USCIS Ombudsman Office issues recommendations on administration of the English speaking test
many stakeholder concerns are substantiated
Free study guide for N-400 Part 9 questions
from Bill Bliss
More on the new N-400
part 9 'moral character' questions
What's new in the new N-400 citizenship application?
free resource from Lynne (via New Readers Press)
Two Timely Webinars Next Week
from the National Partnership for New Americans
changes in naturalization fees
(the news is actually good--but a little complicated))
New opportunity for citizenship educators!
free collaborative learning network--monthly sessions
USCIS is holding a National Immigrant Education and Citizenship Education Conference in October
with both in-person and virtual options
More Commentary on the Test Redesign Project
a deep dive from my colleague Bill Bliss
Test Redesign Concerns
(the response so far)
USCIS funding for citizenship and integration programs
..................................
Do you have concerns about the proposed new citizenship test?
Here’s a way to share them with USCIS
What might the new civics test look like?
Here’s a likely possibility.
Update on the citizenship test redesign project
from Lynne Weintraub
Planning to apply for a USCIS Citizenship and Integration Grant?
Learn more at this webinar
Op-Ed in The Hill: The Economic Impact of High Citizenship Costs
from the New Americans Campaign
New Citizenship Test Already In The Works
Trial testing to begin in 2023
Naturalization numbers going up
the largest increase in almost 15 years
Two lawsuit stories: AIC challenges naturalization delays...
...and Lawsuit dismissed after Mississippi proof-of-citizenship voting law is amended
New paper N-400 filing location for some states
(no change for online submissions)
Study finds that white applicants more likely to be approved for citizenship than non-white applicants
disparities by race/ethnicity, gender, and religion are evident
Citizenship Delays Caused By Inaccessible Underground Doc Storage Facility
(I wish I was kidding)
Immigrants are there for these retirees. So the retirees decided to be there for them.
Heartwarming Washington Post Story
What is stopping millions of permanent residents from naturalizing?
commentary from Niskanen Center
Some fun tech tools for teaching citizenship
care of Andrew Shapira
Making Citizenship an Organizing Principle of the US Immigration System
Report from Center for Migration Studies
Lynne is offering a free webinar through New Readers Press
Strategies for helping students at risk of failing the test
GREAT NEWS!
2020 test is recinded
GOOD NEWS FINALLY!
indications that new test will soon be scrapped
Translated test questions
in 9 languages
Fee increase on hold for now
due to court injunction
2020 USCIS Citizenship Instruction Grants Available
(with a big "if")
A Rockier Road to U.S. Citizenship
Findings of a Survey on Changing Naturalization Procedures
Citizenship concerns remain as immigration agency reopens
News article from AP
2020 State of New American Citizenship Report
(report care of Boundless)
York County (PA) to hold small, outdoor naturalization ceremony after pause due to coronavirus
(will we see more of these in other locations?)
USCIS Should Hold Remote Naturalization Ceremonies During the COVID-19 Crisis
--commentary from the Niskanen Center
US Immigration Offices Are Going To Temporarily Close Due To The Coronavirus Pandemic
The move will postpone naturalization ceremonies and citizenship and asylum interviews, among other functions.
Two stories in the news today:
DHS’s new "Denaturalization Section" and 10% of potential voters are now naturalized citizens
USCIS Fee Increase Proposed Rule Could Represent the Latest Step in Reshaping Immigration to United States
MPI issues commentary
USCIS Fee Hike: How Immigrants Are Affected
Helpful new report reveals what USCIS’s proposed fee increases mean for immigrants
Judge Blocks DHS From Implementing Unlawful Restrictions to Citizenship and Immigration Applications
USCIS changes to fee waiver process foreclosed citizenship for some low-income applicants and barred others from immigration opportunities
Members of Congress Call on Trump Administration to Abandon Fee Hikes for Immigrants Applying for Citizenship
(News article from Forest Hills Post)
Study: New citizens could swing battleground states in 2020
A progressive group shines a spotlight on a potentially potent voting bloc, but activists say Democrats are failing to mobilize it.
