American Citizenship For Thai Wife

[Old Man River]

I ran into a guy last week who has a problem which someone might know the answer to. He was born in and grew up in the US of Thai parentage and as an adult has moved to Thailand and married a local. He has since had several kids. He and his kids are all US citizens, but his Thai wife is not. As far as we know, US law requires an alien to live in the US for 5 years before applying for US citizenship. His family are happy in Thailand and have no desire to move to the US.

Is there any way for his Thai wife to gain US citizenship without living in the US for 5 years?

[ChalongBoy]

acsbkk(at)state.gov

American Cit Ser will be more that happy to promptly return your email. Probably just a visit or two the the U.S. Embassy on Wireless in BKK. Remember to show you passport to security as you become next in line, often infront of a few hundred! Yes, you can bring the clan in with you! Bring their Passports and Madam's ID card. I' ve never had anything but to shelf service either by e-mail or during a visit! They'll ask that you make an appointment online etc but that works well. Those without appts wait a bit longer. Also, you might inquire about the out reach services. They set up office in various places from time to time and I'm sure you business can be handled there!

Regards, Fellow American!

amer.bmp

amer.bmp

amer.bmp

Edited September 25, 2009 by Mario2008

[Old Man River]

[email protected]

American Cit Ser will be more that happy to promptly return your email. Probably just a visit or two the the U.S. Embassy on Wireless in BKK. Remember to show you passport to security as you become next in line, often infront of a few hundred! Yes, you can bring the clan in with you! Bring their Passports and Madam's ID card. I' ve never had anything but to shelf service either by e-mail or during a visit! They'll ask that you make an appointment online etc but that works well. Those without appts wait a bit longer. Also, you might inquire about the out reach services. They set up office in various places from time to time and I'm sure you business can be handled there!

Regards, Fellow American!

amer.bmp

Actually, this is one of those rare cases where "I ran into a guy" really is a case of I ran into a guy (my wife is already a Thai/American dual - we met in the US).

I met this guy at a school function last week and after we talked for awhile, he explained this situation to me and somehow it all sounded like there must be a way around a wife having to live in the US when the rest of the family already are US citizens.

I will pass your info on to this other fellow American.

Thanks for the info.

All the best,

OMR.

[DirectorIntegrityLegal]

If the wife in question was not born: to at least one American Citizen parent or in the United States then she is likely not entitled to US Citizenship by birth. That being said, the US Citizen husband can submit an I-130 application for his wife which, if approved, would grant her Lawful Permanent Residence (LPR) in the United States. He needs to have a bona fide intention to take up residence in the USA again and if he has been resident in Thailand for a year or more then he would be eligible to submit a petition locally.

In most cases, where a foreign national wishes to naturalize to American Citizenship, they must wait 5 years in lawful permanent resident status. However, if the applicant's status is based upon marriage to a US Citizen, then the applicant may apply for naturalization after 3 years in LPR status. There is a physical presence requirement which stipulates that the applicant must have been physically present in the US for a minimum of 18 aggregate months at the time he or she submits the application for naturalization.

Hope this was helpful and best of luck to your friend!

[thaihome]

If the husband is working for a qualified US company or the government on assignment abroad, the residency requirement is waived. The wife must still go through the permanent resident process first and take the citizenship test in the US.

TH

Spouses of U.S. Citizens Employed Abroad

Generally, the spouse of a U.S. citizen who is employed by the U.S. government, including the military, or other qualifying employer, whose spouse is stationed abroad in such employment for at least 1 year, may be eligible for naturalization under Section 319( of the INA.

In general, a spouse of a U.S. citizen employed abroad must be present in the United States pursuant to a lawful admission for permanent residence at the time of examination on the naturalization application and at the time of naturalization, and meet of all of the requirements listed above except that:

No specific period as a permanent resident (green card holder) is required (but the spouse must be a permanent resident)

No specific period of continuous residence or physical presence in the United States is required

No specific period of marital union is required; however, the spouses must be living in marital union.

Note: You must also establish that you will depart abroad immediately after naturalization and that you intend to reside in the United States immediately upon the termination of your spouse’s employment abroad.

[Old Man River]

If the husband is working for a qualified US company or the government on assignment abroad, the residency requirement is waived. The wife must still go through the permanent resident process first and take the citizenship test in the US.

TH

Spouses of U.S. Citizens Employed Abroad

Generally, the spouse of a U.S. citizen who is employed by the U.S. government, including the military, or other qualifying employer, whose spouse is stationed abroad in such employment for at least 1 year, may be eligible for naturalization under Section 319( of the INA.

In general, a spouse of a U.S. citizen employed abroad must be present in the United States pursuant to a lawful admission for permanent residence at the time of examination on the naturalization application and at the time of naturalization, and meet of all of the requirements listed above except that:

No specific period as a permanent resident (green card holder) is required (but the spouse must be a permanent resident)

No specific period of continuous residence or physical presence in the United States is required

No specific period of marital union is required; however, the spouses must be living in marital union.

