US embassy asked me to apply for a first time US passport -went to the US with an ri 2 visa when i was 7,

mdzpm

mdzpm

New Member
-I was born to a naturalized US citizen mom in the Philippines (no birth of abroad filed) she naturalized when she was 8-my grandpa was in the US navy

-Went to the US under Ri2 visa when i was 7 y/0 as an immigrant 1997
I did not acquire because mom lacked requirements of duration of stay in the US before I was born

-Dad Naturalized US citizen when I was 8y/o immigrant minor in 1998 - he never petitioned me cause he didnt know i could become a citizen immediately
-Elementary in California 1997-2000

-parents got divorced

-Went back to the Philippines Aug 2000 and could not go back to the US since

-parents have been living there since

-I am now 28- all i have is my old passport with proof of immigration-my US SSN and a greencard that expired 2007



US embassy in the Ph asked me to apply for a first time US passport possibly evidenced by CCA 2000-2001- to get an appointment with consul who could tell me if I am a citizen or not

Also considering the RI2-and my fathers naturalization-they say I should already have been a citizen



I have some of my moms documents but she doesnt talk to me much to get other documents i need



Lawyer says its possible to acquire a US passport but I abandoned my GC and might be rejected

Since my mom didnt meet the requirements taking note that she had to petition me initially even if she was a citizen



Should I follow the US embassy advice and apply for a first time US passport or follow the lawyer who states that they need to figure out if CCA 2001 is applicable to a child who is now an adult and has never returned to the US with parents who might not meet requirements

Cca was approved 2001, i was already in the Philippines aug 2000

Acquisition isnt an option-



as easy as the embassy is making it seem...the lawyers say it probably wont be approved

Please help
 
If you became a US citizen (even if it was automatic and you didn't know about it), you remain a US citizen forever, unless you voluntarily renounce it. How old you are now, where you lived after becoming a citizen, whether your "GC" expired, whether you have been back to the US after becoming a citizen, are all irrelevant. It's just a question of law of whether you are a US citizen or not (based on the facts at the time you potentially became a citizen), and if so, whether you can prove it. I believe, based on what you have said, that you are a US citizen.

First, I want to go over whether you are a US citizen from birth again. Assuming you were born in wedlock, the requirement would have been for your mother to have been physically present in the US (in any status, or no status; when she became a citizen is irrelevant), before your birth, for a cumulative total of 5 years, including 2 years after she turned 14. Time spent stationed abroad (e.g. in the US military), or as the dependent of someone who was stationed abroad, counts as time in the US for this requirement. (This might be relevant since you said her dad was in the navy.) Did she move away before 16 or something, and thus couldn't meet the 2 years after 14 requirement? (On the other hand, if you had been born out of wedlock, the requirement would have been for her to have been physically present in the US before your birth for some continuous period of 1 year; she would likely have met that since it could have been at any age.)

Assuming you did not get citizenship at birth, then the question is whether you automatically became a citizen when you were a permanent resident in the US as a child and your parents were US citizens. As you mentioned, the Child Citizenship Act of 2000, which took effect on February 27, 2001, does not apply to you since you were never in the US after it took effect. We need to look at the previous law. Under the previous law before 2001, a permanent resident under 18 automatically derives citizenship if both parents naturalized (unless one parent died or the parents divorced, in which case the parent having custody naturalized) (former INA 321), or if one parent was a citizen when the child was born and the other parent naturalized (former INA 320). Your case matches the former INA 320 case -- your mother was a US citizen when you were born and your father naturalized while you were a permanent resident under 18 living in the US. See 8 FAM 301.9-9 (A). You would need to show that your mother was a citizen when you were born, your father's naturalization certificate, your birth certificate showing you were under 18 at the time, your old green card showing you were a permanent resident at that time, and maybe passport stamps, school records, or other evidence that you were living in the US at that time.
 
Kudos to newacct for doing that research,

Conclusion: your lawyer is either just after $$$, or doesn’t know the law. In either case, you don’t want that lawyer. If you can produce the evidence above as indicated by newacct at the embassy, you’ll get your passport.
 
Thank you so much for this detailed reply!! I really appreciate it...

We never became citizens. We just stayed in the US from 7y/o-10y/o without my parents ever claiming citizenship

My mom returned to finish her studies and college in the Philippines and we dont know if she ever travelled back to the US in between
From what i understand she lacked the duration of stay after she turned 14 and that is why she still had to petition us under the IR2

As LPR we left the US aug 2000, but our gc expired 2007- mg dad tried to being us back to the US but my mom wasnt cooperating and we couldnt get the requirements for my dad to bring us back there

If INA 320 is applicable I really hope everything gets cleared

I finally set up an appointment and applied for the first time passport-my sister also did

Were scheduled nxt week

Really hoping we get it

we have our school records from the US
Moms passport when she was 8 years old and a Us citizen
Marriage certificate and my dads naturalization as of the moment
 
SusieQQQ said:
Kudos to newacct for doing that research,

Conclusion: your lawyer is either just after $$$, or doesn’t know the law. In either case, you don’t want that lawyer. If you can produce the evidence above as indicated by newacct at the embassy, you’ll get your passport.
Click to expand...


Im thinking he is

i just talked to a lawyer who said almost the same thing as Newacct above and he even said I didnt need to hire him because clearly citizenship was supposed to be ours

Im nervous but I hope the evidence we have would be enough
 
HELLO THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!

Me and my sister were approved for our first time US passport!!!

We get our pssports in a couple of weeks

Also we were citizens since 1997

After almost 19 years here in asia

We never thought this would be possible

Thank you for the advice
 
HELLO THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!

Me and my sister were approved for our first time US passport!!!

We get our pssports in a couple of weeks

Also we were citizens since 1997

After almost 19 years here in asia

We never thought this would be possible

Thank you for the advice
 
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