Tag: naturalized US citizen

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Are You At Risk of Being Stripped of Your U.S. Citizenship?

Are You At Risk of Being Stripped of Your U.S. Citizenship?
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If you are a naturalized U.S. citizen, are you at risk of being stripped of your U.S. Citizenship in a 2nd Trump term?

President Trump’s focus on immigration is on border security, undocumented immigration and enforcement of immigration law including a plan for a mass deportation. So far, there is no “denaturalization policy” that was expressed. It was during his prior administration that he created a Denaturalization Task Force and a Denaturalization Section targeted against U.S. citizens. What are the chances that this effort is going to be revived? And if you are a naturalized U.S. citizen are you at risk of being stripped of your U.S. Citizenship? 

Denaturalization is found in Section 340 of the Immigration and Nationality Act. There are only certain legal basis to denaturalize an individual and this is initiated by the government through the federal district courts. In the past it was seldom utilized except in extreme cases like in denaturalization of former Nazis who lied about their past who illegally procured naturalization. 

Those who are most likely to be affected by the administration’s effort to strip U.S. citizenship from naturalized citizens may be divided mainly into 3 categories. These are immigrants who procured their citizenship illegally because of the presence of:

  1. Prior criminal conviction that was concealed: Those who concealed their criminal convictions on their naturalization applications and their criminal cases are grounds for removal may have their cases referred for naturalization. Note that criminal charges or convictions must have occurred before and during the naturalization process. 
  1. Prior removal cases and assumed identities:  Several  years ago, the U.S. government discovered hundreds of individuals who had prior deportation orders and who used different names in their green card and naturalization applications.  These cases are now being investigated and may be re-opened for denaturalization.
  1. Material fraud and misrepresentation. This refers to those who lied in obtaining their green cards through fraud and misrepresentation.  The lie must have a relation to the eligibility for green card or naturalization to be a basis for denaturalization. 

Once an immigrant is identified for investigation by USCIS for purposes of denaturalization, the matter will be referred to the Department of Justice’s Denaturalization Section under the Office of Immigration Litigation  and the Assistant U.S. Attorney. Thereafter, the case will be filed with the federal district court having jurisdiction over the residence of the immigrant being stripped of citizenship.  When the case is filed with the court the naturalized U.S. citizen may present evidence to avoid denaturalization. Note that this is a judicial process and only a federal judge may strip one of U.S. citizenship. There is a due process involved and a right to a hearing. If a citizen is denaturalized, most probably this individual will be put in removal proceedings. Whether or not he will be deported depends on available relief or waivers.

Naturalized U.S. citizens must now realize that just like in the past Trump administration and now with the present administration. they no longer have a sense of permanence when it comes to their immigration status. If you believe that you fall into any of the categories of those who might be affected by this denaturalization effort of USCIS, it will be best to revisit and re-examine your naturalization application, have your case assessed by competent legal counsel. And, if there is a possibility of denaturalization, prepare yourself to defend yourself in the federal court and, in the worst case scenario, explore applicable waivers or defenses to avoid removal.

(Atty. Lourdes Tancinco is an immigration attorney and immigrant rights advocate based in the San Francisco Bay area and a partner at the Tancinco Law P.C., law firm established since 1992.  She is also a producer/host of Pusong Pinoy sa Amerika, an immigration law informational show aired on GMA Pinoy TV. She may be reached at law@tancinco.com, www.tancinco.com, facebook/tancincolaw, or at 1-888-930-0808)

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Updates

Restoring Faith: Noticeable Increase in Naturalized Citizens in the Biden Administration

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In 2021, President Biden issued an executive order aimed at restoring faith in the legal immigration process. A key part of this effort was to significantly reduce naturalization processing times, with the goal of strengthening the integration of new Americans.

Several changes under this administration appear to be benefiting new U.S. citizens. Notably, the backlog of naturalization cases has decreased. By 2023, the backlog stood at 416,034 citizenship applications—a 44% drop from the high of 942,669 in 2020 and the lowest backlog since 2015.