Note: You must also establish that you will depart abroad immediately after naturalization and that you intend to reside in the United States immediately upon the termination of your spouse’s employment abroad.

That is interesting. I don't know his situation, but will pass this and the other's advice on to him today.

Thanks.

[DirectorIntegrityLegal]

If the husband is working for a qualified US company or the government on assignment abroad, the residency requirement is waived. The wife must still go through the permanent resident process first and take the citizenship test in the US.

TH

Spouses of U.S. Citizens Employed Abroad

Generally, the spouse of a U.S. citizen who is employed by the U.S. government, including the military, or other qualifying employer, whose spouse is stationed abroad in such employment for at least 1 year, may be eligible for naturalization under Section 319( of the INA.

In general, a spouse of a U.S. citizen employed abroad must be present in the United States pursuant to a lawful admission for permanent residence at the time of examination on the naturalization application and at the time of naturalization, and meet of all of the requirements listed above except that:

No specific period as a permanent resident (green card holder) is required (but the spouse must be a permanent resident)

No specific period of continuous residence or physical presence in the United States is required

No specific period of marital union is required; however, the spouses must be living in marital union.

Note: You must also establish that you will depart abroad immediately after naturalization and that you intend to reside in the United States immediately upon the termination of your spouse's employment abroad.

ThaiHome,

Good Call on this. Some jobs that may at first glance seem unconnected to the US government might fit under the "other qualifying employer" definition, but further research may be required of the US Citizen.

[thaisail]

If the husband is working for a qualified US company or the government on assignment abroad, the residency requirement is waived. The wife must still go through the permanent resident process first and take the citizenship test in the US.

TH

Spouses of U.S. Citizens Employed Abroad

Generally, the spouse of a U.S. citizen who is employed by the U.S. government, including the military, or other qualifying employer, whose spouse is stationed abroad in such employment for at least 1 year, may be eligible for naturalization under Section 319( of the INA.

In general, a spouse of a U.S. citizen employed abroad must be present in the United States pursuant to a lawful admission for permanent residence at the time of examination on the naturalization application and at the time of naturalization, and meet of all of the requirements listed above except that:

No specific period as a permanent resident (green card holder) is required (but the spouse must be a permanent resident)

No specific period of continuous residence or physical presence in the United States is required

No specific period of marital union is required; however, the spouses must be living in marital union.

Note: You must also establish that you will depart abroad immediately after naturalization and that you intend to reside in the United States immediately upon the termination of your spouse's employment abroad.

ThaiHome,

Good Call on this. Some jobs that may at first glance seem unconnected to the US government might fit under the "other qualifying employer" definition, but further research may be required of the US Citizen.

There is one more way that a Thai wife can get US citizenship without living in the US. This is actually still on the law books if anyone cares to look this up. If you own a US documented boat and you both live aboard the boat, that time aboard will count toward US citizenship. However, his Thai wife, would have to get US residence first. But once she has the green card, they would both have to live aboard the US flagged boat in Thailand and document this with crew lists and entries, say in and out of Malaysia. I know someone who has done all of this with his Filipino wife and has gone to the states to get her citizenship after living on the boat together for at least 3 years. I have not yet hear the results of this but I suspect that it would have worked as I have seen the law in writing.

[thaihome]

... Some jobs that may at first glance seem unconnected to the US government might fit under the "other qualifying employer" definition, but further research may be required of the US Citizen.

Working for a US company doing business overseas will often qualify. I know two people working for the same company I work for, one here in Thailand and another in China, that has used this to get their wives’ citizenship within a year of getting the green card. All done while on overseas assignment. Note that it required several trips to the US, once for the getting the green card on entry (they filed I-130 overseas), again to take the test, and again for the swearing in. Both employed lawyers in the US to handle the paperwork there. The company is a large US based multi national.

TH

[crocodilexp]

As far as we know, US law requires an alien to live in the US for 5 years before applying for US citizenship. His family are happy in Thailand and have no desire to move to the US. Is there any way for his Thai wife to gain US citizenship without living in the US for 5 years?

I'll try to give a brief and clear answer. Below is NOT legal advice, of course, double-check the facts.

Summary: she can get a citizenship with physically being in the U.S. for 18 months.

Process for the wife would go like this:

1. Get an Immigrant Visa (IR1 or CR1). To do this, the husband should file a petition with State Department, they take a while to approve (6-24 months, I think). Then, they apply to an embassy to issue it.

2. Travel to the U.S. Upon entry, the wife gets the conditional permanent resident status (green card) based on the immigrant visa. Condition can be removed after 2 years.

