Signature on Naturalization Certificate

[northnodeleo 0]

I just had my naturalization interview in Sacramento a few days ago. The interview went very well and I was approved. As I live far from Sacramento (about 5 hours) I was also sworn in the same day. I got my naturalization certificate but did not even think about asking how it should be signed and the man who swore me in did not even go through that. I had been asked to sign my picture during the interview (on the side of the photo on the front of the picture) and I signed it with my regular, daily "scribbly" signature. The woman interviewing me did not say anything about signing the photo with my full name (first, middle and last). So I signed it with my first and last names. As I was not asked to sign my certificate of naturalization during the private oath "ceremony" I was going to do that when I came back home.

Now I am a bit confused how to sign this certificate. After having searched online it seems as if some people have printed their names on the photo, some have signed the photo with their regular, daily signature and some have signed the photo with their full name. The dotted line on the certificate says to sign with "complete and true signature of holder." Some web sites/forums say to sign that dotted line exactly as you signed your photo, others say it can differ, i.e. you can have your full name/signature on the dotted line and your photo with your regular signature. I can of course not change my name on the photo as it is there on the certificate but it would be nice to sign the certificate correctly. I have read that the signature on the dotted line should be written with cursive writing, not the ordinary "scribble" that I use for my signature.

I am going to apply for a US passport and am getting a bit nervous that they would not accept my certificate if my signatures were different. Anyone who can clarify this?

[Sand 5]

Congrats.

check the link below.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/293001-yes-i-am-a-us-citizen/

[xxhwx 2]

I just had my naturalization interview in Sacramento a few days ago. The interview went very well and I was approved. As I live far from Sacramento (about 5 hours) I was also sworn in the same day. I got my naturalization certificate but did not even think about asking how it should be signed and the man who swore me in did not even go through that. I had been asked to sign my picture during the interview (on the side of the photo on the front of the picture) and I signed it with my regular, daily "scribbly" signature. The woman interviewing me did not say anything about signing the photo with my full name (first, middle and last). So I signed it with my first and last names. As I was not asked to sign my certificate of naturalization during the private oath "ceremony" I was going to do that when I came back home.

Now I am a bit confused how to sign this certificate. After having searched online it seems as if some people have printed their names on the photo, some have signed the photo with their regular, daily signature and some have signed the photo with their full name. The dotted line on the certificate says to sign with "complete and true signature of holder." Some web sites/forums say to sign that dotted line exactly as you signed your photo, others say it can differ, i.e. you can have your full name/signature on the dotted line and your photo with your regular signature. I can of course not change my name on the photo as it is there on the certificate but it would be nice to sign the certificate correctly. I have read that the signature on the dotted line should be written with cursive writing, not the ordinary "scribble" that I use for my signature.

I am going to apply for a US passport and am getting a bit nervous that they would not accept my certificate if my signatures were different. Anyone who can clarify this?

I signed, not printed my full name (1st middle last) and I made sure they are legible, meaning people can spell out my name letter by letter just by looking at this signature. Of course it's different from how I regularly sign my name.

You don't need to panic, this is really minor. I applied for my passport and all the doc were returned to me without any problem.

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

I know exactly what you are saying and, guess what, I even know what you were not saying. I also read this:

http://www.newcitizen.us/after.html

I too screwed up a bit when signing my name change certificate at the N-400 interview by only using the first letter of my first name, i.e., although my full name is Lucas Skywalker I only signed as L. Skywalker. In the real world, none of this matters. Sign your Certificate with your full name and everything will go smoothly.

Finally, be smart and spend the extra $30 for a passport card. The Certificate goes in the bank safe, the passport in the safest place in your house, and the passport card will serve as the third, totally independent proof of your US citizenship at the SSA, DMV, or in case you find yourself in Kuala Lumpur when your passport has been stolen and you are desperately trying to get home.

Priceless.

[xxhwx 2]

I know exactly what you are saying and, guess what, I even know what you were not saying. I also read this:

http://www.newcitizen.us/after.html

I too screwed up a bit when signing my name change certificate at the N-400 interview by only using the first letter of my first name, i.e., although my full name is Lucas Skywalker I only signed as L. Skywalker. In the real world, none of this matters. Sign your Certificate with your full name and everything will go smoothly.

Finally, be smart and spend the extra $30 for a passport card. The Certificate goes in the bank safe, the passport in the safest place in your house, and the passport card will serve as the third, totally independent proof of your US citizenship at the SSA, DMV, or in case you find yourself in Kuala Lumpur when your passport has been stolen and you are desperately trying to get home.

Priceless.

I am a bit skeptical about the idea of passport card. You can NOT travel internationally with a passport card unless your destinations are Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda and you happen to travel there by land or sea. But you can travel to anywhere else in the world (including Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda) with a passport book and I believe all these 4 countries would prefer passport book than passport card b/c they can place stamps in a passport book.

Hence "in case you find yourself in Kuala Lumpur when your passport has been stolen and you are desperately trying to get home," the proper thing to do is to go to the local American embassy to report the loss of passport and get a replacement, and you can help to speed up the process of locating your file on their system by keeping a photocopy of the biopage of your passport (passport card may be helpful too, but photocopy of the biopage is sufficient).

so in my opinion, a passport card is pretty useless if you have a passport book.

Edited February 20, 2011 by xxhwx

[Sand 5]

I am a bit skeptical about the idea of passport card. You can NOT travel internationally with a passport card unless your destinations are Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda and you happen to travel there by land or sea. But you can travel to anywhere else in the world (including Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda) with a passport book and I believe all these 4 countries would prefer passport book than passport card b/c they can place stamps in a passport book.

