USCIS Honors Military Service Members and Veterans through Naturalization
Memorial Day is a time for commemorating the men and women, both native and foreign-born, who have given their lives for our country. With Memorial Day around the corner, and in honor of Military Appreciation Month, we wanted to highlight one of the important benefits that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) offers to U.S. armed service members and veterans in recognition of their sacrifices: U.S. citizenship through military service. Since 2002, the U.S. government has naturalized more than 148,000 U.S. service members, both at home and abroad.
Veterans and current service members may be eligible to become U.S. citizens through naturalization under special provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act. These provisions reduce or eliminate certain general requirements, including the requirements for the applicant to have resided in and been physically present in the U.S. for a specific period of time before naturalizing. Some of the key benefits of becoming a U.S. citizen include the right to vote, security from deportation, eligibility for a U.S. passport and the ability to petition for certain relatives to become lawful permanent residents.
Military service has historically provided a fast track to U.S. citizenship. However, the Trump administration initiated a policy in 2017 that eliminated an expedited path to citizenship for new service members. This has resulted in a steep decline in military naturalization applications and a higher rate of military naturalization denials. A class-action lawsuit was filed by the ACLU in April 2020, and the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia struck down portions of the policy. But when service members continued to report that the military was not following the court’s order, the ACLU returned to court to continue litigating the matter.
On Feb. 2, 2021, President Biden issued an executive order outlining steps to improve the naturalization process and facilitate naturalization for members of the military. That executive order was issued to eliminate barriers in and otherwise improve the existing naturalization process, substantially reduce current naturalization processing times, and facilitate naturalization for eligible candidates born abroad and members of the military, in consultation with the Department of Defense. To help mitigate the difficulties that some applicants now face due to the Trump administration’s closure of numerous USCIS offices overseas, USCIS recently issued guidance for former service members who reside abroad to apply for an Advance Parole Document so they can attend their naturalization interview and ceremony in the U.S.
Service members and veterans who can successfully navigate the immigration process can take advantage of the opportunity to become naturalized citizens. It is recommended that naturalization applicants from the military seek the assistance of an immigration lawyer to ensure that the process goes smoothly.
Please contact Brandon Davis or Laura Buck of Phelps’ Immigration team if you have any questions about naturalization or citizenship matters.
