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I have two foreign national friends...One from the Dominican Republic told me that she is not worried about the cost of applying for US citizenship. She told me her aunt became a US citizen after hiring a lawyer and the fee for citizenship (excluding the lawyer) was only 40$ Is that even possible? Or is that story simply wrong? She is married to a US citizen and will apply for naturalization after she is here only 3 years. How much is she going to realistically expect to cough up for naturalization?
My other foreign national friend has been in this country for 30+ years since he was a baby. He never got his US citizenship. He told me it was too expensive since he supports a wife and three kids on a modest salary. So I looked up on the gov website and it did say that the total fees for applying for US citizenship was 680 dollars! Is there anyway he can get around this high fee if he has been here just about his entire life?
So you can see why I want to know this...is there a way around the 680 USD that is said to be required to become a US citizen? Or can a lawyer or knowing someone get some strings pulled for you?
It costs what it costs. That Dominican paid the fee with lawyer fees since she had the attorney do all her running for her.
I'm not following what you're talking about here. That he's waited for years doesn't make a difference when getting a fee waiver and he doesn't have to prove "extreme hardship". He can qualify in several ways and it's not extremely hard. .
If it "not extremely hard" to get a fee waiver - why do people bother to pay it? Would you mind to elaborate a bit about the several ways an applicant can qualify? Thank you.
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Originally Posted by Lizita
This guy isn't applying for a green card so what does previous unlimited green cards have to do with anything? I don't get what you mean by "there was legislation in process to pull them". This is an issue of an LPR applying for citizenship. Not an illegal alien becoming legal. You can put up naturalization as long as you want so I don't think putting it up is putting ones head in the sand. Some simply don't want to naturalize. .
Do you know if the friend has a valid Green Card? There is a push for legislation to revoke Green Cards issued for a short period of time in the 70/80s without expiration and replace them with the current version.
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Originally Posted by Lizita
$680 may not seem like a lot to some people and you may think that peace of mind is worth it. But if you don't have it you don't have it. In that case it might as well be ten thousand. Supporting a family of five on a low wage may not leave an extra $700 no matter how much you want the peace of mind. And you would need a lot of friends donating $5 each to raise the N-400 filing fee. Either way, I don't see why the guy necessarily have to become a citizen anyway or how much peace of mind it would bring him. As long as he doesn't commit crimes his LPR status should be safe..
A Green Card is not intended to be a permanent solution but a step on the way to US citizenship. You might be surprised at what people can do when they have to.
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Originally Posted by Lizita
ETA: I just wanted to point out that we are not talking about a hardship waiver which is something that is very hard to get. We are talking about a fee waiver.
If it "not extremely hard" to get a fee waiver - why do people bother to pay it? Would you mind to elaborate a bit about the several ways an applicant can qualify? Thank you.
Most people pay it because they don't qualify for the fee waiver or don't know about it. If your household income is less than 150% of the federal poverty limit or if you get means tested benefits you qualify and it's not hard to be approved in those cases. There are also other financial hardships such as unemployment or large expenses such as medical bills that could help you qualify.
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Do you know if the friend has a valid Green Card? There is a push for legislation to revoke Green Cards issued for a short period of time in the 70/80s without expiration and replace them with the current version.
If the friend is looking to apply for citizenship he would have to have a valid green card. Since naturalization is what was asked about in regards to the friend I have to assume that he qualifies. If he doesn't have a green card the question doesn't even apply.
Even if the green cards that don't have an expiration date are revoked the immigrant's legal status would not be. Once you become a legal permanent resident it's permanent. The cards expire but that's just the card. So the OP's friend could still qualify for naturalization even if his green card isn't valid. He may run into trouble if he has an expired card but that's a different issue.
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A Green Card is not intended to be a permanent solution but a step on the way to US citizenship. You might be surprised at what people can do when they have to.
Who says? A green card holder is called a legal permanent resident and I take that to mean that it's a permanent solution if you so choose. Naturalization is optional. Many people choose to not become a citizen and there is no problem with that. If LPR status was meant to be temporary until citizenship can be acquired the laws would be written to reflect that, I would think. As it is now there is no requirement to naturalize so people won't find themselves in a situation where they can do things because they have to.
I was told a month on my work visa and a year on me green card. 3 days later me work visa came in and 5 days later I had to finger print again to pick up my green card! Just the 4.5hr drive is exhausting. Well worth it but I will leave it to the last minute probably hehe
Your friend was wrong about the $40 price. I became a US citizen last year, and I paid $680 for the forms ( N-400 form, and biometrics ). I didn't use a lawyer, I completed everything by myself, so I can't speak about that part.
Who says? A green card holder is called a legal permanent resident and I take that to mean that it's a permanent solution if you so choose. Naturalization is optional. Many people choose to not become a citizen and there is no problem with that. If LPR status was meant to be temporary until citizenship can be acquired the laws would be written to reflect that, I would think. As it is now there is no requirement to naturalize so people won't find themselves in a situation where they can do things because they have to.
There's no requirement to change status from a green card, however, at the end of the day, a green card is just a semi-permanent visa. You have no protection and no rights as a US citizen, you just have permission to act as one. Theoretically, they could all be revoked tomorrow, and we'd all be SOL, and have to go. Citizens do not have that problem.
Not sure if it can apply to citizenship filing, but USCIS does have a hardship fee waiver program for families below 150% of the poverty line. (Also not sure if there is any money in that pool, especially now, given the sequester).
The only way that I know of in which your naturalization fees are waived, or at least a portion thereof, are if you join the Armed forces of the United States.
I was told a month on my work visa and a year on me green card. 3 days later me work visa came in and 5 days later I had to finger print again to pick up my green card! Just the 4.5hr drive is exhausting. Well worth it but I will leave it to the last minute probably hehe
wow! what kind of work visa did you get? and on what kind of job? you're extremely lucky to have your greencard that fast, unless i didnt get your post right
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