RFE for proof of USC Citizenship

[rpb13 1]

Hi,

Not too sure if someone has the same experience like us.

My lawyer filed a petition in July 2013. At that time we did not include a proof of USC citizenship as we didn't have one. So we submitted a receipt for N-600 for a certificate of citizenship of my husband, a copy of his old green card, and a copy of his old driving license

My husband got naturalized when he was a child through his parents and the certificate went missing long time ago.

To make things more complicated, he doesn't have his passport and he has been in prison since April 2013 with a release date of July 2014.

We received an Rfe in March 2014 asking for a proof of citizenship. We still don't have the citizenship certificate or passport until now. And my mother in law who co sponsored him has obtained a letter from a social security office to confirm his citizenship and we submitted the RFE response along with the letter in the beginning of April 2014.

1 month has passed and we haven't received a response from USCIS. My case status is still showing as RFE. I began to worry that they did not receive our response and if they did, it won't be sufficient enough to prove. (

Any chance for them to send a second rfe, possibly we can buy time until my husband is released and obtain his passport or is there any secondary proof of citizenship that we can get from local administration office?

Thanks

[Ryan H 3,810]

If the initial response to the RFE is deemed insufficient, then the petition will likely be denied.

[pushbrk 12,618]

Correct. The lawyer should never have allowed the petition to be submitted without evidence of US Citizenship. Please let us know of the evidence you submitted later, is accepted. This is one place where I would have provided the parent's naturalization certificate in combination with the petitioner's birth certificate as evidence the parent Naturalized prior to the petitioner turning 18.

[rpb13 1]

Thanks for the answer

My lawyer was very reluctant to send I130 in the first place. We did send it thinking that by the time we got the RFE, we should have received the certificate of citizenship in hand.

I will ask her what exactly she sent. I found out too that my husband was naturalized through his deceased father when he was a child. We have his mother's naturalization certificate and the mother's passport.

I am not prepared with the worst case scenario though. If we ever get denied for this reason, is it better to reapply or appeal the decision?

[Ryan H 3,810]

I am not prepared with the worst case scenario though. If we ever get denied for this reason, is it better to reapply or appeal the decision?

If the petition is denied for this reason, then it can simply be refiled.

[pushbrk 12,618]

Thanks for the answer

My lawyer was very reluctant to send I130 in the first place. We did send it thinking that by the time we got the RFE, we should have received the certificate of citizenship in hand.

I will ask her what exactly she sent. I found out too that my husband was naturalized through his deceased father when he was a child. We have his mother's naturalization certificate and the mother's passport.

I am not prepared with the worst case scenario though. If we ever get denied for this reason, is it better to reapply or appeal the decision?

Your husband did not "naturalize". His citizenship was obtained through a parent. He would be entitled to a passport or a Certificate of Citizenship, not a "Naturalization Certificate". You took a risk. Now, you'll see what happened. You would not appeal for this because USCIS would not be wrong, to deny the petition for the lack of required evidence. You would file again with the required evidence.