less than one year may disrupt an applicant’s continuous residence unless the applicant can prove otherwise through documents and evidence to support the reason for the absence; or
  • Absences in excess of one year or more may disrupt an applicant’s continuous residence.

An applicant may overcome the presumption of loss of his or her continuity of residence by providing evidence to establish that the applicant did not disrupt his or her residence. The evidence may include, but is not limited to, documentation that during the absence:

  • The applicant did not terminate his or her employment in the United States or obtain employment while abroad.
  • The applicant’s immediate family remained in the United States.
  • The applicant retained full access to his or her United States abode.

Exceptions

The Immigration and Nationality Act Section 316 allows for certain exceptions to the continuous residence requirement for those applicants working abroad for:

If you seek to preserve your continuous residence for naturalization purposes while employed abroad by one of these recognized institutions you must file Form N-470, Application to Preserve Residence for Naturalization Purposes with USCIS.

What Happens After You File For Naturalization

Assuming you have no issues and you are able to file your application, you will be given a fingerprint/biometrics notice so that immigration can complete background checks on you.

Then, depending on how long the wait time is at your local office in the city where you live, you will be given an interview notice and must attend an interview at your local USCIS office.  During the interview process, the USCIS officer will give you an exam to test your civic knowledge and your proficiency in the English language.  In certain instances, the English test can be waived under certain circumstances if you meet certain requirements. Also, during your interview process, you will answer questions about your immigration history, any criminal history you have, and provide documents for a USCIS officer to review.

If the officer feels that you have passed all portions of the interview, he will make a determination on your eligibility to become a U.S. citizen, and approve your case.  You will later be notified by mail about the date and time of your Swearing-in Oath Ceremony to become a U.S. Citizen.  Depending on certain issues in your case, the USCIS officer may place your case on hold to review it further before making a determination, or they may reschedule you to come back in for a second interview, or they may ask you to address those issues by providing more documentation before they make a decision.

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There are options available to people who have spent significant amounts of time overseas. In addition, the 319(b) Naturalization application process is available to those applicants for citizenship who are married to U.S. citizens who work for a U.S. Company and are transferred overseas.  This topic is discussed in more detail below.  An experienced immigration attorney can an assist you with determining your eligibility to apply for citizenship.

Tests During Naturalization Process

To become a citizen, you must pass two tests, a civics test and an English test. The civics test covers aspects of U.S. government and history. It is just 10 questions, six of which must be answered correctly to pass. The test is only offered in English.

The English portion consists of writing, reading and speaking components. If you are older than 50 and have been a lawful permanent resident for at least 20 years, you may be exempt from the English test.  There are also other ways to become exempt from the English language so be sure to call Pegah Rahgozar Citizenship Lawyer (832) 792-3636 to find out if you qualify.

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Expedited Naturalization Under Immigration & Nationality Law Section 319(b)

The law provides for expedited processing of applications for spouses of U.S. citizens employed by U.S. companies who are being transferred overseas for work assignments. In these expedited naturalization, the permanent resident spouse seeking to naturalize must be planning to depart the United States after naturalizing in order to join the U.S. citizen spouse. These applications involve coordination with the Immigration Service and preparing documentation to prove that the applicant satisfies all of the requirements for this special category.  If your spouse is moving overseas and you must accompany them, please call Pegah Rahgozar Naturalization Lawyer (832) 792-3636 to find out how you can start and expedite your naturalization process to become a U.S. citizen.

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Military Service and Citizenship

The law makes a special accommodation to fast track those seeking to become naturalized who have served in the Armed Forces, including the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines or Coast Guard. If you are currently serving or are within six months of an honorable discharge, you do not have to meet residency requirements to become a citizen.  If you served during a conflict, including any time after September 11, 2001, the six-month requirement is waived.

Spouses and children of members of the U.S. military may seek naturalization without meeting residency requirements. For instance, if you met your spouse while he or she was serving overseas and became married, you do not have to wait until you have been a permanent resident for five years to naturalize.

