Concerns about proof of citizenship / passport

[Scylla 0]

I am about to start the process to apply for an IR-1/CR-1 spouse visa for my Canadian husband.

The first thing I know I need to do is send the I-130. I would like to use this forum to explain my steps in preparing the documents and my concerns at this time.

One of the first things on my mind is that I need proof of citizenship. I have just obtained a certified birth certificate from my county of birth, it's signed and printed on official paper. Is this typically enough to prove citizenship?

I do not have my original certificate for a rather complicated reason. Previously, I attempted to immigrate to Canada to join my husband as a permanent resident there. At the time, I was severely depressed (diagnosed with major depression) so I was in no condition to handle my own documents. I was also escaping a difficult family situation so I decided to go to Canada as a visitor and then the initiate permanent residency immigration process. (Bad idea.) I allowed my husband, as my sponsor, to take full responsibility of my documents and the entire process. There were quite a few delays and while the process was going on, I remained in Canada. Ignorant and intimidated, and still severely ill, I ended up overstaying my visa without realizing it. I was relying on my husband to know what to do and he followed bad advice.

End result is I was served an exclusion order back in 2007. My passport was confiscated at that time. The officer who arrested me said I had a chance to stay if I filed my permanent residency documents by a certain date. I did. I got the interview. I got a notice of preliminary acceptance. I thought at that point things would be resolved, but again they were not.

I waited another three years with my husband taking care of the process, while I continued to be depressed, intimidated and largely uninvolved. He eventually got legal advice and pressed charges about how long the process has been taking. Around that time my condition started to improve to the point I was able to secure enrollment at a Canadian university. But in late October 2010 I was dropped from my classes because Immigration Canada had yet to send the college my permanent residency documents. The lawyer advised we go to a border office to ask for a student permit in the meantime.

It was at the border on Oct 29 2010 that I had the worst news of my life. Immigration Canada claimed that the exclusion order was still pending and had not been executed. Again, because I allowed my husband to take care of everything, I had no idea how this happened, why I'd never been informed, etc. All the complexities of my case were a mystery to me. To my husband's credit, he was in contact with the immigration office almost every day, and THEY didn't tell him about the pending order either. They also claimed they tried to get a hold of me but never could (again this is likely because of the fact I was always using my husband to do the communication).

But at this point I was alone. I was in an office separated from my husband and I was terrified and confused. The border office had me they insisted that the exclusion order must go through, or worse things could happen. I was taken away from Canada, from my husband. I was returned to the U.S. and they never sent my passport back with me.

Mind you, my husband tried to get that passport back to me from the moment it was taken from me to the moment I was forced to leave his country. When I crossed the border, though, the Canadian side told him they needed directions from the U.S. embsssy about what to do with my passport, as it isn't their property. The embassy told my husband that I should just apply for a new one instead. I did so, on November 17 2010. I was told by the passport agency I applied at to report it stolen, as the Canadian government was holding it and never returned it for years despite multiple queries about it and even legal proceedings. I even paid for expedited processing.

Then I waited, and waited and waited. 8 weeks later and I still don't have the new passport. I finally got a call today from the National Passport Agency about it and they told me my new passport hasn't been issued because they are investigating why my old one was held. They couldn't tell me how long it'd be until I get a new one, either. They also have my original birth certificate, which I needed to provide in order to get a new passport. I was advised to get the certified copy of my birth certificate instead, which as I described above, I already did.

So now I'm wondering something very important. Will all this trouble with my passport affect my ability to sponsor my husband for U.S. immigration? Or will those proceedings remain separate from immigration proceedings, since I already have a certified birth certificate and thus proof that I am a U.S. citizen?

I'm very concerned, because right now, immigrating my husband here is the only real way I will ever be able to see him again. While the U.S. side investigates the loss of my passport, and refuses to issue me a new one in the process, I cannot leave the country. And this is *besides* the exclusion order served on me, which already prevents me from returning to Canada until November 2011. I am truly and honestly terrified I will be separated from my husband for the rest of my life if I don't even have a chance at sponsoring him.

Any thoughts or advice about my concerns would be helpful at this point.

Thank you,

Caliris

[Scylla 0]

Sorry I realize my last post was very long. I will just summarize shortly here.

I am about to send the I-130 petition for an alien relative (my Canadian husband in this case).

I am concerned about my proof of citizenship.

I have a certified copy of my birth certificate from my county of birth, which I just obtained yesterday.

My original birth certificate is still being held by the National Passport Center in New Hampshire, which is investigating the loss of my old passport. Long story short: old passport was held by Immigration Canada for over 3 years because of issues while living there and applying for permanent residency. I overstayed my visa due to ignorance and bad advice, then suffered through exorbitantly long delays while the investigation was carried out, ultimately leading to an exclusion order barring me from Canada for a year. Passport was not returned to me when I returned to the U.S. so I tried to apply for a new one and declared the old one lost/stolen (on advice from the U.S. embassy).

Again, my questions are this: will my newly certified birth certificate be enough to prove my citizenship? And will the above investigation concerning my old passport have any impact on my efforts to sponsor my husband for U.S. immigration?

Thanks,

Caliris

Edited January 21, 2011 by Caliris

[Inky 1,111]

Its a US birth cert? or from another country?

[Scylla 0]

Its a US birth cert? or from another country?

Yes, it's a U.S. birth certificate. I am a U.S. citizen, my husband is the Canadian.

Thanks,

Caliris

[Inky 1,111]

Ok its fine all you need is that.

Sorry it kind of sounded like it wasn't from the US. =)

You don't have to use a passport you can use the birth cert.