U.S. Citizenship Application and Good Moral Character

Question:

My application for U.S. citizenship was rejected because of "good moral character" issue, such as not support my dependents and missted tax return. What can I do next?

Answer:

Good moral character includes supporting your spouse and dependents. Abandoning your spouse or children do not reflect well on moral character, and it can result in the denial of the application for U.S. citizenship. Many permanent residents are experiencing financial problems that have resulted in foreclosure, bankruptcy, and unpaid debts. The debt alone is not a bar to naturalization. However, there are some financial issues that affect the moral character requirement, and could interfere with their ability to naturalize as a U.S. citizen.

Failure to pay taxes is a common reason to have a Form N-400 denied. If you let USCIS find this problem, you will likely be denied U.S. citizenship application. You can contact a tax adviser that can help you develop a plan to pay the taxes and demonstrate to USCIS that you are fixing the problem. By addressing the problem, most people can continue the naturalization process and avoid an N-400 denial.

Another common issue for N-400 applicants is the willful failure to support or dependents. If an applicant for naturalization has a minor child or children who do not live with the applicant, it is necessary to prove that the applicant is providing adequate financial support. If there is a court order of support, it’s important to have evidence of compliance with that order. An applicant that fails to make timely child support payments could have the Form N-400 denied.

Person in immigration status should realize that a marital termination will have consequences on their status. What is often overlooked is the issue of non-support of his or her spouse. Some angry spouses sometimes may attempt to send the other spouse out of the country, or force them to leave. Sometimes, spouses are tricked into traveling abroad, signing one-sided separation agreements, or are left stranded without documents.

Individuals who behave in this manner generally do not realize that non-support of their spouse or dependents is relevant to their own immigration aspirations in the context of naturalization to U.S. citizenship. Those who wish to naturalize to U.S. citizenship must demonstrate good moral character.