Jul 11, 2011
N 400 is the citizenship application that needs to be filed for Naturalization. All the eligibility requirements for filing the citizenship form have to be met before applying. You need to be a permanent resident for at least five years or three years if married to a US citizen and living with the citizen spouse for the past three years. You also need to be 18years or above. Additionally, you have to fulfill the Continuous residence and Physical Residence Requirement. A prolonged absence from the U.S. will break the continuity of your residence in the U.S. for naturalization purposes, although it may not affect your ability to return to the U.S. as a permanent resident. You should have resided in your current state for at least 3 months. Your current state is the state where you are submitting the citizenship application for naturalization.
Many people may have already met the five-year residency requirement but are not eligible to apply for naturalization due to moral character issues. There is no clear definition of good moral character for the purpose of an immigration proceeding. Good moral character has been interpreted to mean that your behavior meets the moral standard of the average citizen in your community. Therefore, customs and expectations relating to good moral character differ according to area.
An immigration officer has the authority to examine the applicant’s entire life and to closely scrutinize the 5 years preceding his/her naturalization application. Past actions relating to applicant’s current behavior may be discussed, although they cannot be the basis for the denial of his/her application.
The following have been given as examples by the USCIS that might demonstrate a lack of good moral character:
Any crime against a person with intent to harm; Any crime against property or the Government that involves “fraud” or evil intent; Two or more crimes for which the aggravated sentence was 5 years or more; Violating any controlled substance law of the United States, any State, or any foreign country; Habitual drunkenness; Illegal gambling;
Prostitution; Polygamy (marriage to more than one person at the same time); Lying to gain immigration benefits; Failing to pay court-ordered child support or alimony payments; Confinement in jail, prison, or similar institution for which the total confinement was 180 days or more during the past 5 years (or 3 years if you are applying based on your marriage to a U.S. citizen); Failing to complete any probation, parole, or suspended sentence before applying for naturalization; Terrorist acts; Persecution of anyone because of race, religion, national origin, political opinion, or social group.
A person who has been convicted of murder at any time, or convicted of any other aggravated felony on or after November 29, 1990 cannot establish good moral character and therefore, is barred from applying for naturalization.
The applicant must not lie. All arrests, convictions and crimes should be disclosed in the application. Even those conviction records that have been expunged must be reported. Failure to tell the truth about the applicant’s involvement in any crime could lead to the denial of his application for lacking good moral character.
