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Tricky requirements for Naturalization
By Jim Nolan | February 10, 2010
Most Japanese do not apply for U.S. citizenship, but there are some good reasons they should think about doing so. U.S. law allows people to be citizens of two countries, but, I understand, Japanese law does not. Therefore, any Japanese person who applies for U.S. citizenship should discuss his situation under Japanese law with a Japanese legal expert.
Staying in the U.S. for a long time with a “green card” presents some difficult situations which could be avoided if a person becomes a U.S. citizen. The most common problems are:
- Your parent in Japan becomes sick and you need to take care of him or her. You don’t know how long you will have to stay in Japan because it depends on your parent’s physical condition;
- You have had a GC since you were a child, but now you want to go study or work outside the U.S. for a number of years.
- Your spouse who is a U.S. citizen gets transferred overseas for a long-term assignment and you want to go with him.
- You are getting married to a person who is not a U.S. citizen or has a GC and you want to stay with them in the U.S.
- Everytime you return to the U.S. you will be fingerprinted and searched at the airport.
- If you get convicted of a crime you could be deported from the U.S. if you have a GC, but this rarely applies to Japanese citizens so I won’t discuss this in this article.
The great danger for a GC holder in the first three situations above is that if he or she stays outside the U.S. too long they could lose their GC and not be able to return to live and work in the U.S.
There are two ways for a GC holder to avoid losing his right to live and work in the U.S. if they will be outside the U.S. for a long time. The most common way is to apply for a re-entry permit while he is in the U.S. The other way is to become a U.S. citizen.
Re-entry permits are getting more inconvenient to get and keep and generally, they only last 5 years. The danger is by first getting a re-entry permit and staying more than 6 consecutive months outside the U.S. you maybe giving up your right to be a U.S. citizen in the near future when you can’t get a re-entry permit anymore. You could also give it up if you are physically outside the U.S. for a total of more than 2.5 years within the last 5 years.
The tricky part is that to apply to be a U.S. citizen you normally have to be a resident of the U.S. for at least 5 years before you apply (3 years in the case you are married to a U.S. citizen). If you are outside the U.S. for more than 6 consecutive months you have to start the 5 years residence again when you return to the U.S. For example, if you had a GC for 15 years, but spent 7 consecutive months in Japan, you cannot apply for U.S. citizenship after you come back for at least 5 years after you return. Your time outside the U.S. “re-set” your 5 year residence period.
If any of the situations above apply to you U.S. citizenship may be the best solution for you.
Topics: “Green Cards” | 4 Comments »
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