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What’s the fastest way to become a U.S. citizen?

On Behalf of | Feb 3, 2022 | Citizenship and Naturalization |

There are several routes to becoming a citizen in the United States, but by far, the fastest is to become naturalized by marriage. Expedited naturalization by marriage requires you to live in the United States with your citizen spouse for three years.

Some other requirements that you will need to meet include holding a green card for three years, living in your current state for at least three months and meeting any and all other U.S. citizenship requirements.

Getting citizenship through naturalization

It is typical to obtain citizenship through naturalization if you were not born within the U.S. and cannot get citizenship through acquisition. Typically, this process requires you to have a green card for at least five years before applying, but if you get married to a U.S. citizen, the process speeds up a bit.

What do you do if you think you’re eligible to become a citizen?

If you have married a U.S. citizen and have been in the U.S. for at least three years on a green card, then you may start the process for naturalization. This normally takes another six months to a year while the application is processed.

You will fill out a form call Form N-400, which is your application for citizenship. Then, you will need to take a citizenship test. This is typically given in English, though there are exceptions for some people.

After you do this, you go through an interview and biometric screening. Upon completing this all to the satisfaction of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, you will be able to take out Oath of Allegiance and gain citizenship.

Are there other quick ways to become a citizen?

Another method that may be quicker than the usual five-year green card requirement is naturalization through military service. With this process, you can seek naturalization and citizenship after you’ve served in the armed forces for at least one year. This may be the fastest option for individuals able to serve in the military, though not all people will qualify to be in the armed forces.

These are a couple ideas if you want to speed up your chances of naturalization. Military and marriage-related naturalization are usually the fastest, but even a typical green card route may take as little as five years.

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