Many immigrants from different countries of the world love to become a US citizen for various reasons which include the stable economy, strong passport, strong military etc. Immigrants find pride in becoming a citizen after getting used to the culture and the people of the country. Hundreds of thousands of immigrants have become citizens of the United States over the years through various means, but it is still not clear to many other immigrants who are interested in becoming citizens of the country how they could go about the issue of naturalisation. Before discussing the steps that should be taken to become a US citizen, it is important to briefly talk about naturalization:
Naturalisation simply means the switch in nationality by an immigrant or the adoption of another nationality by an immigrant. Naturalisation does not mean the immigrant will lose his or her former nationality as it is legal to have dual nationality. There are various ways in which one can naturalise, which include naturalisation by marriage, honorary naturalisation amongst others. Naturalisation is the final stage of becoming a citizen of the country. Before naturalisation in the United States, some steps must be taken; some of these steps include:
Immigration
Immigration is the factor that triggers the naturalisation journey. Except for honorary naturalisation which is very rare. Before becoming a citizen of the United States, it is compulsory to have lived in the country for five years with a green card and a good conduct. Without migrating to the US, it is impossible to live there for five years, which is why immigrating to the country is the first step that should be taken.
After migrating to the United States, you cannot live there illegally for that period of 5 years. Your visa must always be renewed as at when due and you must have very good conduct after which you will receive a green card, and you can start counting five years. In the case of citizenship by marriage, you must have been married and lived together with your American spouse for a minimum of three years which makes it possible to gain citizenship before five years after successfully passing the citizenship application interview you must do alongside your spouse.
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Good rap sheet
After moving successfully to the United States, the next step that should be taken is to be a good immigrant in the country. It is very important to make your rap sheet as clean as possible. Getting in trouble with the law can make you get deported even before five years in the country or damage your reputation, which definitely will make it very difficult to be approved for citizenship.
Verify eligibility status
It is important to check if you are eligible for citizenship application after living in the country with a green card for five years before applying.
Obtain the form
Obtaining the N-400 (citizenship application) form is not difficult at all. The only thing you need to do is to download it online and print it. After getting the form, you must fill every space in the form with the right information. The spaces will request information like marital status, life before coming to the US, employment history, parental record etc. After obtaining the form, it is important to include a photocopy of vital documents like the front and back of your green card etc.
If your country is among the visa waiver program countries, then you should check the ESTA application online. For ESTA countries, their citizens do not need a visa before gaining access to the United States.
Forward the package
After getting the documents ready, it is important to pack your documents into a package. After packing the needed documents, send your package which includes the documents, the fingerprint and application fee of $680, which can be paid with a check to any service centre. After doing this, you will have to do your biometrics before you can be eligible to attend an interview.
Interview
After sending your package, a date will be fixed for you to attend a naturalisation interview, which will determine if you will be approved for citizenship or not. The interview will be brief, but a lot of questions will be asked during the short period of the interview, which is why you should be calm and careful while attending the interview.
English and Civics tests
It should be noted that an English and civics test will be conducted immediately after the naturalisation interview. The purpose of these tests is to know if you can speak, read and write the English language, and if you know the United States civics. Before the interview, you should be well prepared for these two tests. Even though the test is a short one, it’s worth preparing for.
