General Criteria for Passing on American Citizenship
In order to pass on US citizenship to the next generation, the American parent needs to prove that they were in the United States for a certain amount of years. This means the US citizen has to demonstrate actual residency.
Children of one US citizen parent who were born on or after November 14, 1986 only need to demonstrate that their parent lived in the United States for 5 years —with 2 of those years being over the age of 14. If they can prove this through various forms of documentation, they will be registered as a citizen in the American Embassy. This is true whether the child is a minor or over the age of 18. For more details about citizenship through a parent, see our article on US Citizenship for Children.
Children of one US citizen parent who were born before November 14, 1986 need to demonstrate that their parent lived in the United States for 10 years — with 5 of those years being over the age of 14. This rule will only be relevant for adults who were never registered, and would now like to claim their US passport.
When the Residency Criteria is not Satisfied by the Parent
Many times the US citizen parent is not eligible to pass on citizenship to their minor children. This could be because parent never lived in the United States, rather they were born and raised in Israel or elsewhere. Another reason could be that the US citizen was born in the United States but their parents immigrated to Israel or another country when they were still a child.
In instances such as these, if the US citizen grandparent is the one who meets the residency requirement, then the grandparent can request US citizenship on behalf of their grandchild. This process is called N-600K, otherwise known as the “Grandparent Clause.”
These applications do require different handling, however. Applications through the grandparent cannot be processed on-site at the US Embassy, rather they must be submitted to the offices of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). These offices are located in every state of the US, and they are the only ones who can process the N-600K applications and approve conferral of citizenship.
It is important to note that, unlike obtaining US citizenship directly through a parent, the N-600K process is only available to children under the age of 18. Once a grandchild turns 18, they are no longer eligible to receive citizenship through their grandparent. This rule differs from the process of obtaining US citizenship directly through a parent, as there is no age limit for that process.
Grandparent Clause Process
The process for applying for citizenship for a minor under the N-600K “Grandparent Clause” is quite different than that of CRBA (Consular Report of Birth Abroad). The CRBA process is something that a US citizen parent can do at the US Embassy closest to where they live. This process is reserved for the parent who has lived in the United States for the required amount of time. However, the N-600K process requires flying to the United States together with the child to receive a citizenship certificate.
The criteria of proving residency is the same for both processes. The difference is that instead of the parent proving residency in order to naturalize their own child, it is the grandparent who has to prove residency in order to naturalize their grandchild.
Passing Down from Generation to Generation
For the N-600K process, in order for the grandparent to request citizenship for their grandchild, the parent of the grandchild must also be a US citizen. American citizenship cannot skip a generation. In order for the grandchild to become an American, the parent, as well as the grandparent, must both be Americans as well.
Therefore, it is important for the parent of the grandchild — if that parent was never registered as a US citizen — to settle their own citizenship status first through their US citizen parent’s residency history. Only then can they rely on that same information to naturalize their own children. If those adult children were born before November 14, 1986, they will need to settle their status showing at least 10 years proof of residency for their US citizen parent.
It is important to note that the grandparent does not need to be alive in order to naturalize their grandchild. The only additional documentation that needs to be provided in the case of a deceased grandparent is a death certificate.
How our Office can Help
Our office not only prepares the application with the cooperation of the client, but we assist in obtaining documents from the United States. Usually the documents we help acquire are proof of residency for the US citizen grandparent. In certain circumstances where other US documents are needed — such as birth, marriage, or death certificates — we can help with these as well.
At Decker, Pex, Levi We provide all the necessary certified translations of documents that do not appear in English, and we insure that all the forms are filled out correctly, that all documents are translated, and that the residency requirement is sufficiently proven. Additionally, we prepare all our clients for what to expect on the date of their ceremony in the US and make sure that they turn up to these ceremonies prepared.
From the time you sign the contract until the day your children receive their citizenship in the United States, we are with you and at your service. Our prices are competitive and yet our service goes above and beyond.
Contact Us
If you are not able to pass on your US citizenship to your children, but your parents are, and if you are interested in making sure your children have their US citizenship before it is too late, reach out to Decker, Pex, Levi Law Offices today. We are happy to discuss the process with you and assist your children in becoming official citizens of the United States of America.