Although the filing fee for naturalization increased from $640 to $710, USCIS has made it easier for low-income applicants to qualify for reduced fees. The naturalization application itself has also been streamlined, shrinking from 20 pages to 14 pages.

A study by Boundless found that by May 2024, the average processing time for citizenship applications had dropped to just five months—a 15% reduction from the previous year and a more than 50% decrease from 2022. This expedited processing is evident in the USCIS San Francisco District Office, where applicants often receive interview notices within 3-4 months of filing. Oath ceremonies are commonly held the same day or the next day after the interview. This marks a stark contrast to the previous administration, when naturalization processing often took up to 12 months, and some cases were even reopened after naturalization had been granted.

Nationally, around nine million green card holders are eligible for naturalization but have yet to apply. In 2023, more than 25% of lawful permanent residents from Mexico were eligible to apply, and the Philippines is among the top five countries with the most eligible non-U.S. citizens.

One of the most significant rights of U.S. citizenship is the right to vote. With the 2024 Presidential election just months away, 81.4% of newly naturalized citizens are expected to cast their ballots, according to a survey by the U.S. Immigration Policy Center.

With these positive developments in naturalization processing, there’s no better time to apply for U.S. citizenship than now. If you have any questions, contact Tancinco Law P.C. at 415 397 0808 or visit our website at www.tancinco.com.

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Updates

Filipinos Who Are Naturalized U.S. Citizens and Non Dual Citizens are Temporarily Not Allowed to Enter the Philippines

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San Francisco CA – Generally, Filipinos who still hold Philippine passports may enter the Philippines. Natural born Filipinos who are naturalized U.S. citizens, who are not dual citizens and who holds only U.S. passports are temporarily not allowed entry into the Philippines with the exception of certain individuals. Those exempt from this rule are : Non Filipinos married to Philippine citizens including their dependent children and foreign diplomats. This Philippine government policy is just a temporary ban implemented in view of COVID-19 pandemic.

Passengers Not Subject to the Restrictions and Who Are Arriving in the Philippines Subject to Mandatory Quarantine

All travelers to Manila will undergo the usual thermal scan upon arrival. If a passenger is showing symptoms of the COVID-19, s/he will undergo a real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test. Travelers whose test results are positive will be transferred to a designated hospital for further medical management.

Those who do not have symptoms will undergo a mandatory quarantine where a baseline rapid test will be conducted. While waiting for the results, passengers must stay in either a government designated quarantine facility or in a Bureau of Quarantine approved quarantine hotel for 14 days.

After quarantine is completed, individuals may go about their travel plans subject to quarantine protocols of the local government of their destination.

Filipinos who are not OFWs and Non-Filipinos will shoulder their own payment for the accommodation.

Traveling to the United States

Philippine citizens are not banned from entering the United States as long as they have valid U.S. temporary or permanent resident visas. Those who traveled internationally in the past 14 days and return to the United States, they are required to self quarantine, stay home and monitor their health.

Unless the traveler is a U.S. citizen or a permanent lawful resident (green card holder), s/he will be banned from entering the U.S. if s/he traveled from the following countries: China, Hong Kong and Macau, Iran, the UK and Ireland Schengen area which encompasses the following 26 European Countries: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.

U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents of the United States, certain family members, and other individuals who meet specified exceptions who have been in one of the countries listed above in the past 14 days will be allowed to enter the United States through on of these airports:

  • Boston-Logan International Airport (BOS), Massachusetts
  • Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD), Illinois
  • Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), Texas
  • Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW), Michigan
  • Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL), Hawaii
  • Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL), Florida
  • George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), Texas
  • Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), Georgia
  • John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), New York
  • Los Angeles International Airport, (LAX), California
  • Miami International Airport (MIA), Florida
  • Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), New Jersey
  • San Francisco International Airport (SFO), California
  • Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), Washington
  • Washington-Dulles International Airport (IAD), Virginia
After arriving in the United States from one of these countries, CDC recommends that travelers stay home and monitor their health for 14 days.

