im planning to apply for US citizenship(N-400), but i just found out that being a Lawful Permanent Resident for 9 years since june 2002 im not allowed to register to vote. i didnt know about this that you have to be a US citizen to register. What happened was i was walking to go to my class that day (attending community college) i think it was November 2010, but im sure it was last year then this lady walk by me and ask me if i already register to vote i said NO, then she asked me if im US citizen and i said NO, then she told me "that's ok" and asked me if i have my ID with me i said yes and she look at my ID and i think she wrote my drivers license # on the paper or maybe my permanent residence card #(im not sure which one) it happened so fast and she started to asked my name,address,phone# and she's the one who wrote everything on the paper and after that ask me to sign the paper. she didn't ask me to read what it said on the paper or anything. After that i went to my class and never read the registration card that she gave me,she just give it to me and told me it's for my record. Then after few months, i just saw the card again inside my book and i have nothing to do that time so i read the back of the card that i have to be "US citizen to register" but when i read that i just said ok to myself since i never plan to vote anyway that time...then i got the ballot in the mail, but I NEVER VOTED since i found out that i can't vote and someone told me that im not suppose to vote since im not US citizen. i have no knowledge whatsoever about this rules or anything and i NEVER intend to claim that im US citizen because i know im not, this is all mistakes that i did. Now i don't know what to do, i read lots of forums like this and i know i have to get copy of my registration, and cancel my registration, get copy of the cancelation, and voting history showing that i DID NOT vote. But i don't know what else i should do before i file my N400, i really want to get my US citizenship so any information that could help will be much appreciated.
My second problem is in 2009 i didn't file my income tax since i only work for 1-3 months and it's only part time so my income is so low. so i didn't bother to file because i have to pay like $50-70 to file my income tax and im guessing that i'll probably only get like $20-30 so what's the point of filing it.Now in the application they are asking "have you ever failed to file your income tax?" this is really frustrating. But im more worried about the voting part since i read a lot of stories like mine that i might get deported or be in prison. I never know anything about it and why those volunteers register me in the first place when i said im not US citizen. Someone should do something about these things because many people are having trouble with this.
Any suggestions that could help me with my problems? thank you in advance.
First, the title of this thread "Unknowingly registered to vote" does not accurately describe your situation. You knowingly registered to vote - you filled out a voter registration form and signed it.
Second, technically, registering to vote by a non-citizen is a deportable offense, see USC 8.12.II.IV.1227(a)(3)(D)(i): "In general Any alien who falsely represents, or has falsely represented, himself to be a citizen of the United States for any purpose or benefit under this chapter [...] or any Federal or State law is deportable."
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/8/usc_sec_08_00001227----000-.html
When you fill out a voter registration form (in any state), there is always a statement at the end of the form, shortly before the signature, where you affirm that you are a U.S. citizen.
Pleading stupidity and ignorance is generally not considered to be a legitimate defense for such things [although there is a limited exception given by USC 8.12.II.IV.1227(a)(3)(D)(ii)]
As a practical matter, if you have never voted, have cancelled the voter registration before filing N-400 and do not have any other significant blemishes on your record, most IOs will exercise leniency in such cases and approve the N-400 application (even though the applicant is technically deportable).
Regardless of whether you plan to file N-400 soon and regardless of whether or not you intend to vote, you MUST cancel your voter registration ASAP and obtain written proof of such cancellation from the local elections board. You should also ask them to give you a letter stating that, according to their records, you have never voted. The IO considering your N-400 will need to see the proof of cancellation of the voter registration and the proof that you never voted.
About taxes. As an LPR and as a taxpayer you are required to file an income tax return for every year, regardless of whether you consider it "frustrating" and regardless of whether you are owed a refund for that year or you owe taxes for that year. The only exception is if you income for the year in question is below the minimal federal requirements for filing.
Your explanation that you'd have to pay someone $50-70 to do your taxes is also pretty bogus: you can file the tax return yourself, for free and you don't need to pay anyone to do it. The majority of taxpayers in the U.S. file their tax returns themselves, without paying anyone to prepare their returns.
If you failed to file a tax return and did not correct this problem by the time of the interview, that fact alone may cause the denial of your application, on good moral character grounds. So you should take care of it now.
Check first if you were actually required to file a tax return for 2009. If your gross income for that year for your filing status was below a certain minimum, you were not required to file, in which case you are fine and don't need to do anything. See the instructions to the IRS form 1040 for the details; I think for single taxpayers the minimum gross income below which one is not required to file is somewhere around $9000.
If it turns out that you were required to file, you should file a late return for 2009 now. If you were owed a refund, you won't have to pay the penalties and interest, but if you actually owed some tax, you'll have to pay some penalties and interest on top of the tax itself. Anyway, fix it before you file N-400.