Hence "in case you find yourself in Kuala Lumpur when your passport has been stolen and you are desperately trying to get home," the proper thing to do is to go to the local American embassy to report the loss of passport and get a replacement, and you can help to speed up the process of locating your file on their system by keeping a photocopy of the biopage of your passport (passport card may be helpful too, but photocopy of the biopage is sufficient).

so in my opinion, a passport card is pretty useless if you have a passport book.

It's very good idea to have a passport Card.

I agree with Bob.

[NickD 202]

First thing that shocked me, wifes' certificate was just handed to her, would think she should have signed it in front of an officer. Here is your certificate, oath ceremony is over, leave.

At home, says under your signature "(Complete and true signature of holder)", even made my wife practice it a couple of times as she signs her signature so often, is an automatic response. She does have a very beautiful creative artful signature, really don't know how she came up with that with her new married name, but was insistent she sign it as stated. We went around in circles on this same issue on her US passport, why risk it? Yet another extremely important document you sign at home, not even in front of a notary like many other legal documents.

Like our marriage certificate, even took a photo of that with the federal judge and our two witnesses standing over her shoulder. Come to think of it, judge told her to sign her full signature that she obeyed without giving him a hard time. LOL, think she likes to give me a hard time on small insignificant issue like this. But she did it. In honor of this occasional dug out my 25 buck ball point pen, not that it makes any difference, the refill is the same as the cheap ones.

But strange that you don't sign documents like this in front of an officer, after my wife and I signed our marriage certificate was followed by the two witnesses, then the judge. Have no idea who comes up with these protocols.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

I signed my regular signature on both the citizenship certificate and on my passport application. I have never used my middle name in my signature and I did not do it on either case here. I had absolutely no problems. I also did get a passport card in addition to my passport. The passport is safely kept at home, but I can carry the passport card with me. Yes, it is useful for land and water border crossings within the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiatives areas, but it is also great proof of US citizenship. Now that local police officers are allowed to ask for your immigration status during any sort of routine traffic stop, it is nice to know I can prove I am here legitimately. I will probably never need it for that, but it is reassuring to know I have it.

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

The passport card is legitimate proof of US citizenship, all on a credit card sized card. If you lose your passport (book), you can send the Certificate of Naturalization -- your by that time one and only proof of citizenship -- back on the weeks-long postal journey.

That's not the case if you have a passport card in addition to the book. It guarantees that the Certificate of Naturalization can stay in its safe place. When going to the SSA or the DMV a few weeks back, I just took my card, not the book. Finally, before your passport is about to expire, you can first apply for a new book and, once you have received that, for a new card. This way you always have valid and unexpired proof of US citizenship at hand.

In addition, as Kathryn indicated, at a climate where state authorities (think SB-1070) are eager to assume immigration enforcement duties, it's nice for a guy or gal with a foreign accent to have the passport card in the wallet when driving to Canada or Mexico or even to Arizona and many other states who are about to jump on the bandwagon. For me, the $30 for a passport card in addition to the book are well worth the expense. Thinking about it, if I were the President of the United States, I would make the passport card mandatory as a national ID card.

[northnodeleo 0]

Thanks everyone for your input. It seems as if there is no "clear-cut" answer to this and it is beyond me why the immigration people do not have just one way they are doing this. I might even call the passport agency and just see what they say as well.

Great advice about the passport card now when people here in the US are getting more and more paranoid. When I came back from Sacramento I took the Greyhound bus and our bags were even searched at the bus station. Not sure if I like this "climate."

[NickD 202]

Thanks everyone for your input. It seems as if there is no "clear-cut" answer to this and it is beyond me why the immigration people do not have just one way they are doing this. I might even call the passport agency and just see what they say as well.

Great advice about the passport card now when people here in the US are getting more and more paranoid. When I came back from Sacramento I took the Greyhound bus and our bags were even searched at the bus station. Not sure if I like this "climate."

To me, such a small issue to sign your name as it is typed on either your passport or certificate, just do it. May get by with it, but always run into some hard head.

[Luv2travel 0]

Just want to bump this thread for clarification. I didn't realize the photo submitted on the application will end up on the certificate and I signed my usual squiggly signature, which is my official one, never really sign my full name. Now it says the sig on the cert should match the one in the photo and the cert says that the name should be signed as written on the cert. Would it matter if I put two sigs - full name/squiggly regular sig? Thanks.

[Delta5 9]

I know exactly what you are saying and, guess what, I even know what you were not saying. I also read this:

http://www.newcitizen.us/after.html

I too screwed up a bit when signing my name change certificate at the N-400 interview by only using the first letter of my first name, i.e., although my full name is Lucas Skywalker I only signed as L. Skywalker. In the real world, none of this matters. Sign your Certificate with your full name and everything will go smoothly.

Finally, be smart and spend the extra $30 for a passport card. The Certificate goes in the bank safe, the passport in the safest place in your house, and the passport card will serve as the third, totally independent proof of your US citizenship at the SSA, DMV, or in case you find yourself in Kuala Lumpur when your passport has been stolen and you are desperately trying to get home.

Priceless.

Hmmm..... I did not know that the passport card now cost $30. I guess, I was a little bit lucky 4 years ago. It only cost me $20 back then ..... I guess, because it was just a pilot program at that time. I wholeheartedly agree it is a must ID to acquire beside your state DL or state ID and its a federal ID too boot. Yes, its a great addition to your US birth certificate or to your passport and naturalization certificate and of course, it is still relatively cheap to have for its personal document value to every US citizen. Nice job for the heads up on it Brother H !