(Lourdes Santos Tancinco, Esq is a partner at the Tancinco Law P.C. Our office is located at One Hallidie Plaza, Ste 818, San Francisco CA 94102, and may be reached at 1-888-930-0808; email at law@tancinco.com, www.facebook.com/tancincolaw or check our website at tancinco.weareph.com/old.)

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Global Pinoy

Use of certificate of loss of nationality allowed after renunciation of US citizenship

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A naturalized US citizen who makes a decision to relinquish US citizenship should understand that this matter involves a process. The completion of the official renunciation is not immediate.

Accomplishing, signing and submission of the required consular forms are just the start of a process and there is a time period required for its approval to be an effective renunciation.

In the same way that there are steps to take in applying for US citizenship, there are also certain steps one must take to renounce US citizenship.

An immigrant wishing to be naturalized to become a US citizen must wait until his oath-taking in order to be officially considered one.

In the same manner, an individual who wishes to renounce citizenship or a renunciant is considered to have effectively done so only after the Department of State approves the certificate of loss of nationality.

The naturalization application currently takes some four to six months before the applicant officially becomes a US citizen. For renunciation, the process varies approximately from four months to a year depending on how fast the Department of State issues its final approval on the loss of citizenship.

Pending the oath-taking ceremony, a naturalization applicant who passed the interview and submitted all the application forms is still considered a Filipino citizen and may still use the “green card” for purposes of travel.

In the same manner, the individual who voluntarily renounces US citizenship by executing a sworn statement before the consular officer is allowed to use the US passport pending his/her approval of the application for renunciation by the Department of State.

The use of travel documents as a US citizen while the application for renunciation is pending is still considered valid by the Department of State. In fact, there are specific instructions on the Foreign Affairs Manual (7 FAM 1229) on the use of passport even after the acts of renunciation.

The US consular officer after receiving the signed forms of renunciation is specifically instructed not to cancel the US passport right away but rather they are mandated to keep the passport in the safe place until the certificate of loss of nationality is approved and returned by the Department of State.

During this period, should the renunciant have any need to travel to the United States, he or she can request that the consular officer return the US passport to him/her but only for the specific travel. When the certificate of loss of nationality is approved by the Department of State, the renunciant will then be called to appear before the consular officer and surrender the US passport.

This is the reason why Sen. Grace Poe was still able to use a US passport during her travel despite her act of renunciation. She may have the intent to renounce it but since there is a process she had to undergo before completing the renunciation, nothing is really final until approval by the Department of State.

Taking the oath of allegiance completes the naturalization process. In renunciation, the final act of approval by the Department of State completes the renunciation. However, unlike naturalization, renunciation is retroactive to the date of the voluntary act of renunciation and not the date the certificate of loss of nationality is received from the Department of State.

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Global Pinoy

Petitioning private caregivers not a good option for senior immigrants

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Jane became a naturalized US citizen in 2012 and immediately petitioned her elderly parents to live in the States.

In 2013, Jane’s parents arrived in the US and resided with her. The first year of their residence in the US with Jane was pleasant as the family traveled together to various places in California.

However, in 2014, Jane’s mother suffered a stroke and needed full-time care. She was not able to get medical insurance for her mother so she paid all the medical expenses.

Jane has a full-time job and has minor children. Since she barely had the time to attend to her mother, her father took care of her ailing mother.

Jane’s father began to noticeably lose weight and was not getting enough sleep from taking care of her mother. To relieve her father’s stress, Jane moved her mother into a senior health-care facility to have a full-time caretaker. Two weeks after her mother moved to the facility, her father suffered a heart attack and passed away.

Jane wants her mother moved back into her home. Instead of having a nonrelative take care of her mother, Jane prefers to have a relative be her mother’s caregiver.

