Starting December 2nd and throughout next year, our Hispanic Federation will carry out 10 citizenship days, in which we will provide help to people who can and want to naturalize. And if I am announcing this campaign well in advance, it is because it is a procedure that requires a few preparations.
“Although the various cases may be very different,” explains Cindy Cabrera, Director of Programs at Immigration of our federation, “our goal is that people can complete their applications in a single session, to send them to the USCIS, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service.”
The requirements The basic requirements to apply for US citizenship are: having been a documented permanent resident for five years, or having been married to a citizen of this country for three years. With few exceptions, prospective citizens must demonstrate a reasonable level of proficiency in English and a general knowledge of United States history and government.
“As part of our citizenship campaign”, adds Cindy Cabrera, “when someone completes and submits the application, we always give them the information they need to start practicing the possible questions of the naturalization exam”.
One of the main reasons why the Hispanic Federation encourages Latinas and Latinos to adopt North American citizenship is that in this way they can actively participate in the political life of their communities, their states and the country in general.
But, as Cindy explains, there are also important practical reasons: “With a United States passport you have more freedom to travel to different countries, and with citizenship, one can file petitions for their famil relatives – their spouses, parents, children, siblings – can immigrate to this country”.
To carry out the process of citizenship, people must present various documents, such as proof of their permanent residence; marriage or divorce certificates if they are married or divorced, respectively; information about the sons or daughters; addresses of the places where they have lived and worked or studied; and detailed data on all the trips they have made in the last five years.
“We are going to make those sessions of our citizenship campaign throughout the year – and we advise all interested people to contact us as soon as possible – because we need to know the personal circumstances of each applicant to indicate what documents they will have to present ; if due to her age or situation she can be exempted from the English exam; or if you qualify for help with the payment of the paperwork, for example”, concludes Cindy Cabrera, our Director of Immigration Programs.
For more information, I invite you to call the bilingual line and free (888) 10-8275, or email immigration@hispanicfederation.org.
And, of course, you can always call the Hispanic Federation at 1-844-HF- HELP, or (844) 432-9832.
Let’s celebrate together the 32th anniversary of the Hispanic Federation! Until the next column!
Frankie Miranda is the president of the Hispanic Federation