citizenship for my son

[drzx]

I've been a legal resident for 20 years now and I'm on the process of becoming a US citizen. I will get fingerprinted this august 18 and i have some quick but important questions. My son is 17 years old right now becoming 18 on march 2011. Is he going to become a US citizen too? and does he have to come with me to get fingerprinted? if so what about the oath ceremony?

thanks

 

[namecheckvictim]

He becomes a US Citizen the day you take your Oath before he turns 18, provided he is a GC holder in the US in your legal custody and is your dependent living in your household. No fingerprints required, just send your Citizenship Certificate when you get it with his GC to apply for his US Passport to get his proof of Citizenship.

 

[Jackolantern]

My son is 17 years old right now becoming 18 on march 2011. Is he going to become a US citizen too? and does he have to come with me to get fingerprinted? if so what about the oath ceremony?

He has no involvement with your citizenship process, other than making sure you list him on your N-400. After you become a citizen is when you can submit the papers for his US passport and/or citizenship certificate.

And make sure you don't do anything to delay your citizenship process -- don't miss or reschedule the interview or fingerprinting, don't miss or reschedule the oath, don't move from your current address, because of the importance of completing it all before his 18th birthday.

 

[jayoa]

Who and why the hell will someone wait 20 YEARS to go through this process?? Geez. God knows how many pages you would have to attach to the N400 application about involvement with the law (civil, traffic, criminal, etc), travel outside the US, etc. Good thing at least some details only require information 5 years back otherwise your application may end up being more than one shipping box and may take much longer to process. Now this also risks your son not being able to meet the age limit to benefit form it. I know of some people who have lost the green cards just because they neglected filing for citizenship for so long that certain things happened to them and they became inadmissible in the US and subject to deportation. Some even fled to Canada and filed for asylum there with no link to the US; meaning all their achievements and even education in the US is gone/wasted because they can't mention ever being in the US on the Canadian asylum forms because then the Canadian authorities can report them to US authorities to come get them and the asylum rules also say you MUST file for asylum in either the US or Canada, wherever you arrive first or be automatically denied. Guys, this is serious business.

 

[Jackolantern]

Who and why the hell will someone wait 20 YEARS to go through this process?? Geez.

People have their own valid reasons for delaying naturalization or not doing it at all. Especially those who would have lost their other citizenship by becoming a US citizen. Then once their original country changed their laws to allow dual citizenship, or they no longer have any ties to their country that would make it important to keep their original citizenship, they decide it's time to apply.

And note that the OP mentioned being a "legal resident", not a "legal PERMANENT resident" for 20 years. Many people have been legal (non-permanent) residents of the US for over a decade before their green card was approved.

 

[BostonCool]

Who and why the hell will someone wait 20 YEARS to go through this process?? Geez. God knows how many pages you would hasylum rules also say you MUST file for asylum in either the US or Canada, wherever you arrive first or be automatically denied. Guys, this is serious business.

Jayo, I appreciate your participation but IMHO some of your comments were all naive and unwarranted -

 

[Al Southner]

Jayao,

You need to spent time in bed with your wife...lol!!! If you aren't fully satisfied, it can become hard to think rationally and write sensible posts on the immigration board. The OP usually has valid reasons for waiting, which I don't care to know cause that's personal business. I know Kazakhstan will allow you to have dual citizenship, maybe the OP's country of origin prohibited dual citizenship and only recently have the laws changed. Jack's assessment might be correct...

 

[jayoa]

Jayo, I appreciate your participation but IMHO some of your comments were all naive and unwarranted -

I understand how you or some may feel, but on this issue I am speaking from personal experience. I know people that have done nothing about citizenship for no reason and end up in trouble that they had to run to Canada and file for asylum. I have an in-law that this happened to who has been here since the 70s and has had a green card since the 80s. Because he could not take his time to complete probation without a hitch, he ended up absconding to Canada last year, regretting why he did nothing about filing for citizenship. He blamed himself over and over again for not filing his N400 years ago, his siblings had done theirs but him. Now he has kids here he can't return to see except if they have to go to him in Canada, even that is risky business because US authorities can simply follow them. And in Canada he mentions tons of people in the same situation who absconded from the US after doing nothing to get their citizenship for years when they were eligible until they got in trouble. It may apply to you or whoever tarted the thread or not, but at least you know such information now that can help people you know in the future. But this happens too often for me not to mention this story here, its up to you to help someone with it.

 

[Al Southner]

J,

The good thing is that the OP isn't your relative, so this might run in your family....lol!!! So, get your citizenship soon, so that when you commit a felony, you aren't deported but given a reality tv show....lol!! Canada might be a haven for absconders, but the OP seems like a reasonable and law abiding resident, raising a son who will be 18 soon. On the subject of the son, where was the son born? He might be a citizen if he was born here...

 

[sanjoseaug20]

I understand how you or some may feel, but on this issue I am speaking from personal experience.

There are people here who answer questions by asking questions ... to clarify situation.
There are people here who answer questions by taking the hard / bookish line in favor of CIS ... to point out the worst case (I do that many times).
There are people here who answer questions by pointing out the law ... baikal, Bob, sometimes Jack.
There are people here who add some humor to the situation ... like Al, but I think he has toned down his humor after some time with the marines.
All these approaches seem to work, depending on the situation.
Yours is a new approach.

