Marriage Based Citizenship: Red Flags At the Interview
Author: US Immigration attorney Alena Shautsova
One of the ways to receive citizenship in the US is naturalization after the marriage to a US citizen. Prior to that, of course, a person has to become a permanent resident. However, the wait time for this particular category of applicants for naturalization is significantly lower: only three years, opposed to regular five years.
With that, however, the law requires to prove that the applicant for naturalization is still in vital marital union with the US citizen spouse. With the N-400 form, the applicant will have to produce not only copies of his green card and passport photos, but also evidence of bona fide marriage. By this time, the applicant will be producing this evidence for the third time pretty much: first when he/she was applying for conditional residence, then when he/she was applying for removal of the condition, and finally, when he/she would be applying for naturalization.
The evidence that should be produced are: copies of tax returns for the past 3 years; copies of utility bills; joint bank accounts; insurance policies; evidence of ownership of common property; birth certificates for common children. One would think that birth certificates of children in marriage is the most significant proof of the strong marital union. However, surprisingly, USCIS still will require utility bills and joint bank accounts statements… The logic behind such requests is puzzling, but, unfortunately, non-compliance with the request may lead to denial of the application.
One common pitfall that many applicants get caught at is failure to file joint tax returns. Another one would be having different residence addresses. Lack of commingling of assets is another “strong” evidence against the vital marital union finding. Finally, failure to mention all the children, including step children, may also lead to denial.
It is very common that an applicant had what he/she thought was a successful interview, but subsequently received a negative decision. That is why it is recommended that an applicant brings an attorney for the interview. If there is choice between paying attorney’s fees for the preparation of the application and for the interview attendance, choose an interview attendance. The mistakes on the application can be always corrected at the interview, but if something goes wrong at the interview, and there is no lawyer there to help, the case might get too lengthy and too expensive to deal with in the future.