Earlier this month, Congresswoman Jackie Speier and U.S. Citizenship Immigration Services held an information session on naturalization.  The session was targeted at legal permanent residents seeking U.S. citizenship through naturalization.

Congresswoman Speier began the meeting with an explanation of the differences between legal permanent residency and citizenship and the advantages that citizenship provides.  Only citizens of the U.S. are able to vote, work for the U.S. government, run for office, apply for citizenship for family members, use a U.S. passport, and serve on a jury.

USCIS San Francisco Field Office Director Robin Barrett continued the information session with a detailed explanation of the naturalization process.  Barrett explained that the process involves an initial application, passing tests, taking a final oath, and receiving a certificate of citizenship.

To learn more about the naturalization process and to speak with an experienced immigration attorney, contact the Orange County naturalization lawyers of Garg & Associates, P.C. at 949-540-6704 today.

Last week, California Governor Jerry Brown signed the DREAM Act into law in Los Angeles.  The state law is similar to, but separate from, the federal version of the DREAM Act.

The new law allows children of illegal immigrants to become citizens of the United States through higher education or service in the military.

The law was built off of California’s previous law that enabled children of illegal immigrants to obtain in-state tuition at state schools if they attended high school in California for at least three years.  However, the original version of the law did not specify anything about immigration status.

The DREAM Act will go into effect on January 1, 2012.

If you are seeking citizenship and have questions about the process, contact the Orange County naturalization lawyers of Garg & Associates, P.C. at 800-242-2151 to speak with an experienced immigration attorney today.

In celebration of the Fourth of July, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services held naturalization ceremonies all over the country between June 27 and July 4.  In the approximately 350 ceremonies, more than 24,000 people became U.S. citizens.

According to the Department of Homeland Security, approximately 8 million of the 12.5 million people living as permanent residents in the United States are eligible to apply for naturalization.  In May, USCIS launched a campaign to inform residents of their rights to citizenship and the benefits of becoming a U.S. citizen.

About 680,000 people are naturalized in the U.S. every year.

Contact the Orange County naturalization lawyers of Garg & Associates, P.C. at 949-540-6704 today, if you or someone you love needs assistance filing for naturalization.

This year is the nation’s 234th anniversary of the creation of the American Flag.  In order to celebrate this year’s Flag Day, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services held naturalization ceremonies from June 10th to June 17th in locations across the country.

“Flag Day is a time to honor America and celebrate our heritage … We are a nation of immigrants and on this day it is especially meaningful to welcome new citizens, people from all over the world who help define the United States as the world’s beacon of hope and opportunity,” said USCIS director Alejandro Mayorkas.

Mayorkas attended two of the citizenship ceremonies and administered the Oath of Allegience to a total of 45 new citizens.

If you or someone you know has questions about the naturalization process, contact the Orange County naturalization lawyers of Garg & Associates, P.C. at 949-540-6704 and let us help you today.

The Office of Citizenship at the United States Citizenship Immigration Services is beginning a campaign of advertisements to encourage immigrants to become U.S. citizens through naturalization.  An estimated 7.9 million immigrants in the United States are eligible to apply for naturalization.

Advertisements will be run in radio, print, and digital media and will be focused in California, Texas, New York, and Florida.  The advertisements will feature personal stories of immigrants who have gone through the naturalization process to become U.S. citizens.  The campaign begins on March 30th and will run through Labor Day.

A USCIS spokesperson said that this is agency’s first effort to advertise and campaign for immigrants to consider naturalization.  The promotion was approved under an $11 million plan by Congress to increase immigration integration in the U.S.

If you or someone you know would like to become a U.S. citizen and needs assistance in the naturalization application process, contact the Orange County naturalization lawyers of Garg & Associates, P.C. at 949-540-6704 and set up an appointment to meet with one of our experienced immigration attorneys.

This week, Congress reintroduced the DREAM Act, a day after President Obama delivered a speech on immigration reform in El Paso.  The President asked Congress to work together and pass the act and said, “We should stop punishing innocent young people for the actions of their parents.  We should stop denying them the chance to earn an education or serve in the military.”

The original DREAM Act was passed through the House, but failed in the Senate last December.  The new measure allows people to gain legal status if they came to the U.S. at the age of 15-years old or younger, have had a continuous presence in the U.S. for at least 5 years, graduated from high school or obtained a GED, and completed two years or college or military service.

To discuss becoming a naturalized citizen of the United States, contact the Orange County naturalization lawyers of Garg & Associates P.C. at 800-242-2151 today.

According to figures from the Department of Homeland Security, Armenians are one of the fasted growing groups of people to become naturalized in Southern California.  A spokeswoman for the department said that Armenia is often in the top ten countries of origin of people becoming naturalized in ceremonies in Los Angeles.

In March, over 4,000 people were naturalized in Los Angeles and Southern California.  The most common countries of origin among people being naturalized were Armenia, Mexico, China, the Philippines, Iran, and El Salvador.  From 2000 to 2004, the Department of Homeland Security shows an average of 1,600 Armenians becoming naturalized a year.  This average increased to 4,000 between 2005 and 2009.

If you or someone you know wants to learn more about becoming naturalized, contact the Orange County naturalization lawyers of Garg & Associates, P.C. at 949-540-6704 and set up an appointment to meet with us today.

This past weekend, 4,039 people became citizens of the United States of America at Fairplex Exhibition Hall in Southern California.  Judge Virginia Phillips presided over the process.  Over the past year, almost 66,000 people living as permanent residents of the U.S. have officially become citizens in the Southern California seven-country district including Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Riverside counties.

The new citizens were informed after the ceremony that they were now able to obtain a passport and register to vote.  In addition, they were informed that they must surrender their green cards granting them permanent residency and update their Social Security status.

Out of the group to become citizens, 962 were originally from Mexico, 460 were from the Philippines, 260 were from Vietnam, 205 were from China and 203 came to the U.S. from Iran.  At the end of the ceremony, the group watched a video-recorded message from President Obama telling them, “This is officially your country.  Always remember, no dream in America is impossible.”

If you or someone you know would like to apply to become a citizen of the United States, contact the Orange County naturalization lawyers of Garg & Associates P.C. at 949-540-6704 to set up an appointment to discuss naturalization in Orange County with an experienced immigration attorney.

According to the Pew Hispanic Center, a nonpartisan research organization in Washington, the number of illegal immigrants living in the United States stayed about the same in 2010 as in 2009.  Their recent report states that approximately 11.2 million illegal immigrants are currently living in the U.S..

In addition, the total number of illegal immigrants in the American workforce stayed about the same at 8 million.  The Pew Report says that 58 percent of illegal immigrants emigrated from Mexico and 81 percent of illegal immigrants are from Mexico or other Latin American countries.

Also unchanged, about 350,000 babies with at least one illegal parent were born in the United States in 2010.  Overall, there are about 4.5 million U.S. citizens with at least one parent that is an illegal immigrant.

Contact the Orange County naturalization lawyers of Garg & Associates P.C. at 949-540-6704 if you or someone you love is interested in becoming a citizen of the United States of America.