How to Become a U.S. Citizen

There are a number of different ways to become a U.S. citizen. If you were born in the United States or if you were born abroad and one or both of your parents are U.S. citizens, you may already be a U.S. citizen. If you are a foreign citizen with a U.S. green card, you may become a U.S. citizen through the naturalization process. In general, you may apply for naturalization if:

• you have had a green card for five years;
• you have had a green card for three years, been married to a U.S. citizen for those three years, and continue to be married to that U.S. citizen;
• you are the child of a U.S. citizen and have a green card; or
• you have qualifying military service.

Once you are a citizen, you can vote in local and national elections. You will also be able to help close relatives get legal residence in the United States. In addition, you may leave the United States for long periods of time and always return with your citizenship intact.

You may already be a citizen
You're probably already a U.S. citizen if you were either born in the United States or if you were born to U.S. citizen parents.

Born in the USA
If you were born in the United States (including, in most cases, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands), you are a U.S. citizen at birth (unless you were born to a foreign diplomat). Your birth certificate is proof of your citizenship.

Born abroad to two U.S. citizen parents
In most cases, you're a U.S. citizen if both of the following are true:

1. both of your parents were U.S. citizens when you were born, and
2. at least one of your parents lived in the United States at some point in his or her life.

Your record of birth abroad, if registered with a U.S. consulate or embassy, is proof of your citizenship. You may also apply for a passport to have your citizenship recognized. If you need additional proof of your citizenship, file an Application for Certificate of Citizenship (Form N-600) with the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to get a Certificate of Citizenship.

Born abroad to one U.S. citizen parent
In most cases, you are a U.S. citizen if all of the following are true:

1. one of your parents was a U.S. citizen when you were born,
2. your citizen parent lived at least five years in the United States before you were born, and
3. your citizen parent lived at least two of these five years in the United States after his or her 14th birthday. If you were born before Nov. 14, 1986, you're a citizen if your U.S. citizen parent lived in the United States for at least 10 years and five of those years in the United States were after your citizen parent's 14th birthday.

Your record of birth abroad, if registered with a U.S. consulate or embassy, is proof of your citizenship. You may also apply for a passport to have your citizenship recognized. If you need additional proof of your citizenship, you may file an Application for Certificate of Citizenship (Form N-600) with the INS to get a Certificate of Citizenship.