3. Wife can apply for citizenship after 3 years as permanent resident. Application can take 3-12 months to process.

To apply for citizenship, wife should physically reside in the U.S. for a while. The actual requirement is 18 months of being there out of 3 years as permanent resident spouse. In addition, she should not be out of the country for over 6 months (continuous residence), and needs to reside for 3 months in a district where she's applying for citizenship.

Double-check, there might be loopholes. Other posters mentioned the route of husband working for "u.s. government or other employer" -- nice to know but might be of limited use.

Consider: why does she want the citizenship without living in the U.S.? It has both advantages and disadvantages. The main advantage is visa-free travel -- unless she travels *very* frequently, the hassle of getting the citizenship is much greater than one of applying for visas. U.S. consular protection is unlikely to apply in Thailand, and she won't get much if anything in benefits from the state. Major disadvantage is that as a U.S. citizen, she must file and pay income taxes to IRS even when working abroad.

Edited September 27, 2009 by crocodilexp

[thaigold]

The question remains. If the family plans to live in the US then he need only to apply for an immigrant visa for his wife. However, the issuance of a green card infers the intention of permanent residency. It is not a free pass for dual residency situations.

It appears that if the family doesn't intend to reside in the US then a 10-year visa would be the choice. As already stated, the application for citizenship requires a fixed term of unbroken residency.

If the wife has no criminal record or diseases barring US entry, then both options are open to the family.

Good luck.

[bkk_mike]

If they're intending to stay in Thailand then there's no need. She should have no problems getting a 10 year multi-entry visa for trips to the US.

And by not getting a green card she remains NOT liable to US taxes (unlike the rest of her family).

She can do the immigration / residency bit if they ever intend to live in the US.

The only downside is the visa requirements for travelling to other countries that would be waived/simpler if she held a US passport (i.e. EU, Australia, Japan, etc.)

[bobsaigon]

Crocodilexp has made a very good point: Consider: why does she want the citizenship without living in the U.S.? It has both advantages and disadvantages. The main advantage is visa-free travel -- unless she travels *very* frequently, the hassle of getting the citizenship is much greater than one of applying for visas. U.S. consular protection is unlikely to apply in Thailand, and she won't get much if anything in benefits from the state. Major disadvantage is that as a U.S. citizen, she must file and pay income taxes to IRS even when working abroad.

Sounds like the lady would have no problem getting the 10 year multiple entry visa.

There might be one other consideration: Have the kids lived in the US for a year before their 18th birthday? Might want to check with the US Consulate to see if that is a requirement for them in order to maintain their US citizenship.

[tripplejjj]

If you are born a US citizen (documented), your citizenship stays with you without having to reside in the US. Once a US citizen, there is no requirement to "maintain" it. As far as I know.

As far as paying US taxes, up to a certain amount of your income is exempted.

Edited September 28, 2009 by tripplejjj

[thaihome]

I would assume the OP’s “friend” is already filing joint returns with his wife having obtained a Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) for her in lieu of a social security number so the tax is a non-issue I would think.

TH

[bobsaigon]

If the kids got US citizenship by being born outside the US to a US citizen parent, it is most likely they will need to reside in the US for a year before their 18th birthday. Certainly should check with the US consulate about this.

[tripplejjj]

If the kids got US citizenship by being born outside the US to a US citizen parent, it is most likely they will need to reside in the US for a year before their 18th birthday. Certainly should check with the US consulate about this.

The source of these articles are not confirmed accurate. But there is no requirement for the kids to reside in the US for a year before their 18th birthday to seal their citizenship.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_nationality_law

http://www.visalaw.com/05jan1/2jan105.html

[Old Man River]

I would assume the OP’s “friend” is already filing joint returns with his wife having obtained a Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) for her in lieu of a social security number so the tax is a non-issue I would think.

TH

Thaihome, it really is the OP's friend, not "friend". Since you and others have given such great advice, I have alerted him to TV and this thread and do hope he is reading it (since I asked this question on his behalf to begin with). From a tax standpoint, I haven't a clue what he does (and don't want to know).

Best regards,

OMR

[DirectorIntegrityLegal]

If a United States Citizen was born in the US (as defined in the United States Immigration and Nationality Act), then his child is automatically a United States Citizen at birth even if born abroad. The diplomatic or consular post in the country abroad needs to be notified and a Consular Report of Birth Abroad should be issued.

However, if that child then has a child abroad then there are physical presence requirements that must be met in order for Citizenship to transmit automatically. That being said, if Citizenship does not transmit automatically, the Citizen parent can file an Immediate relative petition and the moment the child enters the US on an Immigrant visa while accompanying the parent, the child's citizenship vests automatically. The Child can then obtain a Certificate of Citizenship which will act as proof of the Child's Citizenship.

Hopefully this was helpful.

All the Best!