Title: Count LEGAL presence before green card towards the 5-year term for naturalization
Currently, legal permanent residents of 5 years are eligible to become U.S. citizens. However, the time an immigrant may have spent in the U.S. legally, studying or working, prior to becoming a permanent resident does not count.
For example, someone who spent 7 years getting a doctorate degree on a student visa, another 6 years working legally, and another 3 years as a green card holder is not yet eligible to become a U.S. citizen, while someone who came to the U.S. as a family-sponsored or a diversity immigrant 5 years ago can already become naturalized. Moreover, marriage-based immigrants can become U.S. citizens after 3 years in the country.
We propose changing the law so that up to 2 years of legal presence before green card could be counted towards the 5-year term, assuming the immigrant complied with what was required of green card holders during that time, such as filing taxes as residents, including paying Social Security and Medicare taxes.