Is My Fiancee A Citizen?

Question

My fiancée was adopted in September of 2000, at 15 years of age, by two US Citizens. At the time, she was a citizen of Indonesia, in the country legally on a current B2 Visa. She immediately became a permanent resident, and is currently in possession of her Green Card.

My question is, does the Child Citizenship Act of 2000 make her a citizen of the United States, and if so, how should she go about getting this recognized by the INS?

Thanks for any help you can give me.

Answer 1

No, your fiancee does not qualify for the Child Citizenship Act since she did not enter the US as an immigrant and she became a permanent resident before the Act came into effect in February of 2001. But if she has lived in the US for five years, she can apply for citizenship now.

Here is the process:
http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=ce2b2cd1f7e9e010VgnVCM1000000ecd190aRCRD&vgnextchannel=96719c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD

and here is information on the Child Citizenship Act:
http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=1fb596981298d010VgnVCM10000048f3d6a1RCRD&vgnextchannel=d6f4194d3e88d010VgnVCM10000048f3d6a1RCRD

Answer 2

This has a pretty length explanation, but it's done by a lawyer, so it's more than likely factually accurate:

http://adoptkorea.tripod.com/citizenship_act_update.htm

And the INS (Now called the USCIS), has more info on their website:

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis

Answer 3

Best advice I can give you is to either talk to a lawyer or an INS rep. Visit ww.ins.gov for their contact info.

Answer 4

Thats a tough one. You better go to a government web site and ask an expert in this area. If you email or talk to them they will probably know what to do.