Issues with your N-400 Naturalization Application

If you have issues with your Naturalization application, an experienced immigration attorney like Ms. Rahgozar and her team can help you through the process.  We help our clients:

  • Prepare thorough applications, particularly where there are issues with good moral character or continuous residence requirements
  • Prepare for the naturalization interview and attending the interview with our clients
  • Get a decision on their cases that has been pending for long periods of time
  • Re-filing the N-400 applications after a denial is received

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I’ve Had My N-400 Interview, But No Decision Has Been Made on My Case

If you’ve had your Naturalization interview but have NOT yet received a decision on your case, there are additional steps you can take to try to resolve your case.

An experienced immigration attorney can help you determine if there are issues with your N-400 application and can assist with contacting USCIS to determine if a decision can be made in your case. In some situations, a delay after interview may mean difficulty or delay in completing background checks, which an attorney may be able to help press USCIS to complete.

In other cases, a delay in issuing a decision in your case after the interview could mean that an issue was identified in your case after your interview was completed.  However, by law, USCIS should make a decision on your case no more than 120 days after your interview. Once this time has passed, you may consider filing a federal lawsuit to request that USCIS take action. However, you may also choose to continue to work through USCIS’s channels to try to resolve the issue first.

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Houston Naturalization Lawyer

Houston Naturalization Lawyer Pegah Rahgozar can help you attain U.S. citizenship.  We can advise you on any potential issues that may come up during the naturalization process and help determine the best way to address those issues.  Given the current immigration climate and the constant changes in immigration laws, there is no room for mistakes; hence you should apply for highly-qualified legal assistance to make sure you successfully complete this last step in your immigration process – U.S. citizenship!

With profound knowledge of immigration law and years of experience in the field, Pegah Rahgozar is able to provide top-notch aid in ensuring you become a U.S. Naturalized Citizen. Don’t hesitate to call Pegah Rahgozar Houston Citizenship Attorney at (832) 792-3636 and talk to the best immigration attorney for citizenship and naturalization.

Citizenship

In some cases, a person does not have to apply to Naturalize by taking a test and meeting the legal requirements for the naturalization process. This sometimes happens when a parent of a child under age 18 naturalizes or a child is born overseas to a parent who is a United States citizen. In these situations, a person may apply for proof of citizenship at the time that the person acquired or derived citizenship from their parent, under one of the following conditions:

  • Acquiring Citizenship from a Parent; or
  • Deriving Citizenship After Naturalization of a Parent

Read further below to see if this may apply to you or call us today for find out (832) 792-3636.  

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Acquiring Citizenship from a U.S. Citizen Parent

Under some circumstances, a person born outside the United States may acquire U.S. citizenship at birth if one or both parents are U.S. citizens and if they can show that they meet certain physical presence requirements through their parents. This process differs from naturalization as it does not require any testing for English ability and knowledge of U.S. history and government.

Additionally, the individual applying for a Certificate of Citizenship is not required to show good moral character and does not have to maintain a continuous residence in the United States or be physically present in the United States for any particular period of time.  If you believe you may have acquired citizenship from a parent, it is important to work with an experienced immigration attorney to prepare your application for a Certificate of Citizenship.

Deriving Citizenship After Naturalization of a Parent

Some individuals may derive citizenship from their parents if they are under 18 when one of their parents naturalizes.  This process differs from naturalization as there is no testing required and no good moral character requirement.  If you believe you may have derived citizenship from a parent, it is important to work with an experienced immigration attorney to prepare your application for a certificate of citizenship immediately.

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Seeking Help with Naturalization or Citizenship in the Houston Area

For those applying for naturalization or getting proof of U.S. Citizenship, the process of working with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services or the Department of State can be complicated.

Call Pegah Rahgozar Houston immigration attorney at (832) 792-3636 and we will guide you through all the details of the immigration process, help you collect the necessary documents, prepare an application for Naturalization, hold your hand through the complex and stressful process, and ensure a positive solution to your case.

 

 

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