Webinar from CLINIC
Responding the USCIS Fee Changes: How to Fight Back and Prepare Your Program for What’s Ahead
Statements and Fact Sheet on Fee Increase and Elimination of Fee Waivers
from NALEO, AILA, and One America
Opinion: Trump’s latest anti-immigrant move: Making it far more costly to apply for citizenship
from LA Times
USCIS nearly doubling the citizenship application fee
(and this increase is on the fast track)
Applicants Will No Longer Be Able To Use Means-Test Benefits to Qualify for Fee Waivers
USCIS Claims That Revised Criteria Provides “Clarity” for Demonstrating Eligibility
LAWSUIT FORTHCOMING TO CHALLENGE DHS BARRIERS DESIGNED TO PREVENT LEGAL IMMIGRANTS FROM BECOMING CITIZENS
USCIS changes to naturalization fee waiver process forecloses citizenship for some low-income applicants
USCIS Awards FY 2019 Citizenship and Assimilation Grants
Nearly $10 Million Will Expand Citizenship Preparation Services in 24 States
Civil Servants Who Process Immigration Applications Are Being Asked To Help ICE Instead
(in the run-up to a national election)
USCIS shifting caseloads to alternate cities
move will impact wait times
New Campaign to Activate One Million to Submit their Citizenship Applications
Through the National Partnership for New Americans
Trump Administration
(forwarded message from National Partnership for New Americans)
New Report: It’s Harder Than Ever To Become A Citizen
via Boundless Immigration
We must not close the door to new American citizens
via The Hill
Article on societal and intergenerational benefits of citizenship
via Common Dreams
Applicants may soon have to deal with a cumbersome document-gathering process in order to submit N-400’s
CLINIC weighs in with concerns
Trump administration is ramping up de-naturalization efforts, something once almost unheard of
a long, and very concerning NYT Magazine article
Netflix premiers documentary about immigrants attaining citizenship
"Out of Many, One"
USCIS Announces Citizenship and Assimilation Grant Opportunities
USCIS funding for citizenship classes available
Naturalization Backlog Is Growing
NPNA is pushing back
New USCIS policy results in canceled oath ceremony
(a sign of things to come?)
NPNA: Naturalization Backlog Up 100.05% In in Two Years
2 million immigrants apply to naturalize, 734,000 stuck in the pipeline
Lifting barriers to citizenship for low-income immigrants
report from Stanford University
Naturalization numbers up
report from the Pew Research Center
Online filing for N-400 is not going well
Says Inspector General
Whiskey ad features citizenship test question
JOHNNIE WALKER ASKS, COULD THE AVERAGE AMERICAN PASS A CITIZENSHIP TEST?
Opportunity to comment at USCIS
my idea on language access and the N-400
USCIS $$ available for small CBO’s to offer citizenship instruction
but note the very short deadline: Aug. 6!
Fake [Naturalization] News
(on Fox, where else?)
NPNA Statement on Trump Nominee for USCIS Director
(forwarded from National Partnership for New Americans)
Some N-400’s Going to a New Address
please check to see if your state has been shifted to a different processing center
Inspired by Trump, more immigrants rush to become U.S. citizens
applications up by almost 30%
2015 US Naturalizations: Annual Flow Report
from the Office of Immigration Statistics
Delayed Oath Ceremonies
caused by coding error at USCIS
USCIS announces this year’s Citizenship and Integration Grants awards
recipients are small community-based organizations this year
The (already too high) application fee is going up!
after Dec. 23rd it’ll be $725 (but there’s a new reduced fee option)
More on the Election Year Backlog
NBC news story
Over Half a Million Immigrant Voters Potentially Disenfranchised
Critical Report from National Partnership for New Americans
Backlog means many new citizens won’t get there in time to vote
New York Times Story
N-400 applications: no need to send photos any more!
change starts immediately
National Citizenship Drive Succeeding
Naturalizations up 32% so far this year...in time for new citizens to vote!
Latest Naturalization Trends Report
from Migration Policy Institute
NaturalizeNY
$1.25 Million Investment Will Offset Financial Costs and Help Reduce the Barriers For Immigrants to Become U.S. Citizens
Bipartisan House group asks for lower immigration fees
(news article from The Hill)
You want to become a citizen? Spy on your friends (or else!)
BuzzFeed investigation turns up a disturbing trend
Naturalizations up 28% (in time for November elections)
news from the The National Partnership for New Americans
Application fee is going up again
BUT a new partial fee waiver will be available
Citizenship applications may be flagged based on religion
(ever heard of "CARPP"?)
New N-400 form released today
Still paper-based (but electronic submission may be coming)
USCIS Citizenship Grant Program
attend this teleconference to learn how to apply
Elements of Program Quality for Adult Citizenship Education
4/5 webinar from the Office of Citizenship
Donald Trump’s remarks spur Latino ’naturalization blitz’ before election
Citizenship clinics being organized in battleground states
When immigrants become citizens, cities benefit
Urban Institute study shows it’s a "win-win" for cities
Citizenship students and new citizens can participate in USCIS New Year’s video greeting!
send in a video of yourself wishing the world a happy new year
U.S. presidential hopeful Clinton calls for easier naturalization
News story from Reuters.com
New National Campaign Urges Legal Residents to Naturalize, Vote
(NBC News story)
Pay the fee by credit card! New resources and outreach!
additional USCIS offices to be located outside of major cities
Concerns about EL/Civics and changing WIOA Regs
Join this MPI webinar for more info
Indicted FIFA Exec Allegedly Faked “Severe Dementia” to Avoid U.S. Citizenship Test
(you can’t make stuff like this up)
Asian Immigrants Becoming US Citizens at High Rate
from New American Media
LA Times editorial nails it
and a bonus piece from The Hill
Free Webinar: Reducing Barriers to Citizenship
from National Partnership for New Americans
Cities for Citizenship
11 cities are now actively promoting citizenship
New Americans Tour Launches In Philadelphia
provides context for understanding test questions
Why reject US citizenship?
