My N600 Experience

[minami 4]

Hello all, I just wanted to share my recent N600 application process here for anyone interested in doing it for themselves. I'm 24 and started thinking about becoming a us citizen this year.I found out since my dad naturalized when I was 16 I could get derived citizenship through him. I chose to do the N600 first then go about getting my passport.

So my timeline goes like this:

I sent my application on Feb 29 to the Arizona processing center.

I got the NOA on March 7 saying it had been transfered to the National Benefits Center.

My application was transferred to my local field office(San Jose) on March 24.

And just today my case status online said that my oath ceremony date and time had been sent out!

So in my application I included the following:

1.N600 application

2.two passport photos

3.check for $600

4.a copy of my birth certificate

5.secondary evidence in lieu of my dad's birth certificate(let me know if you want details for what I included)

6.secondary evidence of my parents marriage since they didn't register their marriage officially in their home coubtry

(again I'll post exact papers for anyone interested)

7.a copy of my dad's naturalization certificate

8. A copy of my green card

9. Evidence showing legal and physical presence in the us, I included: a copy of my high school transcript, three tax returns of my dad showing I was his dependent , all of which were when I was under 18, a copy of my dad's lease for our house were I lived in when I was under 18,

10.a cover letter explaining why I included secondary evidence instead of primary documents

And that's it, I hope this helps anyone interested in doing the N600 when they're already adults. I thought it would take 6 months but it only took three. Cheers everybody!

[TBoneTX 45,543]

*** Thread is moved from the US Citizenship main forum to the Case Progress subforum. ***

[squareleg 69]

Congratulations!

Can you please provide more details regarding the following items?

5.secondary evidence in lieu of my dad's birth certificate(let me know if you want details for what I included)
6.secondary evidence of my parents marriage since they didn't register their marriage officially in their home coubtry

[minami 4]

@squareleg

Thanks!

So the N600 instructions state that if a birth certificate cannot be obtained secondary evidence such as baptismal and school records can be used along with affidavits or census records. They can also ask for proof from a foreign government showing that those birth records do not exist. For my dad, he was born in India before laws passed requiring all births to be registered. In my cover letter I explained that when he was born in India , it wasn't customary to register his birth. I got a certified non-availability of birth certificate statement from the state where he was born and I included an affidavit from his mom about his birth. His mom passed away a long time ago,but she made the affidavit when she was still alive, so I was unsure about including it, but it worked out. I also put in a copy of his high school diploma, which verified his dob.

For my parent's marriage certificate they had a religious ceremony only and never legally registered their union. I was stumped on how to explain this but after some googling I found this statement from the us department of state: "Hindus and Muslims do not always register marriages marriages by Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, or Sikhs may be voluntarily registered under the Hindu Marriage Act of 1955.". This showed that there wasn't a law requiring their marriage to be registered. I put this statement in my letter. I also included two affidavits: one from each side of the groom's and bride's family. Its preferred for those two affidavits to be made by a parent of both the bride and groom. I also included pictures from their wedding and copies of their wedding invitation book.

I hope this answered some questions about your situation. I did all this from my own research and it worked for me, but it could be different for you. Look at the N600 instructions for the exact format of affidavits.

Links: https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/files/form/n-600instr.pdf

https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/fees/reciprocity-by-country/IN.html

Good Luck!

Sorry if this was too long

[squareleg 69]

shukriya!

[MARETA 0]

I have a question i was 17 when my mom became citizen but i was living in another country. Now i live in usa can i get a derevative citizenship? I am 34

[aaron2020 11,651]

I have a question i was 17 when my mom became citizen but i was living in another country. Now i live in usa can i get a derevative citizenship? I am 34

No.