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Military Families Act Gives Hope to Families of Service Members

Chris Gafner — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 12:20:49 +0000

Late last month, The Military Families Act was introduced into Congress. If successful, the act would allow for family members of Service members to become permanent residents – even if they are currently ineligible. In introducing the bill, Congress members mentioned the difficulties that immigrants have since the last major enactment of immigration law in 1996. The bill was introduced by Senators Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Harry Reid (D-NV), Richard Durbin (D-IL), Charles Schumer (D-NY), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Daniel Akaka (D-HI), Michael Bennet (D-CO), and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) introduced the bill.

Immigration Agency Naturalizes 98 Armed Forces Service Members In Afghanistan

Chris Gafner — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 13:03:30 +0000

The USCIS recently highlighted a naturalization ceremony it performed for 98 service members who are currently deployed to Afghanistan. The USCIS performed the ceremony with immigration officials from its Bangkok Field Office.

Normally, a person seeking to naturalize must be a permanent resident of the United States and must have been in the United States for a specified amount of time. However, the requirements for naturalization are relaxed for service member. In fact, most foreign nationals who are in the armed forces are eligible for naturalization.

If you are in the armed forces, and believe you are eligible to naturalize, please contact a naturalization lawyer to ensure you are eligible, and to ensure you are not wrongly denied a naturalization petition.

USCIS Granted Citizenship to 11,146 Service Members in 2010

Chris Gafner — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 10:42:33 +0000

The USCIS granted citizenship to 11,146 Service members in fiscal year 2010. this number of service members represents the highest number of service members who have naturalized since 1955. The number is also a 6 percent increase from fiscal year 2009.

Immigrants who serve in the armed forces are able to obtain citizenship in the United States without needing to meet as many requirements as immigrants who are not in the service. For those who have served since September 11, 2001 – the process is even easier. Since September 2001, 65,000 service men and women have naturalized.

If you are thinking about naturalizing, please immediately contact a naturalization lawyer for assistance.

Military Immigrant Program a Success

Chris Gafner — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 12:38:46 +0000

Last February the U.S. military instituted a pilot program to allow for certain temporary immigrants to enter into the Armed Forces in key, strategically important positions. The program has been a great success and will hopefully expand in the coming years. Over a thousand recruits have enlisted through the program.

The program allows for foreign nationals living in the United States on temporary visas to enter into the military if they possess certain language abilities or certain, in demand, skill sets (such as medical physicians). The program is a win-win for both sides: the military gets highly skilled and critically important recruits while the foreign nationals get the opportunity to become U.S. citizens at an accelerated speed.

The New York Times quotes military officials as saying these recruits score 20% higher on military entrance tests than regular recruits and have significantly more education than other recruits.

Let’s hope the program is full speed ahead in the years to come.

Over 10,000 Soldiers Became U.S. Citizens Last Year

Chris Gafner — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 12:39:01 +0000

Last year, 10,505 U.S. service members became U.S. Citizens. This is the largest number since the Vietnam War. Being a member of the Armed Forces offers numerous advantages to those seeking to become U.S. Citizens. These advantages include a waiver of the $675 application fee and accelerated eligibility for citizenship.

To learn more about becoming a citizen, please visit Gafner Law Firm’s citizenship website.

Immigrant Soldier with Temporary Visa Becomes U.S. Citizen

Chris Gafner — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:52:21 +0000

The USCIS recently announced that the first nonimmigrant soldier to participate in the Defense Department’s Military Accessions Vital to the National Interest (MAVNI) recruiting program has become a naturalized U.S. Citizen. As previously discussed on the Immigration Insight blog, MAVNI allows a foreign national who is in the United States on a temporary visas to enter an accerated track to U.S. Citizenship if the foreign national agrees to serve in the U.S. military. Although it is only open to those foreign nationals who have special, high-need skills or language expertise, MAVNI is an excellent win-win situation for the nation and for the soldier. In this case, the soldier is a medical doctor who joined the Army in April and become a naturalized citizen this month. The soldier will now serve in the U.S. military for a minimum of six years.

For more information, please contact Gafner Law Firm, or visit the military’s MAVNI website.

Nonimmigrant Recruits Sworn in at Times Square

Chris Gafner — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 10:30:00 +0000

As was previous reported on this blog, the United States recently began to recruit nonimmigrants into the military in an attempt to fill critical-need positions. Last week the New York Times reported about the first of these recruits to be inducted into the military. Judging from the article, the program appears to be a success. Over four thousand nonimmigrants have applied for the program and, so far, fifty-two nonimmigrants have enlisted. Of those fifty -two recruits: 11 have master’s degrees, 31 have bachelor’s degrees, and four have associate degrees.

Congratulations to all. Those fifty-two recruits will soon be eligible for naturalization and the United States has fifty-two new protectors.

Military to Recruit Non-Immigrants and Offer Citizenship

Chris Gafner — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 11:07:00 +0000

The New York Times is reporting that the United States Military will recruit non-immigrants into its ranks for the first time since the Vietnam War. Non-immigrants who volunteer to serve the country will have the opportunity to naturalize within six months of entering the miilitary.

Non-immigrants are foreign nationals who are legally in the United States on a temporary basis. The military is seeking to fill critical military positions, including medical care, language interpretation and field intelligence.

Currently, over 29,000 foreign born individuals serve in the U.S. Military.