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Legal Information: Federal

Immigration

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Laws current as of May 29, 2024

Once I have permanent residency, when can I apply for my citizenship?

If you qualified for VAWA through marriage to an abusive US citizen or due to being the child of an abusive US citizen parent, you can apply for citizenship (naturalization) after having your legal permanent residency for three years.

If you qualified for VAWA through marriage to an abusive legal permanent resident, due to being the child of an abusive legal permanent resident parent, or due to being the parent of an abusive US citizen, you can apply for citizenship (naturalization) after having your legal permanent residency for five years.1

1 See USCIS website & USCIS Interoffice memorandum, 1/27/05

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