Citizenship is one of the most desirable gifts that the U.S. government can bestow, and the most important immigration benefit that USCIS can grant. Most people become U.S. citizens in one of two ways:
By Birth, either within the territory of the United States or to U.S. citizen parents, or
By Naturalization.
Furthermore, citizenship can be obtained through:
Birth - Any child born in the U.S. automatically acquires U.S. citizenship, even if the child's mother was in the U.S. illegally. This provision does not apply to a child whose parent was a foreign diplomat at the time of birth.
Parents - Even though a child is born outside the U.S., the child automatically acquires U.S. citizenship if at least one parent was a U.S. citizen at the time of the child's birth. If both parents were U.S. citizens at the time of a child's birth outside the U.S., and at least one parent had a prior residence in the U.S., the child automatically acquires U.S. citizenship. If only one parent was a U.S. citizen at the time of a child's birth outside the U.S., and that parent had previously resided in the U.S. for at least five years, with at least two of those years being after the age of 14, the child automatically acquires U.S. citizenship.
Adoption - Children under 18 years of age holding green cards may be naturalized if petitioned for by a U.S. citizen parent.
Reclaiming Lost Citizenship - Individuals born before 1934 in foreign countries to U.S. citizen mothers, and were denied citizenship because of retention requirements and the law of the day; Former U.S. citizens who prior to September 22, 1922 lost U.S. citizenship because of marriage to a foreign national who was ineligible for naturalization; Former citizens losing citizenship for failure to meet physical presence retention requirement according to law prior to 1978; Former citizens losing citizenship by entering armed forces of foreign countries during World War II; Children who lost their U.S. citizenship through failure to meet the retention requirements of the law.
Posthumous Citizenship - Posthumous citizenship is granted to foreign nationals who died while on active duty service in the U.S. Armed Forces during the World War I, World War II, Korean or Vietnam hostilities, or in other periods of military hostilities.
Doctrine of Constructive Retention - Individuals born and raised outside the U.S., being unaware of having acquired U.S. citizenship through their parents and have therefore failed to fulfill U.S. residency requirements may claim U.S. citizenship through the Doctrine of Constructive Retention.
Doctrine of Double Constructive Retention - Individuals with grandparents who were U.S. citizens may be eligible to claim U.S. citizenship under Doctrine of Double Constructive Retention.
There are certain benefits to becoming a U.S. Citizen, such as higher estate tax exemptions, federal job benefits, greater freedom of travel to other countries and most importantly, the right to vote. In addition there are certain federal grants and scholarships available only to U.S. citizens. Moreover, in 2000, Congress passed the Child Citizenship Act (CCA), which allows any child under the age of 18 who is adopted by a U.S. citizen and immigrates to the United States to acquire immediate citizenship.
Visa processing can be difficult and confusing. If you would like the assistance of an experienced immigration lawyer, please contact us or call our office at 1-415-601-0210 to schedule a consultation today.
Legal Disclaimer
Content on this site is intended for generalized information reasons. It may become out of date at any time due to changes in the law. It is not intended to offer case-specific legal advice nor should it be deemed valid or accurate for that reason. If in fact you have an exact immigration related legal issue, we recommend you consult with an experienced immigration attorney or immigration lawyer. There exists disclaimers throughout our website stating that we are not an official U.S. Government website.
Contact San Francisco Immigration Lawyer Marko Mikin.
