Spring. The season of new life and….new government forms?

USCIS has made a new version of the application for naturalization document, Form N-400. Based on an agreement made between the Social Security Administration and United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the new form includes the option for applicants to ‘request an original or replacement social security number or card and update their immigration status with the Social Security Administration (SSA) without having to visit an SSA office.'

According to the announcement USCIS is trying to make things easier for naturalization applicants and more efficient for government offices. If applicants take advantage of this new change, they may no longer need to visit an SSA field office to apply for a social security number or replacement card or to provide documentation as evidence of their new U.S. citizenship status. 

It's very important to note that the option to fill out the necessary social security questions on the N-400 are only available on the N-400 with an edition date of 04/01/24. The previous edition of the N-400, dated 09/17/19, does not have the requisite questions. If you are applying for naturalization online using a MyUSCIS account the N-400 form is automatically updated to the new application edition, but if you are applying by paper you need to check that the form is up to date. To do this you can look at the bottom left of each page of the N-400 application, which should say, “Form N-400 Edition 04/01/24”. See example below:

Right now is a great time to apply for naturalization. At the Norfolk, VA USCIS field office, which is the closest USCIS location to our firm, N-400 applications are taking about a year to process, while the field offices closest to us in other states, North Carolina and Maryland, are taking about 8 months to process. 

Although citizenship applications can seem fairly straightforward, your background can greatly affect the processing time of an N-400 and your ability to naturalize. If you have had any criminal history, tax issues, or even a child support case, we recommend you meet with an attorney to discuss your naturalization timeline.

If you would like assistance with an immigration petition, you can reach us at (757) 422-8472, or send us a message on our website. You can also schedule an appointment with one of our attorneys by clicking on this link.