Naturalization and Citizenship
All permanent residents who are eligible for naturalization should seriously consider applying for United States citizenship.
Lawful permanent residents can apply to become naturalized U.S. citizens. Although there are exceptions, most applicants for naturalization must fulfill age, residence, physical presence, and good moral character requirements. Specifically, most naturalization applicants must have been a permanent resident and have maintained a residence in the United States continuously for five years since obtaining permanent resident status. Persons with permanent resident status living in marital union for three years with a U.S. citizen spouse are eligible for citizenship.
All permanent residents who are eligible for naturalization should seriously consider applying for United States citizenship. Acquiring U.S. citizenship can have tax, employment, and other benefits such as automatic citizenship for minor children. Perhaps most significantly, becoming an American makes deportation impossible (unless citizenship was acquired fraudulently) especially in the current environment where it has becoming increasingly easy for a permanent resident to be deported despite many years in the United States, an American spouse and U.S. citizen children, or absolutely no ties to the home country. There are, however, some circumstances when eligible permanent residents should not apply for American citizenship because doing so actually can result in deportation.
Our firm has extensive experience representing individuals with routine to the most complex naturalization cases, and we specialize in federal litigation in this area.
Learn more about how and when eligible lawful permanent residents may apply for U.S. citizenship.