How to Get Started
Submitting Your Citizenship Application
How to Become a US Citizen: A Comprehensive Guide
Here is a checklist of what you must mail to USCIS with your Form N-400:
- Form N-400: Answer all questions and sign and date Part 13.
- Additional pages: Include these for work and residence history, trips, prior marriages, children or for other questions that need a continuation sheet.
- Proof of your permanent resident status: Copy of front and back of your Green Card, or copy of I-551 stamp in your passport indicating your A-Number.
- If your current legal name is different from the name on your Permanent Resident Card, include:
- The document(s) that legally changed your name (marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court document).
- If you are applying for naturalization on the basis of marriage to a U.S. citizen, include the following four (4) items:
- Evidence that your spouse has been a U.S. citizen for the last 3 years:
- Birth certificate (if your spouse never lost citizenship since birth); or
- Certificate of Naturalization; or
- Certificate of Citizenship; or
- The inside of the front cover and signature page of your spouse’s current U.S. passport; or Form FS-240, Report of Birth Abroad of a Citizen of the United States of America;
- Evidence that your spouse has been a U.S. citizen for the last 3 years:
- Your current marriage certificate;
- Proof of termination of all prior marriages of your spouse (divorce decree(s), annulment(s), or death certificate(s)); and
- Documents referring to you and your spouse:
- Tax returns, bank accounts, leases, mortgages, or birth certificates of children; or
- Internal Revenue Service (IRS)-certified copies of the income tax forms that you both filed for the past 3 years; or
- An IRS tax return transcript for the last 3 years.
- If you were married before, include:
- Proof that all earlier marriages ended (divorce decree(s), annulment(s), or death certificates(s)).
- If you are currently in the U.S. military service and are seeking citizenship based on that service, include:
- A completed original Form N-426, Request for Certification of Military or Naval Service.
- If you have a dependent spouse or child(ren) who do not live with you, include:
- Any court or government order to provide financial support; and
- Evidence of your financial support (including evidence that you have complied with any court or government order),
- Check or Money Order for the application fee and biometrics services: Made payable to “U.S. Department of Homeland Security.” Write your name and A-Number on the front of the check or money order. You may also pay by credit card by submitting a completed and signed Form G-1450 Authorization for Credit Card Transactions.
- Note: Applicants 75 and older are exempt from paying the biometric fee and must appear in person to have their photos taken at the Application Support Center (ASC).
OR
- Submit Form I-912, Request for Fee Waiver with supporting documents or Submit Form I-942, Request for Reduced Fee with supporting documents.
Mail your complete application and documents using the Postal Service to the USCIS address with jurisdiction over where you live. Go to www.uscis.gov or call 800-375-5283 to find out what jurisdiction you are in.
**Remember, keep a copy of everything you send to USCIS, your postal receipts, and the receipts for the money order, if you sent one.
**For the current fee amounts, check the website www.uscis.gov/n-400
To check on how long USCIS expects to take to make a decision on your application, you can check the USCIS website for N-400 processing times. Do this by visiting www.uscis.gov and
clicking on “Tools” and then select “See Office Case Processing Times”. At the bottom of the next page, choose your local Field Office and click the button that says “Field Office Processing Dates.”
We can help you become a citizen
Attorney Steven Miller and the team at Affordable Immigration would be honored to represent you or a family member through the process of becoming a U.S. citizen.
Studies have shown, those in immigration court with a lawyer are much more likely to win their case than those without legal representation.
About the author
Steve Miller
Steve Miller, is one of the few attorneys who offer a free consultation. Attorney Miller and his staff have seen over 10,000 aspiring immigrants in order to inform them of their possibilities under U.S. Immigration Law. The office as helped over 4,000 young people obtain DACA and countless others with the immigrant visas and deportation issues.
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