To file or not to file?

[Daphne . 1,853]

I am eligible to file for naturalization but I am not sure if I want to? I see many people file the minute they become eligible, but I'm just not feeling it!

 

At the moment, I would only do it in the hopes that it might speed up my I-751 and to (of course) never have to deal with USCIS again, but I have no desire whatsoever to become a USC! I don't feel committed to the US enough, I won't leave any time soon, but I just don't feel like it's 'my' country and I'm also not sure if it ever will feel like 'my' country. I can have dual citizenship, so that's not an issue.

 

Am I just being silly? What were your reasons to file for naturalization? Just to be done with the Immigration process, or does being a USC mean more to you than that?

[Mike E 11,739]

32 minutes ago, Daphne . said:

I am eligible to file for naturalization but I am not sure if I want to? I see many people file the minute they become eligible, but I'm just not feeling it!

 

[…]

 

Am I just being silly? What were your reasons to file for naturalization? Just to be done with the Immigration process, or does being a USC mean more to you than that?

1. One $500 traffic fine is enough to get one deported.  There are millions of pages of laws on the books; I am sure I’ve broken several of them.  
 

2. The convenience to enter and leave the USA as I see fit.  
 

3. F2A category was not current at the time I filed for citizenship, and I was fairly certain I wanted my girl friend to live with me the U.S.  

 

4. Canada had practically zero restrictions on multiple  citizenship. As you are a citizen of the Netherlands, multiple citizenship might be  complicated for you.  
 

These days, I feel alienated by my country of birth.  At my last visit, the government threatened to arrest me if I didn’t quarantine (I didn’t).   My values are now American, and some of my beliefs, if expressed in Canada, are hate crimes.    I’ve no regrets about the decision.  
 

At the time I was not bothered by the hassle of filing for a new gc every 10 years. These days, with renewals taking over 3 years, that alone would be enough to cause me to file N-400. I filed in February 2017, and by the middle of the year I was seeing reports of I-90 taking over a year. My gc was due to expire 2018.  I took oath 7 months before my gc expired. 

My complaints about Canada are classic “first world” problems compared to my wife’s complaints about her country of birth (celebrating its diamond anniversary of brutal and quixotic  military dictatorship).  She filed N-400 about as soon as she could, and she will not be able maintain her original citizenship as a result. She hopes to be a U.S. citizen in 2023. 

 

Edited November 21, 2022 by Mike E

[OldUser 6,648]

@Daphne . one of the reasons to consider naturalizing is to never have to deal with USCIS. Unless you have to sponsor somebody else further down the line.

 

As it stands for you right now, you will have to deal with USCIS every 10 years if your I-751 is approved. Every time you renew your GC by filing I-90, you would have to deal with this organization. That alone could be a good reason to naturalize.

 

Another reason to naturalize is to have security when it comes to staying in the US no matter what. Sometimes life happens, and an LPR may be put in removal proceedings because of a deportable offence. US citizen cannot be deported from the US.

 

Sometimes it takes a few decades to fully realize this is your home.

 

I naturalized before elsewhere, and it took me 8-10 years to finally feel it like home.

 

If you're planning living in the States for many years to come, there's no reason not to naturalize. You don't have to do it now, you can do it based on 5+ years of residency.

Edited November 21, 2022 by OldUser

[Pecineaga 7]

With the global warming, Netherland will be under water in a few decades. I see that you are from there so it might be wise to naturalize.

[Timona 4,207]

No. You're not silly. 

For me, I really don't take USC that deep. Being USC hasn't added years to my life nor has my Kenyan Citizenship. 

 

I know there are people who take it really seriously, ingrain it into their DNA, immediately denouncing their foreign citizenship and brandishing the US PP everywhere.

 

It's just a PP to me. Nothing else. Take it to eliminate some hustles later. You don't wanna be on USCIS carousel every few years. That's why I took it too. 