Some eligible immigrants point to language, costs, return plans
New Americans in the Voting Booth: The Growing Electoral Power of Immigrant Communities
a new report from the American Immigration Council
Cities for Citizenship
NYC, LA, and Chicago announce new initiative
Volunteer Training Self-Study Modules
available on USCIS website
Lawsuit Charges Feds Block Muslims From Citizenship
thousands denied citizenship with no means to appeal
US Conference of Mayors resolution calls for proactive USCIS and DHS policy changes
fee reduction urged
2013 Anual Flow Report
see the latest naturalization statistics from DHS
’’Filing Tips’’ for N-400 and fee waivers
Very useful information here!
Citizenship Advocates Join With Labor Unions
promoting citizenship to immigrant workers
The New Edition of
you can order it now and get a big discount (on anything in the series)
Why do they ask that?!
disclosing a crime for which one has not been arrested
Share your ideas at the USCIS
a rare opportunity to make suggestions--take advantage of this!
2014 Citizenship and Integration Grants
USCIS accepting proposals from citizenship prep. programs until May 16th
N-400 Translations in Spanish, Vietnamese & Chinese
some VERY helpful tools available now, thanks to ILRC
Motor Voter Checkbox Confuses Immigrants
(and an unintentional error can get them deported!)
New (much longer) N-400 released
older version accepted until May 5th
The Economic Case for a Clear, Quick Pathway to Citizenship
From the Center for American Progress
Age at Which Immigrants Naturalize May Determine Health Outcomes In Later Life
study finds correlation between age at naturalization and health outcomes
PRI is all about citizenship this week
several stories worth checking out (audio and text)
USCIS Uploads Video of the Oath of Allegiance
(and a list of this year’s USCIS grant awards)
3 Naturalization-Related News Stories
Secret Program delays Muslim Applicants, Companies Help Workers to Naturalize, and Some Choose NOT to Naturalize
Why the naturalization fee is so high
TIME explains (without taking sides)
Family gets into car crash on the way to their oath ceremony
USCIS finds them in the hospital and swears them in anyway!
USCIS Citizenship Grant Program now taking proposals
deadline May 22nd
ACLU calls out USCIS for racial/religious discrimination
Blog post: Unequal Access to Citizenship for Muslims
Free Webinar on Mobile Apps for Citizenship
from the New Americans Campaign
Priced Out of Citizenship
NYT opinion piece by Rahm Emanuel and Luis Gutierrez
Learn how to create citizenship partnerships with government leaders and institutions
Free webinar from the New Americans Campaign
Public Comments on the New N-400
many ideas offered by individuals and groups around the country
New Americans Being Priced Out of U.S. Citizenship
report demonstrates that the high fee is discouraging potential applicants
New N-400 Citizenship Application on the way
lots of new questions/new vocabulary to teach
Program opens door to citizenship for immigrants
The $20-million New Americans Campaign will hold workshops to help permanent residents in eight U.S. cities fill out applications and prepare for exams.
Problems for new voters
poorly trained poll workers, ID issues cause problems for newly naturalized citizens at the polls
Graph showing naturalization totals from 1910-2011
from Migration Policy Institute
How Illegal Voting Can Affect One’s Naturalization Application
Free podcast from ILRC
How the search for non-citizen voters is harming us a country
Standford Law Review essay
Citizenship in the News
various topics
Latino Leaders Say too Few Green Card Holders Become Citizens
article from Fox News Latino
The Oath, New Voter Registration, Reasons to Naturalize
Here’s an assortment of resources/information I’d like to share
Case Inquiries
some useful information
The New Immigrant Vote
new citizens, voter registration, and the upcoming election
Free webinar on working with older citizenship students
June 28th (take advantage of this great opportunity!)
