John

Hi,

I obtained my H1B visa today (had the interview at the embassy and was
approved) however while there they almost refused the visa since my mother
is a US Citizen, so is my 8 year old sister and they said I had citzenship
rights however after checking at this time I don't so I got the visa. The
facts are:

My mother was born in the US but left at the age of 7 (her parents divorced
and she moved back to England but her father stayed in the US who is now
deceased)
3 years ago she moved back to America and before leaving got my sister
citzenship (who was only 5 at the time, I'm 28 now)
My father now has a green card via my mother

In two years my mother would have been in the US for 5 years since her 14th
birthday which seems the point the embassy in the UK said I would have
citizenship rights but I don't think this is correct as from what I've read
it has to have been 5 years from the age of 14 BEFORE I was born (I was born
1975) and my mother did not live in the US for any years over the age of 14
before I was born.

Could anyone shed any light on this or advise what my chances of obtaining
citizenship are? The company are going to sponsor me from a green card
anyway but I'm just concerned that in 2 years they may reject my green card
if they say I'm actually entitled to be a citizen and the company would have
wasted money applying for green card.

Many thanks,

John

Rich Wales

"John" wrote:

> My mother was born in the US but left at the age of 7
> . . . . my mother did not live in the US for any years
> over the age of 14 before I was born. . . . I'm 28 now

Based on the above, it doesn't sound to me like John has any
basis for claiming US citizenship via his mother -- unless his
father is also a US citizen (wouldn't matter in that case how
long, if ever, his father had lived in the US) -- or unless
John was born out of wedlock (in which case a single continuous
year of US presence by his mother, even when she was a baby,
would suffice to give him US citizenship).

The rule about his mother needing to have spent at least five
years in the US after her 14th birthday would only be relevant
if she had done this BEFORE John was born. No matter how much
time his mother might spend in the US now, it wouldn't matter
as far as any birth claim by John to US citizenship would be
concerned.

Note that, for children born NOW to an American parent outside
the US, the American parent need only have spent five years
in the US (including at least two years after the parent's 14th
birthday). However, this change to the law didn't happen until
late 1986, and it doesn't apply to children born earlier, so it
wouldn't help John.

There is another law (the Child Citizenship Act of 2000) under
which I believe a child of a US citizen can gain an entitlement
to US naturalization based on time spent in the US by an Amer-
ican parent or grandparent AFTER (not just before) the child's
birth. However, this law applies only to children under 18,
and John is 28 now.

Rich Wales http://www.richw.org/dualcit/
*DISCLAIMER: I am not a lawyer, professional immigration consultant,
or consular officer. My comments are for discussion purposes only and
are not intended to be relied upon as legal or professional advice.

John

Thats great information, thank you for your time, its what I thought.

Regards,

John

"Rich Wales" <> wrote in message
news:...
    > "John" wrote:
    > > My mother was born in the US but left at the age of 7
    > > . . . . my mother did not live in the US for any years
    > > over the age of 14 before I was born. . . . I'm 28 now
    > Based on the above, it doesn't sound to me like John has any
    > basis for claiming US citizenship via his mother -- unless his
    > father is also a US citizen (wouldn't matter in that case how
    > long, if ever, his father had lived in the US) -- or unless
    > John was born out of wedlock (in which case a single continuous
    > year of US presence by his mother, even when she was a baby,
    > would suffice to give him US citizenship).
    > The rule about his mother needing to have spent at least five
    > years in the US after her 14th birthday would only be relevant
    > if she had done this BEFORE John was born. No matter how much
    > time his mother might spend in the US now, it wouldn't matter
    > as far as any birth claim by John to US citizenship would be
    > concerned.
    > Note that, for children born NOW to an American parent outside
    > the US, the American parent need only have spent five years
    > in the US (including at least two years after the parent's 14th
    > birthday). However, this change to the law didn't happen until
    > late 1986, and it doesn't apply to children born earlier, so it
    > wouldn't help John.
    > There is another law (the Child Citizenship Act of 2000) under
    > which I believe a child of a US citizen can gain an entitlement
    > to US naturalization based on time spent in the US by an Amer-
    > ican parent or grandparent AFTER (not just before) the child's
    > birth. However, this law applies only to children under 18,
    > and John is 28 now.
    > Rich Wales http://www.richw.org/dualcit/
    > *DISCLAIMER: I am not a lawyer, professional immigration consultant,
    > or consular officer. My comments are for discussion purposes only and
    > are not intended to be relied upon as legal or professional advice.