Citizenship
Expedited Naturalization for Spouses of U.S. Citizens Working Abroad
A spouse of a U.S. citizen must meet certain requirements in order to be eligible for naturalization, including residing in the U.S. for at least three years, be physically present for half of that time, and not be abroad for more than six months at a time. The exception to these requirements is Section 319(b)…
Read MoreChildren of Naturalized U.S. Citizens (Derivative Citizenship)
In order to be eligible to apply for citizenship, an individual must be at least 18 years. What, then, happens to children under 18 years? Since their age (being under 18) disqualifies them to apply for citizenship, in many cases minor children who are lawful permanent residents automatically become citizens when either one of their…
Read MoreDOJ and DOE push for enforcement of educational equality
Often, immigrants with school-aged children and questionable legal status may be fearful of enrolling their children in public school, as they lack awareness of the mandated law concerning the basic right of all children residing in the US the opportunity to attend elementary and secondary level public schools, regardless of their immigration status. Federal, state,…
Read MoreUSCIS to Accept Only New Version of Form N-400 Beginning May 5
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that beginning May 5th, 2014 only the updated edition of current Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, dated September 13th, 2013, will be accepted. Naturalization applications submitted after May 5th using the previous versions of the form would be rejected and returned. As reported in our previous article,…
Read MoreUSCIS Releases Revised Naturalization (Citizenship) Form
The United States Citizenship & Immigration Service (USCIS) has revised the Form N-400, Application for Naturalization. The new version of the Form N-400 is now available on the USCIS website. USCIS will accept certain editions of the old naturalization form until Friday, May 2, 2014 but starting May 5, 2014, USCIS will only accept the…
Read MoreInstructions for Rescheduling ASC Appointment
Upon receiving an application for an immigration benefit, the USCIS notifies the applicant to appear at the nearest Application Support Center (ASC) to provide it with the biometrics information. Though there is no specific timeframe for scheduling of the biometrics appointment, most biometrics appointments are scheduled within 30-90 days of filing of application. It is…
Read MoreSocial Networking Sites are viewed by USCIS
We want to remind our readers about an undated memorandum by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) regarding the importance of social networking sites (Facebook, MySpace, Google+, etc.) in fraud detection. The memo talks about narcissistic tendencies amongst user of social network sites to have a large group of “friends” which may result in a…
Read MoreRecent USCIS Telephone Scams
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) in recent weeks have learned of a new telephone scam targeting USCIS applicants and petitioners. Scammers are using a technique called “Caller ID spoofing” to display a misleading or inaccurate phone number in a recipient’s Caller ID. The scammer poses as a USCIS official and requests personal information (such…
Read MoreDOMA Ruling and Immigration Benefits for Same-Sex Partners
With the overturn of Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), same-sex partners of U.S. Citizens and permanent residents are now entitled to same immigration benefits that were earlier available only to opposite-sex couples. Some of the notable immigration benefits that the same-sex partners are now eligible to includes: Fiancé Visa, Marriage Visa, Adjustment of Status, Immigrant…
Read MoreImmigration Reform Bill Introduced in Senate (Part 2 of 3)
In Part 1 of this Article, we provided you with an overview of the Immigration Reform Bill that was introduced in the Senate on April 17, 2013 and familiarized you with some of the key provisions for those who are present in the Unites States in an unlawful status. This article will highlight some of…
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