Edited November 21, 2022 by Timona

[Joyoussinger 1,425]

@Daphne . You have to go with your heart, and you need no other reason than that to make this decision.

[Leeman15251 35]

A possible reason to not apply for naturalization would be if you decide to leave the US in the future and not want to return. You would still be required to file tax returns and be subject to different taxes, also with different legislation many foreign banks do not want Americans as clients. Since they are required to report on you back to the US government. If you wanted to renounce US citizenship it is very expensive to do, it is much easier and cheaper to give up a green card.  The are benefits that others have already mentioned as to why naturalizing is a good thing but there are negatives to consider that I feel like most on this site ignore. 

[Crazy Cat 41,845]

2 hours ago, Daphne . said:

I am eligible to file for naturalization but I am not sure if I want to? I see many people file the minute they become eligible, but I'm just not feeling it!

 

At the moment, I would only do it in the hopes that it might speed up my I-751 and to (of course) never have to deal with USCIS again, but I have no desire whatsoever to become a USC! I don't feel committed to the US enough, I won't leave any time soon, but I just don't feel like it's 'my' country and I'm also not sure if it ever will feel like 'my' country. I can have dual citizenship, so that's not an issue.

 

Am I just being silly? What were your reasons to file for naturalization? Just to be done with the Immigration process, or does being a USC mean more to you than that?

Great post!  Personally, I think the fact that that you can finally get away from USCIS as a huge benefit.  Without filing your N-400, who knows how long it will take for USCIS to process your I-751.   In addition, becoming a citizen is less expensive in the long term.  In my wife's case, I think the China/Taiwan situation played a significant part in her decision to apply.  

[ineedadisplayname 497]

2 hours ago, Daphne . said:

I am eligible to file for naturalization but I am not sure if I want to? I see many people file the minute they become eligible, but I'm just not feeling it!

 

At the moment, I would only do it in the hopes that it might speed up my I-751 and to (of course) never have to deal with USCIS again, but I have no desire whatsoever to become a USC! I don't feel committed to the US enough, I won't leave any time soon, but I just don't feel like it's 'my' country and I'm also not sure if it ever will feel like 'my' country. I can have dual citizenship, so that's not an issue.

 

Am I just being silly? What were your reasons to file for naturalization? Just to be done with the Immigration process, or does being a USC mean more to you than that?

I think it is more about security than anything else. If you plan to live here for the long run I think it is safer to be a citizen. Just look at the pandemic. Citizens are always allowed in, no matter what. That is just a good selling point for me. ( I pay for global entry, it is just super fast even for a GC holder, so that doesn't affect me) If you want to move abroad for a while you can do it without stressing and filing bunch of paperwork to not to lose your GC.

 

Without starting a heated conversation about politics I think it is also a factor to think about that laws can change and different powers want different things to rally their base.... As a GC holder we might end up in an unfavorable condition....

 

At the end it is a piece of paper (or papers) and you don't have to worry about living here.

my 2 cents

Edited November 22, 2022 by ineedadisplayname

[TBoneTX 45,284]

Posts by troll account removed, along with posts quoting.

[SalishSea 17,827]

2 hours ago, Daphne . said:

I am eligible to file for naturalization but I am not sure if I want to? I see many people file the minute they become eligible, but I'm just not feeling it!

 

At the moment, I would only do it in the hopes that it might speed up my I-751 and to (of course) never have to deal with USCIS again, but I have no desire whatsoever to become a USC! I don't feel committed to the US enough, I won't leave any time soon, but I just don't feel like it's 'my' country and I'm also not sure if it ever will feel like 'my' country. I can have dual citizenship, so that's not an issue.

 

Am I just being silly? What were your reasons to file for naturalization? Just to be done with the Immigration process, or does being a USC mean more to you than that?

My husband, a kiwi, feels exactly the same way!  

 

We have several friends who have been in the US for 20+ years without naturalizing.  Unless you come from a country with a "weak" passport, or you want to live for long stretches of time overseas, the advantage is negligible.

