Proving relationship's real

Posted Tuesday, July 10th 2007, 4:00 AM

Q What can I do to prove that my relationship with my fiancé is serious and genuine? I am a U.S. citizen. I filed a fiancé(e) visa petition for my husband-to-be in March 2006. We provided all the documents the U.S. consul in Guyana requested. That included photos of us together, greeting cards, copies of phone bills, e-mails and other evidence that we are a couple. The consular officer said the evidence was not sufficient and asked us to a joint interview in Guyana. After the interview, we received a letter asking for even more proof that our relationship is genuine.

Name withheld, Jamaica

A It sounds like you have provided what evidence you can that yours is bona fide relationship. You may want to go to Guyana again and marry your fiancé. Then you can file a family immigration petition for the man who will now be your husband. Once you receive the filing receipt for the petition, you can apply to bring him here on K-3 status for the spouse of a U.S. citizen. That may not convince the U.S. consul, but from what you write, I don't see an alternative.

Passport provides proof

Q I believe that I became a derivative citizen when my parents naturalized. How do I get proof of my U.S. citizenship? I came to New York from Jamaica at the age of 6. I was a permanent resident and not yet 14 years old when my parents naturalized. I have been living here for the past 32 years.

Hugh Stennett, Brooklyn

A From what you write, you are a U.S. citizen. The fastest and easiest proof you can get is a U.S. passport. You apply at U.S. passport processing center. Bring your birth certificate, your parents' marriage certificate and their naturalization certificates.

When a child gets citizenship automatically through a parent, the child need not take a citizenship test nor take the oath of citizenship.

Your U.S. passport should be proof of U.S. citizenship for all purposes. Nevertheless, you may want to get a Certificate of Citizenship.

Some government agencies request the certificate from derivative and naturalized citizens. This typically happens when the citizen applies for federal benefits or for jobs that require U.S. citizenship.

Sometimes the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services wants to see the certificate when U.S. citizens apply for relatives. If you think you may need a certificate, apply using USCIS form N-600, Application for Certificate of Citizenship.

Citizenship through a child

Q Can I get my citizenship through my 5-year-old son, who is a U.S. citizen? I have been in this country for more than five years.

Name withheld, Brooklyn

A Under current law, your son must be at least age 21 to qualify you for permanent residence.

Prior to 1976, immigrants from the Western Hemisphere could qualify for permanent residence based on having a child born here regardless of the child's age. No longer. People often ask whether the government can deport the parent of a U.S. citizen. The answer is yes.

Though immigrants here 10 years or longer may have a defense to deportation (if they can show exceptional and extremely unusual hardship to a U.S. citizen or permanent resident parent, spouse or child), that's a hard test to pass.

What happens to the child if the parents are deported? The child either leaves with the parent, giving up at least temporarily the many benefits of living in the United States as a U.S. citizen, or stays with relatives or enters foster care or an orphanage.
And some say our immigration laws aren't tough enough!

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