A. Continuous Residence Requirement

An applicant for naturalization under the general provision must have resided continuously in the United States after his or her lawful permanent resident (LPR) admission for at least 5 years prior to filing the naturalization application and up to the time of naturalization. An applicant must also establish that he or she has resided in the state or service district having jurisdiction over the application for 3 months prior to filing.

The concept of continuous residence involves the applicant maintaining a permanent dwelling place in the United States over the period of time required by the statute. The residence in question “is the same as that alien’s domicile, or principal actual dwelling place, without regard to the alien’s intent, and the duration of an alien’s residence in a particular location measured from the moment the alien first establishes residence in that location." Accordingly, the applicant’s residence is generally the applicant’s actual physical location regardless of his or her intentions to claim it as his or her residence.

Certain classes of applicants may be eligible for a reduced period of continuous residence, for constructive continuous residence while outside the United States, or for an exemption from the continuous residence requirement altogether. These classes of applicants include certain military members and certain spouses of U.S. citizens.

The requirements of “continuous residence” and “physical presence” are interrelated but are different requirements. Each requirement must be satisfied (unless otherwise specified) in order for the applicant to be eligible for naturalization.

C. Breaks in Continuous Residence

An applicant for naturalization has the burden of establishing that he or she has complied with the continuous residence requirement, if applicable. Generally, there are two ways outlined in the statute in which the continuity of residence can be broken:

• The applicant is absent from the United States for more than 6 months but less than 1 year; or

• The applicant is absent from the United States for 1 year or more.

An officer may also review whether an applicant with multiple absences of less than 6 months each will be able to satisfy the continuous residence requirement. In some of these cases, an applicant may not be able to establish that his or her principal actual dwelling place is in the United States or establish residence within the United States for the statutorily required period of time.

An LPR’s lengthy or frequent absences from the U.S. can also result in a denial of naturalization due to abandonment of permanent residence.

1. Absence of More than 6 Months (but Less than 1 Year)

An absence of more than 6 months (more than 180 days) but less than 1 year (less than 365 days) during the period for which continuous residence is required (also called “the statutory period”) is presumed to break the continuity of such residence. This includes any absence that takes place during the statutory period before the applicant files the naturalization application and any absence between the filing of the application and the applicant’s admission to citizenship.

An applicant’s intent is not relevant in determining the location of his or her residence. The length of the period of absence from the United States is the defining factor in determining whether the applicant is presumed to have disrupted the continuity of his or her residence.

However, an applicant may overcome the presumption of a break in the continuity of residence by providing evidence to establish that the applicant did not disrupt the continuity of his or her residence. Such evidence may include, but is not limited to, documentation that during the absence:

• The applicant did not terminate his or her employment in the United States or obtain employment while abroad;

• The applicant’s immediate family members remained in the United States; and

• The applicant retained full access to or continued to own or lease a home in the United States.

2. Absence of 1 Year or More

An absence from the United States for a continuous period of 1 year or more (365 days or more) during the period for which continuous residence is required will automatically break the continuity of residence. This applies whether the absence takes place before or after the applicant files the naturalization application.

A. Physical Presence Requirement

An applicant for naturalization is generally required to have been physically present in the United States for at least half the time for which his or her continuous residence is required. Applicants for naturalization under INA 316(a) are required to demonstrate physical presence in the United States for at least 30 months (at least 913 days) before filing the application.

Physical presence refers to the number of days the applicant must physically be present in the United States during the statutory period up to the date of filing for naturalization. The continuous residence and physical presence requirements are interrelated but each must be satisfied for naturalization. 

USCIS will count the day that an applicant departs from the United States and the day he or she returns as days of physical presence within the United States for naturalization purposes.

INA 301(c), 301(g), 316(a), 319, 320

Problems (jus sanguinis)

1. In 2005, US citizen Fred moves to Paris with his parents when he is 15 (his US citizen father and mother took jobs there). Fred ends up going to college in France (so much cheaper!), where he meets his wife, Marie, a citizen of France, and they settle down in France. In 2020, they have a child who is born in Paris. The child will have French citizenship at birth pursuant to French law. Will the child have US citizenship at birth? What else would you need to know by way of answering the question?

2. US citizen Ann was married to a non-citizen Kenyan. In 1961, when Ann was 18, she gave birth to a child in Kenya. In 1961, the predecessor to section 301(g) required physical presence on the part of the citizen parent of 10 years prior to the birth of the child, five of which had to be after the age of 14.  Ann had lived all of her life in the United States. Did the child (say his name was Barack) have US citizenship at birth?

3. U.S. citizen Mary traveled in 2002 to adopt a Cambodian child, Darius, who was admitted as an LPR upon their return to the United States. Mary does nothing subsequently to change the Darius' status. In 2022, he is convicted of grand larceny in a burglary involving property worth $25,000. Assess the implications for his remaining in the United States.

Problems (naturalization)

1. Anabella, a national of France, has been in the United States on an H1B visa for six years (she has been working as an attorney with a large Philadelphia law firm). She likes it here, would like to participate in the political system, and would thus like to become a citizen before her visa expires in August. Advise.

2. Fred was admitted as a permanent resident four years ago. He would like to naturalize so that he can begin the process of securing admission for his noncitizen daughter and her husband. Is he eligible to naturalize? Would it make any difference if he had been admitted as the spouse of a U.S. citizen?