 

[jayoa]

J,

The good thing is that the OP isn't your relative, so this might run in your family....lol!!! So, get your citizenship soon, so that when you commit a felony, you aren't deported but given a reality tv show....lol!! Canada might be a haven for absconders, but the OP seems like a reasonable and law abiding resident, raising a son who will be 18 soon. On the subject of the son, where was the son born? He might be a citizen if he was born here...

Well, we never know what could be in his box of application that can preclude him from citizenship. And mind you, not just because a crime is a "felony" makes one deportable/inadmissible. USCIS has to interpret crimes in their own aggravated felony context/statute and other contexts they have such as moral turpitude, etc. For example the in-law I mentioned had a crime of fraud of less than $10,000.00, a felony under criminal statute but not an aggravated felony under immigration statute, hence he was not deportable or inadmissible thus would have gotten his citizenship. But instead of completing his probation sensibly he drove to another county out of the city he was not suppose to leave without permission, he got pulled over by the cops there and that automatically violated his probation. It was that simple.
And keep in mind that people abscond from Canada to the US too under the same circumstance and file for asylum, so stand corrected that both countries are havens for absconders.

 

[jayoa]

There are people here who answer questions by asking questions ... to clarify situation.
There are people here who answer questions by taking the hard / bookish line in favor of CIS ... to point out the worst case (I do that many times).
There are people here who answer questions by pointing out the law ... baikal, Bob, sometimes Jack.
There are people here who add some humor to the situation ... like Al, but I think he has toned down his humor after some time with the marines.
All these approaches seem to work, depending on the situation.
Yours is a new approach.

I'm glad you acknowledge the new approach. With every dawn comes something new. Out with the old and in with the new. Every second is a new future. So new must be good. And variety is the spice of life, we can't all be the same that's why the dems and reps are always fun to watch and makes this forum exciting. LOL. I'm sure you've heard some of these before.

 

[drzx]

Who and why the hell will someone wait 20 YEARS to go through this process?? Geez. God knows how many pages you would have to attach to the N400 application about involvement with the law (civil, traffic, criminal, etc), travel outside the US, etc. Good thing at least some details only require information 5 years back otherwise your application may end up being more than one shipping box and may take much longer to process. Now this also risks your son not being able to meet the age limit to benefit form it.

Yes i get you point but this is why i had to wait for so long. First i came to this country as a legally but had to wait for about five years to get my Permanent. After getting my GC i was working a lot to bring my family to this country. the whole process for bringing them here took me 8 years because it was my 4 kids and my wife. when they finally came here i had to work a lot more since it wasn't just a person who could live in one room apartment, now it was a family living in a 4 room apartment. well the point is that i had to work a lot and didnt have the time or the money to fill in my N-400. Now 3 of my kids are grown up people who are going to college and living by themselves, so now there's only me, my wife and my son. now i have the money and the time i didnt have worrying about my kids. hope that answered your question.

 

[drzx]

actually in the 20 years i've been in this country living in the same state and city, i have never been to jail or committed a crime. the only things i had were 3 parking tickets :-/ in the 7 years i have with my license.

 

[jayoa]

actually in the 20 years i've been in this country living in the same state and city, i have never been to jail or committed a crime. the only things i had were 3 parking tickets :-/ in the 7 years i have with my license.

One thing I will say is; you are a model immigrant well worth emulation, and good job at it. So just to be clear, when exactly did you get a green card issued to you?

 

[Jackolantern]

Yes i get you point but this is why i had to wait for so long. First i came to this country as a legally but had to wait for about five years to get my Permanent. After getting my GC i was working a lot to bring my family to this country. the whole process for bringing them here took me 8 years because it was my 4 kids and my wife.

It took 8 years after your GC to bring your wife and children? You could have reduced that by 2-3 years if you had applied for citizenship upon completing 5 years as a permanent resident. And if your GC allowed for derivative beneficiaries, you could have brought them to the US even sooner (if you were married and the kids were born before your GC was approved).

 

[Huracan]

Once you naturalize and your son derives citizenship by complying with all requirements of the child citizenship act of 2000 (somebody has already summarized, son being under 18, a permanent resident of the US, living with you under your full and legal custody)

http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types/types_1312.html

you might also consider applying for a certificate of citizenship for him (form N-600), but first (or concurrently) apply for his passport which is faster and cheaper.

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/us...toid=a936cac09aa5d010VgnVCM10000048f3d6a1RCRD

 

[rga111]

check out my thread. its somewhat similar to my situation. though I am the son. not the parent lol

anyway, i was just wondering. if you have been here 20 years. your son is 17, then your family moved with you after 8 years.
how did your wife get pregnant? your son should be at most 11 or 12 years old.

 

[Jackolantern]

anyway, i was just wondering. if you have been here 20 years. your son is 17, then your family moved with you after 8 years.
how did your wife get pregnant? your son should be at most 11 or 12 years old.

Over a century ago, they invented things known as airplanes and ships which allowed people to visit their spouses abroad.

 

[rga111]

oh lol okay