Petitioning for caregivers

Jane wants to petition her relative in the Philippines who graduated from a nursing school. How long will this take?

Under the present US immigration system, caregivers fall under the third preference employment-based category “other workers.”

As of December 2015, only petitions filed on or before Aug. 1, 2007 in this category are being processed. Thus, if a petition for a caregiver is filed in 2015, there will be an approximate wait of seven to eight years before the caregiver will be processed for a visa.

By that time, the elderly immigrant may no longer be around to benefit from the presence of a caregiver. This lengthy process is a result of the severe backlog in the employment based petitions for nonprofessional workers.

This situation is analogous to family-based petitions where an elderly parent who is a green-card holder files a petition for an adult child. The petition falls under the second preference family-based category, and to date, only petitions that were filed in December 2004 are being processed. For a recently filed petition, the wait could be nine to 10 years for it to be current. As in most cases, the elderly petitioner passes away before the visa is available.

Filipino immigrant families usually prefer to care for their elderly in their homes. Also, most seniors would prefer to have their child or a relative take care of them. Unfortunately, the reality is that the US immigration system is broken and the matter of giving priority to caregivers of senior citizens is yet to be addressed. Until then, elderly immigrants will need to rely on alternative system of care such as social services groups or nonprofit organizations among others.

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Global Pinoy

5 reasons Filipino immigrants apply for U.S. citizenship

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Immigrants who have resided in the United States for an extended period of time aspire to become US citizens for different reasons.

For the more than 4 million Filipinos who decided to live and make the US their adopted land, the following are some of their motivations for seeking naturalization.

1. Family unity
Green card holders or non-US citizens who are permanent residents may petition their unmarried children as well as their spouses. However, unlike US citizens, they are not allowed to petition their parents, their married children and their siblings.

Being a US citizen provides them the ability to petition more family members including their future spouses or fiancées. Also, US citizens may petition their minor children and spouses faster (about 12 months) as compared to green card holder petitioners.

Filipino immigrants who are family-oriented would prefer to be naturalized as US citizens rather than wait to be reunited with their family members.

2. Avoiding separation
Once a green card holder migrates, the permanent resident status is not really “permanent” in the sense that it may be revoked for cause by the US Department of Homeland Security.

This happens when an immigrant is convicted of a removable/deportable offense even if family members are all US citizens.

This happened to a longtime Filipino immigrant who was arrested for a traffic violation but was later found to have a criminal history. The criminal convictions he had were deportable offenses and resulted in his deportation from the United States and consequently was separated from his US citizen spouse and children. This situation could have been avoided if the immigrant was a naturalized US citizen at the time of conviction.

To prevent any unintended immigration consequence, it would be best to apply for US citizenship as soon as the immigrant meets the eligibility for naturalization.

3. Civic engagement
Filipinos are the second highest growing minority group and integration to the adopted land becomes critical. Naturalized US citizens are given access to voting, political rights and can seek equal protection of the law.

A naturalized US citizen may hold elected positions that will not only protect the interests of their constituents but also their community.

4. Federal employment
A naturalized US citizen may be afforded opportunities for federal employment with better benefits.

Many Filipinos have joined the US military and become US citizens giving them the ability to petition family members and enjoy military benefits.

5. Ease of travel
This is probably the least important in terms of the reasons for becoming a US citizen but interestingly, some Filipinos carry pride in holding US passport in traveling to other countries.

Certainly, there are more than these five reasons to apply for US citizenship. The motivation may be toward immigration integration but it does not take out the “Filipino” in the immigrant. In the United States, a Filipino who is a US citizen is still perceived as part of the Filipino minority group.

In success or failure, the Filipino naturalized US citizen will still be perceived as a Filipino in his adopted land.

(The author may be reached at law@tancinco.com, facebook.com/tancincolaw, tancinco.weareph.com/old or [02] 721-1963)