DERIVATIVE CITIZENSHIP WIN (Respondent convicted of an aggravated felony and sentenced to ten 10 years in state prison obtained citizenship)​

Respondent, native and citizen of Mexico, was convicted of an aggravated felony- conspiracy to sell drugs- and sentenced to 10 years in state prison. A year prior to completing his term, our office was contacted by his family members to determine whether Respondent had any immigration relief. After an extensive consultation, our office determined that Respondent was a derivative citizen because of his Grandmother’s birth in the U.S.

Our office immediately gathered all relevant documentation, and filed for his Naturalization in 2010. Immigration officers misplaced Respondent’s file, but our office was able to trace the money order used to pay for the application to prove that in fact it was cashed by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services office at Los Angeles five days after the application was filed.

Ms. Arzani made several trips to Los Angeles to locate Respondent’s file. Since Respondent was incarcerated in Texas, a request was made to transfer his file to Texas.

Due to the complexity of this case, it took some time before Respondent’s N-600 application was approved. Respondent’s application was approved prior to his release from state prison. Therefore, Respondent was immediately released after serving his time, and not placed on immigration hold. Now, Respondent awaits the issuance of his certificate of citizenship.

This case is a prime example of the issues with unraveling government bureaucracies and procedures, as well as, hiring a competent, experienced attorney that looks for all avenues of relief beyond the face of what is immediately apparent. At a first glance, Respondent had absolutely no relief, but a more in depth analysis revealed that Respondent was a derivative citizen given his grandmother’s birth in the U.S.