United States: Changes to permanent residence and citizenship

25.07.2024

US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has recently announced changes to the rules for some individuals applying for permanent residence and citizenship in the United States. The changes are as follows.

Further details of upcoming measures to facilitate lawful permanent residence for noncitizen family of US citizens

US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that on 19 August 2024 it will begin accepting applications for a (previously-announced) new process to help noncitizen spouses and children of US citizens to apply for lawful permanent residence without leaving the country.

This is known as the Process to Promote the Unity and Stability of Families.

To be considered for a discretionary grant of parole, on a case-by-case basis, under this process, applicants must:

be present in the United States without admission or parole;
have been continuously present in the United States for at least 10 years as of 17 June 2024;
have a legally valid marriage to a US citizen as of 17 June 2024;
not have any disqualifying criminal history or otherwise constitute a threat to national security or public safety; and
otherwise merit a favourable exercise of discretion.

USCIS may also consider certain noncitizen children of requestors under this process if, as of 17 June 2024, they were physically present in the United States without admission or parole, and have a qualifying stepchild relationship to a US citizen.

More information about these eligibility criteria will be available in a forthcoming Federal Register notice.

Potential applicants can begin to prepare to file a parole application by gathering evidence of eligibility.

Updated guidance on children’s citizenship

Effective 18 July 2024, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has updated guidance in the USCIS Policy Manual regarding provisions for children’s acquisition of citizenship.

The guidance, contained in Volume 12 of the Policy Manual applies to applications that are pending or filed on or after the date of publication.

The guidance:

Affirms that applicants who already filed an application for a Certificate of Citizenship and were denied, but become eligible following a change in USCIS policy, may file a motion to reopen the prior USCIS denial of their application.
Clarifies that a US citizen parent may meet the requirement of physical presence in the United States (or outlying possession) before the child’s birth while in any immigration status, or no status.
Clarifies that in cases where a child is born out of wedlock to two US citizen parents and cannot acquire US citizenship from the father, the mother meets the requirement by demonstrating one year of continuous physical presence in the United States or one of its outlying possessions before the child’s birth.
Affirms that, for purposes of acquiring citizenship at birth, USCIS requires that a parent must be recognized as a legal parent of the child by the relevant jurisdiction at the time of the child’s birth.
Clarifies that a child acquires citizenship under statutes requiring all conditions to be met while the child is under 18 years of age if the last condition was satisfied on the day of the child’s 18th birthday. Similarly, a child is eligible to obtain citizenship under INA 322 if USCIS approves the application and the child takes the oath (if required) on the day of the child’s 18th birthday.
Confirms that USCIS accepts a valid and unexpired US passport or a Consular Report of Birth Abroad (CRBA) as evidence of US citizenship. However, USCIS also determines whether the applicant properly acquired US citizenship and if necessary, may request that the Department of State revoke the US passport or cancel the CRBA before USCIS adjudicates an application for a Certificate of Citizenship.
Clarifies processes when USCIS, in addition to an applicant’s claim of US citizenship, adjudicates claims to US citizenship for an applicant’s parents or grandparents (sometimes called “nested claims of US citizenship”). When adjudicating applications for a Certificate of Citizenship, if an applicant’s parent or parents’ US citizenship is unknown or unclear, the officer must determine the applicant’s parents’ (and, if necessary, grandparents’) US citizenship status before adjudicating the applicant’s citizenship claim.
Clarifies that for purposes of an application for naturalization filed under the provision for children of a US citizen who subjected them to battery or extreme cruelty, a stepchild’s relationship with the US citizen stepparent does not need to continue to exist at the time of the application for naturalization.

The update also includes various changes to nationality charts in the Policy Manual.