CMS and Make the Road NY Host Citizenship Workshop in Jackson Heights

Saturday, October 20th, 2012

On Saturday, CMS teamed up with Make the Road New York (MRNY) for a citizenship workshop at MRNY’s offices in Jackson Heights, Queens. Along with counselors and attorneys from Make the Road NY, CMS staff provided legal assistance to people eligible for U.S. citizenship.

To qualify for citizenship, applicants must:

– Be at least 18 years old

– Be a permanent resident (have a Green Card) for at least 5 years, or 3 years if by marriage

– Meet residence requirements

– Have good moral character for at least 5 years

After screening approximately 60 potential applicants for eligibility, we prepared citizenship applications for those who qualified. At the end of the day, eligible applicants had a complete citizenship application, ready to mail to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the government agency that handles immigration cases. For participants who were not eligible to become citizens due to language barriers, we referred them to organizations that provided English as a Second Language (ESL) courses.

For more information, or if you believe you are eligible for U.S. citizenship, please contact our Queens office (347-472-3500) or our Brooklyn office (718-236-3000).

For more information about Make the Road NY, visit MRNY’s website: http://www.maketheroad.org/

Article by Marisol Canales, Immigration Counselor.