Ionelissy

Hi everyone,
we have decided to embark on this journey as most of you did, I've been reading all messages in this forum written since 1st post... all very very useful information;

here's our case:

I am a US citizen who lived 13 years in US and I have 2 kids born outside USA to a foreign mother;

the issue is that me and my spouse (the mother of our kids) we never been married, but we lived together ever since before our kids were born and we're still together...
Will this be a case of children born out of wedlock if both parents always been as a family but just not married? If so, what documentation other than everyone's birth certificate and proof of residency (as a family) may be required?

Also, how and when do we choose what office we want the application to be processed at and to which office we decide to go for the interview.. because I could not find any info regarding this neither on the N-600K form or the Info doc?

Ionelissy

sorry, I have looked again on the N600K form and found the answer to my question regarding the interview location, in Part 7. (Preferred location and date for Interview).

WEBlue

The N600K application only asks for information on marriage(s) of the qualifying US biological parent of the child. That's you. It seems they do not want any info on the biological mother of the child unless she is married to you....

I'm no expert, but I would guess your documentation should be centered around you and why you qualify to pass USC to this child of yours. Proof that you have USC legally (by birth or naturalization), and that you have resided for a minimum of 5 years in the US, with at least 2 of those years coming after the age of 14. And also proof that the child is yours (by birth) & resides in your legal & physical custody outside the US.

Ionelissy

edited below

Ionelissy

also, what kind of proof to bring in order to show legal & physical custody?


I do not quite understand what to show them referring to the below:

"Proof of Legitimation. If the child was born out of wedlock, submit certified evidence establishing the proper legitimation. Documents must establish legitimation according to the laws of the child’s or parent’s residence or domicile. The child must have been in the legal custody of the parents at the time of legitimation."

what exactly to show them as Proof of Legitimation, other than children birth certificates with our names on it and our domicile certificate?

gad33

It will be easier to help you with the question of legitimation if you let us know in which country the children were born in, if you are still living in that country and the nationality of their mother if it is different.

Ionelissy

we live in Spain now, but all of us were born in another European country.....

just read in another forum, that others have shown as proof of Legitimation and custody, their town-hall domicile registration where all family members are listed.

gad33

So you are going to have to find out what the law for legitimacy is in Spain - provide a copy of this with the application (a print out of the Spanish government website will suffice - in English) and if Spain has laws regarding legitimate/illegitimate children and laws for making them legitimate then you will have to follow their procedures and show proof to the US government that you have done this.

If Spain is a country that says there is no difference whether parents are married at time of birth or not then that is the government print out you need.

Ionelissy

gad33 thanks,

before I send in the forms and money order, I will have to wait for the social security earning records which they say it make take up to 120 days,

has anyone requested the social security earning records and could let me know how long did it took to receive them in the mail?

linemwill

Hello everyone,
It is with great delay that I come back here but our appointment in Boston went smoothly and we got back to France with 2 new US citizen ! Yeah !

As Vasileos described it, people at the Boston office were nice. We got there around 10 am and went out a little before 1 pm, which was a bit long for my 2 boys but they managed to stay (rather) quiet :-) I had a long conversation with the officer in charge, who, as part of a casual conversation, seemed to check that everything I put in my file was indeed the truth (family history etc.). She also asked for 1 original document (marriage certificate), I guess just to see if I did bring all the documents along with me.
The certificates were not prepared in advance and she asked for an extra photograph of each kid although there were already 2 in the file (as requested). I was glad I had extra made for the future passports.
This is for my personal experience.

As for now, I'm planning my trip to the US embassy in Paris ( I leave in the Alps) to apply for both passports and SSnumbers. The fee for a 1st passport is about 100€ and I, again, have to attend with both my boys to the appointment (which are on wednesdays only). I thought it would be a little more simple once I got through the whole 'N600K process' but we still have this step to go through to finally get 2 valid passports ! Hopefully by the end of March everything will be in order !

Good luck to all of those who are in the middle of the process !

Ionelissy

did you do an overseas Birth report for your kids prior to applying for their citizenship?... did the officer asked you anything about the kids birth report at the interview?

linemwill

No. As explained earlier on when introducing myself and my personal case, I was born in France and I'm American through my mother and French through my father. My N660k files are based on me being American and on the 25 years my mother (the kids grandmother) lived in the USA.
Both my sons are born in France, from French parents so I did not file for overseas birth reports at the time they were born. In my file I only had their french birth certificates (and translated copies) and the officer didn't ask me anything about overseas birth report.

MamaJuli

Hey guys. I have been reading this thread for months now, ever since I discovered that we could transmit citizenship to my daughter through her grandfather. Im not a US citizen, but my husband is. He however was missing about 11 months of proof of residence in the US. We currently have about 5 years and a half pretty detailed propf of residence for my father in law, along with passport stamps from the 80s and 90s. So Im feeling confident enough to move forward. I am a little anxious to hear all of this talk of eliminating chain immigration. Not sure how it affects the N600K, so we re planning to start as soon as possible with the application. My in laws live in Detroit, and we have already visited so I was thinking we could choose another city to do the paperwork. That way we could get a little vacation as well. Processing speed and assistance from the service center is a big priority for me. Could anyone recommend any locations? We’re considering service centers in NY, Boston, Chicago, and Washington/Seattle. Would doing it away from my in laws’ city of residence prove problematic? My father in law can not leave Detroit for interviews, but from what I have read here, only the parents and child are supposed to be present. Please advice. TIA.

jmpowell

That's correct, the grandparent does not need to be at the interview.
Also, for those asking about SS statements....visit this site...https://www.ssa.gov/ and you can get your online statement.

WEBlue

Thanks so much for sharing this info on your Boston interview, Linemwill. It's great to hear that it all went relatively smoothly--or as smoothly as any kind of time-consuming bureaucratic appointment like this CAN go when you have children in tow....

Congratulations to your sons! And best of luck at your passport appointment in Paris!