Naturalization is at the heart of what it suggests to be an American. It is the brass ring of immigration, the procedure of intentionally becoming a citizen of one’s adopted nation. Citizenship provides the right to vote, the right to work for the federal government and its professionals, and safety from deportation in an age of increased enforcement. We are a nation of immigrants, so every immigrant who imagines becoming a United States person is the image of our ancestors, remote or current -with an exception for, and apologies to, the Native American First Peoples. The procedure of naturalization has grown more intricate and expensive in the last few years, the application itself has mushroomed from 10 to 21 pages, and finishing the type and getting ready for an interview can be hard to navigate, regardless of what may seem at first like simple requirements.
I. ACTIONS IN THE NATURALIZATION PROCEDURE
Some procedural elements of naturalization vary from one state to another, although it is a federal benefit. For civilian candidates, the N-400 Application for Naturalization is presently filed by mail or carrier to a lockbox address in either Phoenix, Arizona, or Lewisville, Texas, per the most current instructions as published by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Solutions on their site. Candidates and counsel alike must regularly look for updates and modifications at www.USCIS.gov. The proper filing address usually depends on the state where the candidate lives, except for spouses of particular US citizens regularly used abroad, who should file with the Phoenix lockbox, and military applicants, who must file with the Nebraska Service Center. The N-400 application needs to be completed, and need to be signed by the applicant. It needs to be accompanied by two passport-style color pictures on a white background, with the applicant’s name and alien registration number written on the back, and a copy of the front and back of the candidate’s I-551 irreversible resident card. Type N-400 must be filed with a check or cash order for the application filing cost ($ 595.00 since this writing), and Biometric processing cost (presently $85.00)– a single payment for both charges is appropriate. Naturalization candidates over age 75 are exempt from biometric processing. If an applicant seeks a waiver of the filing and biometric costs, Type N-400 needs to be accompanied by Form I-912, Demand for Charge Waiver, with files to support the cost waiver request, such as an existing approval letter to the applicant for a means-tested public benefit, such as food stamps or Medicaid. No other files need to be submitted until the candidate appears for an interview. However, in cases where there is any arrest history, it would be prudent to submit photocopies of the
Certificate(s) of Disposition along with the N-400 application– all originals need to be saved for the interview. Where a candidate looks for unique lodgings or exemption from certain N-400 requirements due to medical special needs, a Kind N-648 signed by a doctor and copies of any supporting files affirming the medical impairment need to be submitted with the N-400 application.