Cleveland and Washington DC Naturalization and Citizenship Attorney

Basic Requirements

To be a naturalized citizen of the U.S., an applicant must be:

A green card holder;
18 years old or older (note that a green card minor under 18 would qualify to become a citizen if his or her parent becomes a naturalized citizen);
A resident continuously for five years after becoming a permanent resident (if married to a U.S. citizen, the residency requirement is only three years);
Of good moral character during the statutory period.

Continuous Residence and Physical Presence Requirements

There are also requirements with regards to continuous residence and physical presence. The applicant must have been physically present in the U.S. for at least one-half of the five years (or one-half of the three years if married to a U.S. citizen). The applicant must not be out of the U.S. for a continuous period of more than one year during the period for which continuous residence is required. Absence of more than six months but less than one year results in a rebuttable presumption of disruption of continuous residence. Reasons pertaining to education, employment, and medication are all ways to rebut the presumption.

If the continuous residence was disrupted by a lengthened trip outside the U.S., the applicant may apply for U.S. citizenship four years and one day after the date of his or her return to the U.S. For the spouse of a U.S. citizen, the timeframe becomes two years and one day. Note that for both continuous residence and physical presence, the requirements are cumulative and not continuous. A permanent resident can leave and come back to the U.S. as much as s/he wants as long as the continuity of residence is not broken and the physical presence requirement is met prior to applying for citizenship.

English Language and U.S. History Requirement

The applicant must have the ability to read, write, and speak English. The immigration officer, at the interview, would orally state a simple English sentence and would ask the applicant to write it down on a piece of paper. S/he would also do the opposite, and show the applicant a written English sentence and would ask him or her to read it.

Please note that the language requirements does not apply to:

Those who are physically unable to comply because of a disability;
Those who are unable to comply due to mental impairment;
Those who are at least 50 years old at the time of filing the N-400 and lived in the U.S. as a permanent resident for at least 20 years;
Those who are at least 55 years old and lived in the U.S. as a permanent resident for at least 15 years.

Good Moral Character for Naturalization

For naturalization purposes, the rule is that the applicant must have good moral character during the statutory period of five years (three years if married to a U.S. citizen). The law states though that immigration officers may look beyond the statutory period to assess good moral character.

The Yes/No questions on the naturalization application N-400 basically delineate the types of instances on which an applicant can fail the good moral character standard. Some of the more common circumstances in which an applicant can fail to meet this requirement are the following:

Failure to file taxes properly
Failure to register with the Selective Service if the person is required to
Those who have committed and have been convicted of at least one crime involving moral turpitude
Those who have committed and have been convicted of two or more offenses in which the total sentence was five years or more
Those convicted of any controlled substance law, except for a single offense of simple possession of 30 grams or less of marijuana
Those who have been confined to a penal institution during the statutory period due to a conviction, for an aggregate period of 180 days or more
Those who have willfully failed or refused to support dependents
Those who have given false testimony under oath to receive an immigration benefit

Citizenship by Birth

A person can also be a U.S. citizen by birth even if s/he was born outside the U.S. At least one parent must be a U.S. citizen at the time of the child’s birth, depending on the specific circumstance:

If both of the parents were U.S. citizens when the child was born abroad, and at least one of them lived in the U.S. before, that person can apply for either a U.S. passport or if additional proof of citizenship is needed, an application for Certificate of Citizenship through Form N-600;
If one of the parents was a U.S. citizen when the person was born and the citizen parent lived at least five years in the U.S. before the child was born, two years of which after the age of 14, then that person can also apply for a U.S. passport or a Certificate of Citizenship.

Minor Permanent Resident Children of Those Qualified for Naturalization

Permanent resident children of a U.S. citizen, who are under 18, automatically become U.S. citizens upon meeting certain requirements. They must: a) be living permanently and be present in the U.S.; and b) the U.S. citizen parent must have legal and physical custody of the minor child.

These children can thus apply for a U.S. passport or a Certificate of Citizenship through Form N-600.

Summary of Our Services

Our office will review every aspect of your case and prepare all the necessary application documents. You will be informed of the expected time frame of each step. We will conduct a mock interview for you in preparation of the naturalization interview. An attorney will also accompany you during the interview, regardless of where it is conducted in the U.S.

Listing of All Services in the Naturalization and Citizenship Area

Below are all possible services our office provides in the area of Naturalization and Citizenship:

N-400 Application for Naturalization
N-336 Request for a Hearing on a Decision in Naturalization
N-600 Application for Citizenship Based on Parentage
U.S. Passport Application
Response to Requests for Evidence
Response to Notice of Intent to Deny
Mandamus