Naturalization Process Expedited For Prospective Citizens
POSTED: 8:45 am PDT August 9, 2007
UPDATED: 9:14 am PDT August 9, 2007
Prospective U.S. citizens in San Diego County will soon be able to expedite the naturalization process if they are willing to forgo the pomp and circumstance of a traditional citizenship ceremony, it was reported Thursday.
Responding to a surge in citizenship applications, local immigration officials will soon begin holding administrative ceremonies for those taking their citizenship oaths, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported.
The ceremonies, set to begin by late September, will be at the Chula Vista field office of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, rather than at Golden Hall downtown, with an immigration official instead of a judge presiding, the newspaper reported.
The administrative ceremonies would take place with a great deal less fanfare than a large public ceremony, which typically involves more than 1,000 new citizens and features entertainment and an address by a keynote speaker.
The scaled-down approach would enable immigrants to become citizens within a couple of weeks of passing their citizenship exams, rather than waiting up to a month for the big event, the newspaper reported.
Part of the reason for the change is that the agency's Chula Vista office, which opened in 2002 as a customer service center, has been, since April, a fully functioning field office where applicants may take citizenship exams, the newspaper reported.
The Chula Vista ceremonies will be held in addition to the monthly Golden Hall ceremonies, which recently have accommodated about 1,600 people at a time, the Union-Tribune reported.
http://www.10news.com/news/13856596/detail.html
POSTED: 8:45 am PDT August 9, 2007
UPDATED: 9:14 am PDT August 9, 2007
Prospective U.S. citizens in San Diego County will soon be able to expedite the naturalization process if they are willing to forgo the pomp and circumstance of a traditional citizenship ceremony, it was reported Thursday.
Responding to a surge in citizenship applications, local immigration officials will soon begin holding administrative ceremonies for those taking their citizenship oaths, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported.
The ceremonies, set to begin by late September, will be at the Chula Vista field office of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, rather than at Golden Hall downtown, with an immigration official instead of a judge presiding, the newspaper reported.
The administrative ceremonies would take place with a great deal less fanfare than a large public ceremony, which typically involves more than 1,000 new citizens and features entertainment and an address by a keynote speaker.
The scaled-down approach would enable immigrants to become citizens within a couple of weeks of passing their citizenship exams, rather than waiting up to a month for the big event, the newspaper reported.
Part of the reason for the change is that the agency's Chula Vista office, which opened in 2002 as a customer service center, has been, since April, a fully functioning field office where applicants may take citizenship exams, the newspaper reported.
The Chula Vista ceremonies will be held in addition to the monthly Golden Hall ceremonies, which recently have accommodated about 1,600 people at a time, the Union-Tribune reported.
http://www.10news.com/news/13856596/detail.html