Question about N-600

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rga111

Registered Users (C)
First of all, my mom is gonna be a citizen this coming august 20.
Since I'm 17, I'll automatically be a citizen too.
Do I need a certificate of citizenship or file N-600 to travel?
I was planning on going to school outside the US and was planning to go to school there ASAP.

So how long can I stay outside the US?
Do I get problems when I go back in the US?
 
You don't need a certificate or to file N-600 in order to travel. You absolutely should apply for a US passport immediately your mom becomes a citizen.
 
Apply for passport first. If you have five or six months to spend you should also consider applying for N-600 so you have a record of your citizenship also with USCIS.

Now, you'll get US citizenship if your mom has full and legal custody of you and you are still under 17 on August 20th.

In theory once you get your US passport you can go out to college abroad for as long as you like.
 
Huracan said:
Now, you'll get US citizenship if your mom has full and legal custody of you and you are still under 17 on August 20th.
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she has full custody. BUT i am NOW 17. turning 18 this coming September.
Does that change anything?
And I only have 4 -5 months for me to catch up for 2nd sem.
Does it really matter to have a certificate of citizenship? what do I need it for anyway?
My friend said it doesn't matter becuase I won't be needing it for college.
 
Not much. Department of State might ask to see the court documents that proof the full custody. You seem to be fine with respect to age, as you will turn 18 after your mother naturalizes. Make sure she doesn't get any traffic ticket or anything that could delay the oath. Because your case involves custody issues you might consider the N-600 also as peace of mind. It is not mandatory, you should be able to get a US passport.

There is no real need for a US certificate of citizenship. However, it is a document that doesn't expire and shows since when you became a US citizen. It can be used to apply for other documents and/or passports.
 
Mmm. Is it possible for me to apply N-600 even though I'm outside the US?
I heard there's a chance they might call me for an interview. So can I just go back to the US, go to the interview, get my certificate and go abroad to continue my schooling?
 
I think you should put your paperwork in order first, even if it delays you by a few weeks. You should apply for passport before fixing N600 as that would be faster.
In order for you to derive citizenship like this, your parent has to naturalize before you turn 18, and you have to be on GC and in custody of such parent. If you are studying abroad, you will need to go through a lot more paperwork to prove that fact. So take care of it now. You can get same day passport in passport agencies ... it might take just a bit longer in case they require additional documentation from you, but take the time and fix it now rather than later.
Once you have the passport, you can take care of N600 whenever you have a rather long visit (or return) to US.
 
rga111 said:
Mmm. Is it possible for me to apply N-600 even though I'm outside the US?
I heard there's a chance they might call me for an interview. So can I just go back to the US, go to the interview, get my certificate and go abroad to continue my schooling?
Click to expand...

Are you in US now,when are you due back in school ? Have you got air ticket for your journey . If yes then you can get your passport expedited and issued in a day or two after your mother gets naturalized. That should be first step.

Next while you are here ask your Mom to file N-600. You could expect interview in 4-6 months time. Your and your mother's presence is required for that. If you are 18 by then, you will take oath. Otherwise your mom will take oath. It is advisable to have Certificate of Citizenship apart from passport.
 
Yeah I'm in the states now and school starts on november.

Another problem of mine is that how am I going to apply for a passport? I read the requirements online but it says I need proof of citizenship.
How does it work?


Thanks
 
Yes, you can apply for N-600, go out to study and come back if they schedule you for an "interview" which they will probably do.

You'll apply for the passport with your birth certificate, your Green Card and your mother's naturalization certificate. You might also need custody documents. I am not sure about this requirement. Download the passport form. The passport form has details on how to prove citizenship for people who got citizenship through their parents.

You can apply for N-600 at the same time you apply for passport as the N-600 only needs photocopies of documents. Make sure you make several copies of your mother's certificate, just in case it gets lost during the passport application (very rare thing to happen).
 
rga111 said:
Mmm. Is it possible for me to apply N-600 even though I'm outside the US?
I heard there's a chance they might call me for an interview. So can I just go back to the US, go to the interview, get my certificate and go abroad to continue my schooling?
Click to expand...

You are living and attending school outside the US? In order to acquire derived citizenship through your parent's naturalization, you need to live inside the US with your naturalized parent before you turn 18. And you need to have a green card. Do you have one?

If you really want to secure US citizenship based on your mother's naturalization, I would advise you enter the US before your 18th birthday and stay inside the US living with your mother until your US passport is issued, even if it means having to miss a semester of school abroad.

Note that the N-600 certificate takes 3-6 months to arrive, and it is not a travel document. But the passport is normally issued with a few weeks.
 
@Jackolantern : I am living in the US right now with my mother for 2 years. And yes, I have a green card. My question was if I could apply for the N-600 and go abroad to study (of course with a US Passport) and go back here for the interview if there's one.
Anyway, Huracan cleared it up for me.

Thanks everyone for your help. Especially Huracan.
 
rga111 said:
@Jackolantern : I am living in the US right now with my mother for 2 years. And yes, I have a green card. My question was if I could apply for the N-600 and go abroad to study (of course with a US Passport) and go back here for the interview if there's one.
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Depends on when you leave the US to study. To qualify for derivative US citizenship based on your mother's naturalization, you need to be living with her in the US on the day of her naturalization, or at some time after her naturalization and before your 18th birthday. She naturalizes August 20, and you turn 18 in September. So if you are outside the US during that entire window, you would lose eligibility.
 
I'm planning on leaving the US around last week of october or first week of november.
Does that change anything? Of course, I have to wait for my US passport. that would be 3months at most.
 
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That doesn't seem to change anything. If all paperwork is right you should get your passport in just a few weeks. If you need a visa to travel to the country where you're planning to study you can go to a passport agency and get the passport even faster with proof of your trip. You should start gathering all the paperwork you'll need to apply for the passport. Photocopies of those might be useful for the N-600 although document requirements for passport and N-600 are not necessarily the same.
 
rga111 said:
I'm planning on leaving the US around last week of october or first week of november.
Does that change anything?
Click to expand...
You should be OK then. My point is that you need to be in the US living with your mom for some time between her naturalization in August and your 18th birthday in September.
 
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