[Sarge2155 4,587]

49 minutes ago, ineedadisplayname said:

I think it is more about security than anything else. If you plan to live here for the long run I think it is safer to be a citizen. Just look at the pandemic. Citizens are always allowed in, no matter what. That is just a good selling point for me. ( I pay for global entry, it is just super fast even for a GC holder, so that doesn't affect me) If you want to move abroad for a while you can do it without stressing and filing bunch of paperwork to not to lose your GC.

 

Without starting a heated conversation about politics I think it is also a factor to think about that laws can change and different powers want different things to rally their base.... As a GC holder we might end up in an unfavorable condition....

 

At the end it is a piece of paper (or papers) and you don't have to worry about living here.

my 2 cents

Very good point with the change of governmental administrations come changes to various laws. I advise people if they ask, that if you are in a situation where you are trying to get a particular benefit you better get it while the getting is good i.e., calmer times so to speak. You'll never know who's going to be making new laws or changing old laws down the road and you'll be sorry you did not act when you had the chance. That is what I tell my spouse she will be eligible this January, but of course I'll let her make up her own mind about it.

[STO Overland 137]

My USC spouse and i work in an multi international industry and as such we have worked in several countries. Not once during these years of marriage, were we ever interested in myself applying for a GC and we even came back to the US in 2013 with me on a L1A
 

It wasn’t until the industry was going through a downturn and was laying off many  people that we realized that by me not having a GC was putting our family unit at risk if I, as the expensive expat, were to be laid off and sent back to the UK. That’s the only reason why we applied for AOS.

 

Going for N400 just seemed the natural next step, not having to worry about applying for renewal every ten years, ease of travel, potential change in laws.
 

Now that I’m a citizen, we will not  change our plans. We don’t plan on retiring in the US and will head somewhere south of the border. Having a US passport will make future decisions easier. 
 

re: ease of giving up a GC versus a PP. I would like to say if this is something that crosses anyone’s mind as a pro or con, then you’re definitely not ready to apply for your N400.. 

[Scandi 4,166]

Only you can make that decision, you don't have to become a citizen, you can live just fine your whole life as a greencard holder like many others do. 

For me, one of the reasons was that I agreed with my husband (who is born and bred American) when he said becoming a citizen is about respect for the country you see yourself living in for the rest of your life. Becoming a citizen shows that you care and want to be part of this new country as much as you can (there will always be certain things you won't be part of as "just" a greencard holder). And I agreed with him, of course I should be a citizen when I see myself spending the rest of my life here. 

But I believe the absolute biggest reason that I chose to become a citizen is that I always want to be able to move back to the US if I for whatever reason decide to live elsewhere for a while. Since I have no plans on ever living elsewhere but have family in another country, it made sense to become a citizen. IF I have to move back to my home country for a while when my parents get old, to take care of them or for other reasons, then I will always be able to easily move back to the US when the time comes. This is the most important thing to me. Since I became a citizen I feel more relaxed knowing that I don't have to think about anything immigration related in case the situation would arise that I would need to leave the US for a few years. All I need is my US passport. 

Another thing, that isn't very important but still a positive thing, is that a Swedish passport is only valid for 5 years while the US is valid for 10. That the Swedish one has such a short validity sucks in so many ways, especially when it's very hard to get it renewed in the US (can only be done in person in DC and NY, and I live on the west coast). Now that I have a US passport that is valid for 10 years I worry less bout being stuck without a valid passport. And obviously it's very easy to renew the US passport in the US too. 

The reasons above AND the fact that I can have dual citizenship made the decision easy. It wouldn't have been easy if I couldn't have dual citizenship. 

[Daphne . 1,853]

Thank you all (with the exception of one) for your valuable input, I appreciate it!

 

Still a lot of food for thought, but good to see that my pros and cons list matches the replies I received. 
 

 

Edited November 22, 2022 by Daphne .