Financial issues and naturalization
law article with some useful info
What you probably knew already
one in three native-born Americans could not pass the citizenship test
National Citizenship Partnership Launches New Campaign
Building a National Movement for Citizenship
A new round of citizenship grants from USCIS
direct services: citizenship instruction paired with application assistance
USCIS officer presents citizenship certificate to the surgeon who saved her life
a "human interest" story
Michigan State Professor Says the Citizenship Test Lacks Reliability
study suggests that only 10% of questions are performing well
CitizenshipWorks
a great new resource for citizenship applicants/advocates
New Citizens Registering to Vote at Increasingly Higher Rates
according to data analysis from the American Immigration Council
Free online resources at ProLiteracy Ednet
plus a free webinar on promoting citizenship in the media
111-year-old woman becomes a US citizen
second-oldest person ever to be naturalized
Free Citizenship Legal Training for Non-Profit Staff
Offered in San Jose by ILRC and CLINIC
Pass rates have improved with the new citizenship test
new records study shows gains for all demographics in all test areas
Great new program development resource from CLINIC
"Creating A Citizenship Preparation Program"
Citizenship for Older Applicants
USCIS teleconference on Dec. 14th
A Cautionary Tale
old criminal convictions can come back to haunt citizenship applicants
Another Great Training Opportunity from CLINIC
Free webinar: How to Design and Implement a Citizenship Program
Reforming the Naturalization Process
Interesting new policy brief from the National Foundation for American Policy
A Great Training Opportunity from Clinic--don’t miss it!
Free webinar: Strategies for Naturalizing the Most Vulnerable Applicants
N-400 Priority Processing for Certain Non-Citizen SSI Recipient
expedited processing possible for elderly and disabled immigrants in danger of losing benefits
Spotlight on Naturalization Trends
mpi publishes naturalization statistics
Jacksonville woman has bedside oath ceremony
a story that shows what a difference people can make when they care enough to go the extra mile
New Documentary on Naturalization airs on HBO July 4th
Citizen USA: A 50-State Road Trip
Has the recession affected citizenship applications?
Statistics suggest that fewer immigrants can afford the fee
AILA and Partners Help Thousands Apply for Citizenship Today
50 naturalization clinics in 19 states
Basic combat training now includes naturalization
miliary makes it easier and quicker for soldiers to become citizens
2010 Annual Flow Report
characteristics of immigrants naturalized in 2010
Haley Barbour, Slavery, and the Citizenship Test
What was the real cause of the Civil War?
Terrific new resource from APALC
free workbook and videos in several languages
Newsweek asks: How Dumb are We?
Christian Science Monitors has some fun with the question
Competative Grant Opportunities for Citizenship Preparation
USCIS announcement just came out
New form for requesting a disability waiver for citizenship test (N-648)
clearer instructions, new section for interpreters, & doctors can submit electronically
Austin judge grants dying man a last wish: US citizenship
USCIS facilitates quick in-home interview/oath ceremony
Q: What would happen if more Latinos applied for citizenship?
A: They could decide the results of elections in key states
Remember: Naturalization Fee goes up tomorrow
$5 increase
What are the hallmarks of a quality citizenship education program?
Please share your ideas with me
USCIS Debuts New Computerized Naturalization Certificates
improved security features
Implications of USCIS using social networking sites to investigate cases
From the Electronic Frontier Foundation
USCIS looks at applicants' Facebook pages?
FOIA request shows that USCIS is using some new methods to detect fraud
Refugees lose SSI
situation is grim for disabled and elderly who have not yet become citizens
New
"Characteristics of Persons Naturalizing in the United States Between 1980 and 2008"
More on Elderly Refugees Losing SSI
Report from Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Judge makes jury dury no-shows watch a naturalization ceremony
Here's an editorial your citizenship students may enjoy
USCIS puts useful citizenship information all in one place
new on-line resource center is well put-together
USCIS Announces 2010 Citizenship and Integration Grant Program Recipients
$7.8 Million Awarded to Expand Citizenship Preparation Programs for Immigrants
Members of Congress want to swear in new citizens
Bipartison bill introduced in the House by Rep. Jose Serrano
Is Georgia trying to keep new citizens from voting?
Frustrated new citizen tells her story
New Report: Assimilation Today: Latest Immigrants Following in Our History's Footsteps
from the Center for American Progress
Should voting mistake keep an immigrant from attaining citizenship?
Surprise--Faux News doesn't think so
More on elderly/disabled refugees losing SSI
Those who have not filed citizenship applications by 9/30 will lose cash assistance
Some elderly and disabled refugees will soon lose SSI
New York Times editorial suggests removing time limits for naturalization
New features added to USCIS website
case inquiries for delayed N-400's and case status updates in Spanish
2009 Anual Flow Report
USCIS reports on naturalization trends in the previous year
Once again, fees will go up...
...but not for citizenship!
’’A Citizen From Day One’’
Demos report advocates for voter registration opportunities at every oath ceremony
Lawsuit over confiscated/defaced/withheld naturalization certificates
Looks like a naturalization certificate isn't proof enough of legal status for some state bureaucrats...(so, no licenses for people with accents?)
Want to review grant proposals for the Office of Citizenship?
This looks like a great opportunity for citizenship advocates all over the country.
USCIS Announces Citizenship and Integration Grant Opportunities
Funding will expand local capacity to prepare legal residents for citizenship
Will Fees Go Up?
more murmuring...
