Can I still vote?

A

ady15

Registered Users (C)
So today's the last day to register to vote. I filled out the n600 form a few months ago and I just got a letter on friday that I have an oath ceremony next monday October 29th. can I register to vote since I will have my certificate before election day? Or will I get in trouble if I register since I haven't taken the oath yet? please help? I really want to vote:confused:
 
If you didn't take your oath yet you are not a Citizen. by Registering for vote before taking your oath it means you claimed you are a USC and you are not citizen yet. this it will get you in a big trouble.
 
Ahmed1982 said:
If you didn't take your oath yet you are not a Citizen. by Registering for vote before taking your oath it means you claimed you are a USC and you are not citizen yet. this it will get you in a big trouble.
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That's not correct in this case. The OP filed N-600, which provides a certificate for citizenship that already existed when the application was filed. So it is not necessary to wait for the oath to become a USC or to vote. It's not like N-400 where citizenship is not conferred until the oath ceremony.

However, the danger of voting before approval of the US passport or N-600 is the possibility of the N-600/passport being denied. If you registered to vote, and that denial is not remedied by reapplying, appealing, or submitting additional evidence, that means in the eyes of the US government you are a noncitizen who registered to vote and you may face the relevant consequences. So if you're going to register to vote or actually vote before getting the citizenship certificate or passport in your hand, you should be absolutely sure that you are already a US citizen and will be able to overcome the denial of passport/N-600 denial if it happens.
 
It depends on the OP's circumstances. If he/she acquired the citizenship through parents according to the Child Citizenship Act of 2000, then the OP can register to vote now because he/she is already a citizen and filing a N-600 is more like a formality. If the situation is more ambiguous and the OP was not sure about his/her own citizenship status at the time of filing the N-600, then I would recommend not to register to vote.

Ady, could you share with us how you would acquire the citizenship? If it is through your parents' naturalisation (while you were residing with them on Green Card), then you should already be a citizen even though the USCIS would like you to take the oath.

Disclaimer: please do not rely on my advice, as I am not an immigration lawyer and not well-versed in immigration matters. By claiming to be a US citizen, you do so at your own risk.
 
König said:
It depends on the OP's circumstances. If he/she acquired the citizenship through parents according to the Child Citizenship Act of 2000, then the OP can register to vote now because he/she is already a citizen and filing a N-600 is more like a formality.
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However, even the CCA of 2000 has scenarios where the determination of citizenship is not so straightforward. For example, suppose only one parent became a USC, and the parents were divorced, so the custody question becomes important. Or if the relationship to the USC parent was through adoption, that's a whole 'nother can of worms for whether the adoption meets the necessary requirements.
 
König said:
It depends on the OP's circumstances. If he/she acquired the citizenship through parents according to the Child Citizenship Act of 2000, then the OP can register to vote now because he/she is already a citizen and filing a N-600 is more like a formality. If the situation is more ambiguous and the OP was not sure about his/her own citizenship status at the time of filing the N-600, then I would recommend not to register to vote.

Ady, could you share with us how you would acquire the citizenship? If it is through your parents' naturalisation (while you were residing with them on Green Card), then you should already be a citizen even though the USCIS would like you to take the oath.

Disclaimer: please do not rely on my advice, as I am not an immigration lawyer and not well-versed in immigration matters. By claiming to be a US citizen, you do so at your own risk.
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König, yes I acquired citizenship through my parents. My dad naturalized in 95' and my mom in 96' when I was 12.
 
Have you received a US passport since 1996? It is hard to imagine that you lived all these 16 years without any proof of your citizenship status. You either had to get a US passport or renew your GC to have some kind of proof of immigration status.
 
my mom gave me the n600 to fill out when I was 17 and said that if I didnt fill it out before I turned 18, I would have to naturalize all by myself when I had the money. I thought I missed the window and when it was time for me to renew my green card in 2005 I did because she told me that to become a citizen would cost me a lot more money. Since I was working a minimum wage job and didnt want to spend more money on the n400 I renewed my green card not knowing that I was already a citizen through my parents. Now I am 28 years old and I sent in the n400 form and went to an interview and passed the test the officer then told me I was already a citizen and I had filled out the wrong form. She told me the form I had to fill out was an n600 and she also told me I could get the fee waived due to my financial status. So I filled out the n400 gathered all the necessary documents from my parents and sent it out. Someone told me I could just get a passport if I can show proof of my residency at the time my parents were naturalized and also if they were there with me, the only problem was that my dad lives in georgia and my mom and I in california. I'm excited about getting my certificate next week but I was really looking forward to voting this year.
 
ady15 said:
my mom gave me the n600 to fill out when I was 17 and said that if I didnt fill it out before I turned 18, I would have to naturalize all by myself when I had the money. I thought I missed the window and when it was time for me to renew my green card in 2005 I did because she told me that to become a citizen would cost me a lot more money. Since I was working a minimum wage job and didnt want to spend more money on the n400 I renewed my green card not knowing that I was already a citizen through my parents. Now I am 28 years old and I sent in the n400 form and went to an interview and passed the test the officer then told me I was already a citizen and I had filled out the wrong form. She told me the form I had to fill out was an n600 and she also told me I could get the fee waived due to my financial status. So I filled out the n400 gathered all the necessary documents from my parents and sent it out. Someone told me I could just get a passport if I can show proof of my residency at the time my parents were naturalized and also if they were there with me, the only problem was that my dad lives in georgia and my mom and I in california. I'm excited about getting my certificate next week but I was really looking forward to voting this year.
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You missed to vote in so many elections , why not one more???. Your vote in CA will not make a material difference in Presidential poll. May be in state and local polls. Always there is a next time.

My advice is to skip enrolling now. Get your CC.
 
ady15 said:
my mom gave me the n600 to fill out when I was 17 and said that if I didnt fill it out before I turned 18, I would have to naturalize all by myself when I had the money. I thought I missed the window and when it was time for me to renew my green card in 2005 I did because she told me that to become a citizen would cost me a lot more money. Since I was working a minimum wage job and didnt want to spend more money on the n400 I renewed my green card not knowing that I was already a citizen through my parents. Now I am 28 years old and I sent in the n400 form and went to an interview and passed the test the officer then told me I was already a citizen and I had filled out the wrong form. She told me the form I had to fill out was an n600 and she also told me I could get the fee waived due to my financial status. So I filled out the n400 gathered all the necessary documents from my parents and sent it out. Someone told me I could just get a passport if I can show proof of my residency at the time my parents were naturalized and also if they were there with me, the only problem was that my dad lives in georgia and my mom and I in california. I'm excited about getting my certificate next week but I was really looking forward to voting this year.
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If you live in California, you won't be able to vote in the Nov 2012 elections anyway (unless you have registered already). The deadline for registering to vote in that election in California was October 22:
http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/elections_vr.htm
 
I am aware that the deadline was october 22nd that is why I wanted to know before the cut off time to register. thank you all for your help :)
 
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