Fraternity-Testvériség, 1965 (43. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1965-12-01 / 12. szám
8 FRATERNITY QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT IMMIGRATION AND NATURALIZATION Question: I was born abroad and came to the United States in 1914 as an immigrant. Four years later I was married and in 1920 my husband was naturalized. He died in 1931. I would like to know whether I am an American citizen or whether I must be naturalized? Answer: You acquired American citizenship through the naturalization of your husband. Before September 22, 1922, the law provided that if a woman was married to an American citizen, or if her husband was naturalized, she became an American citizen also. If, however, she married a citizen after September 22, 1922, or if her husband became a citizen after that date, she did not thereby get American citizenship. As proof of your citizenship you are entitled to a certificate of derivative citizenship. To obtain it, apply to the nearest office of the Immigration and Naturalization Service for Form N-600. This contains all the necessary instructions as to what documents you are required to submit in support of your application. A fee of $5.00 is charged for this certificate. Your question, and similar questions, are answered in “How to Become a Citizen of the United States”, a book published by the American Council for Nationalities Service. This also includes detailed information about the requirements for American citizenship, the different steps in becoming a citizen, and sample questions and answers about American history and government. Copies of this book, at $1.00 each, may be obtained from the American Council for Nationalities Service at 20 West 40th Street, New York 18, N. Y. ★ ★ ★ Question: I arrived in the United States some years ago on a student visa. Since then a first preference petition has been approved on my behalf. The first preference portion of my country’s quota is greatly oversubscribed and requires a long waiting period. For the present I am permitted to remain here to wait for my number, but I feel uneasy about my status and wonder whether there is anything I can do to regularize it. Answer: Unfortunately there is nothing you can do in this situation, unless a quota number becomes available for you. As you probably know, your present status is irregular. If the United States Government should so decide, you would have to leave and wait abroad until your number is reached. Moreover, your petition has to be renewed every year. If you should change your position, your new employer would have to file a new petition, and you would go again to the end of the waiting list. Thus, your only course is to continue in your present status until your number is reached or until Congress enacts, as it had done in past years, a special law granting non-quota status to first preference quota immigrants who have had approved first preference petitions pending for a certain period of time.
