Help~~~laminated certificate of Naturalization

yunuo

Registered Users (C)
I just put myself in a very embarrassed situation .

My wife obtained her certificate of Naturalization in Sep 2008 and I filed my PR application after that . Now my I-485 has been scheduled a interview in March 2009 . It was all good until I took some friend's advise to " laminate the certificate" for preservation .

Yesterday we went to apply US passport for my wife at the civic center located downtown san jose ,california. The stuff told us that my wife's certificate of Naturalization is invalid since we laminated it . And this isn't the worst part , my I-485 interview is in about 15 days .. I 'm so worried that they don't accept the laminated one as an necessary evidence.... Time is running short .. replacing a Certificate would take up to 6 months .. what is gonna happen to my I-485 case ?? Is there anything I can do to get survived ?? Can I get the laminated certificate notarized to make it work ?? Anyone please help ~~~~ Thank you very much !
 
The laminated certificate may have become unacceptable as proof of US citizenship, but your wife's status as a USC remains. Don't worry, present the certificate at your I-485 interview. The IO will either scold your wife for laminating it or not even notice. Worse case scenario is for IO to request new certificate to be issued before I-485 can be adjudicated.
 
The laminated certificate may have become unacceptable as proof of US citizenship, but your wife's status as a USC remains. Don't worry, present the certificate at your I-485 interview. The IO will either scold your wife for laminating it or not even notice. Worse case scenario is for IO to request new certificate to be issued before I-485 can be adjudicated.

Agree.
 
can you just cut out the plastic cover or is it already melt into the paper?
I would say, just don't mess with it anymore. It may prove to be harmless, if the document was just laminated, however if it appears to be an attempt of tampering with a government issued certificate or an ID, then it may lead to more trouble.

Simply show to the IO and, unlike a post office clerk, they have access to your records in the system anyway. The IO may suggest you to reapply for 'Certificate of Citizenship' - (Not 'Citizenship') at that time.
 
Thank you guys ! I feel much better now ! The bad thing is that my wife still need to replace the certificate . We were actually thinking of travelling abroad this summer =(
 
Thank you guys ! I feel much better now ! The bad thing is that my wife still need to replace the certificate . We were actually thinking of travelling abroad this summer =(

What about getting a "letter of verification of naturalization" from the federal district court where she became a citizen....

For further information contact:

San Francisco Records Jeffery Isaacs
415 522-2009

San Jose Records Betty Walton
408 535-5513
 
What about getting a "letter of verification of naturalization" from the federal district court where she became a citizen....

For further information contact:

San Francisco Records Jeffery Isaacs
415 522-2009

San Jose Records Betty Walton
408 535-5513

Thank you for your advise ! I'm contacting the office right now .
 
Thank you for your advise ! I'm contacting the office right now .

Actually - I would replace the certificate or you will run into this issue every time. A naturalization certificate is an originating document - which means that it can be used for the issuance of all other pertinent documents. Although your wife does not lose her citizenship because she laminated her certificate- there really is no way of proving it if you keep getting rejected for tampering with the certificate.

A letter from the court does not satisfy the Dept. of State's requirement for proof of citizenship in order to get a passport. Proof of citizenship in that regards is pretty limited and available on the DS-11 application.

I would suck it up and just pay the $$ to get a new certificate. Some times we live and learn that not all advise is the best - even if the individual is meaning well.
 
Use the certificate for your interview but before shelling out for a new one later why not try and and slit the pastic and see if it will come out.

What do you have to lose if it gets damaged? It's no good now.
 
Actually - I would replace the certificate or you will run into this issue every time. A naturalization certificate is an originating document - which means that it can be used for the issuance of all other pertinent documents. Although your wife does not lose her citizenship because she laminated her certificate- there really is no way of proving it if you keep getting rejected for tampering with the certificate.

A letter from the court does not satisfy the Dept. of State's requirement for proof of citizenship in order to get a passport. Proof of citizenship in that regards is pretty limited and available on the DS-11 application.

I would suck it up and just pay the $$ to get a new certificate. Some times we live and learn that not all advise is the best - even if the individual is meaning well.

Thank you for your advise , believe me I 'll get it replaced.

I phoned the record office , they said they don't have any records for newer citizens after 2004 , the INS have it . So I booked an appointment with the local INS office , went to speak with an officer this morning , was told that I have to apply for it by mail , they don't even accept N-565 ( replacement of Certificate of C ) in-person . The mail has to be sent to some service center , and I might get a respond like mailing me a receipt number within 2-4 weeks hopefully .

sad.
 
I agree, try to remove the lamination. You might actually ask the same people who laminated it in the first place about the best way to "unlaminate" it. The N-565 is going to take around 4 to 6 months depending of the service center and your luck. Nebraska is around 6 months now, Texas I have a feeling is more in the 4 months range. Your service center depends on the State you live. If you can remove the lamination without damaging the certificate it is possible they'll accept it for the passport issuance.

Check this page for a potential solution:

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20060803083011AAFKASf
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080701020250AAlMxau
http://www.ftatalk.com/showthread.php?t=182757
http://www.archives.state.al.us/officials/conservlamin02.html

My 2 cents.
 
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Hello everyone ! Guess what , I just pass my PR interview !Thanks to you guys ! The interview officer turned out to be very nice , he laughed about the lamination and told my wife that she cannot use it to get a passport ,and that 's all that scared me during the interview . woo-hoo~~ now , my wife is getting more sensitive and asking me to mail the N565 out right after the interview ,and I did . So yea , I forgot to try out the unlimination stuff, sorry =(
 
Congratulations on a good result.

Did you send the laminated cert back? I'd have been interested in the result of cutting it open. :)

too bad that I did , ' cause we were all exhausted about it , trying to reduce the risk of rejection from .. basically anything else . so we put the laminated one in the mailer too . ( the INS representative told us we have to mail the original back unless it's missed or stolen .)

I should have opened it .. my bad .. if it could be recovered , we might save another 380 bucks and 6 months of waiting . =S
 
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