We were initially hired to represent a young woman who had been adopted from overseas, but her parents had never finished the process of according her United States Citizenship. In her early twenties, she was arrested and convicted of possession of dangerous drugs and was placed into removal proceedings. She had seen two previous immigration attorneys who told her that they could not help her and that she had no relief. After examining all of her records, we were able to determine that we could apply for a waiver in her case. Once we prevailed on a 212(c) waiver and had her lawful permanent residence restored, we immediately filed for naturalization. We filed the application in December of 2012 and by the first week of February, had an appointment with USCIS in West Palm Beach (less than two months after filing!) Our client had previously applied for and was denied citizenship due to the conviction. We attended the interview, and she passed both the examination and presented the 212(c) waiver that had been granted, along with a certified copy of the conviction. The officer announced that her citizenship would be granted, pending a supervisor approval and that we should have a date within two weeks and she would most likely be sworn in around April. When we had not heard anything after two weeks, we made an Infopass appointment immediately and inquired at the West Palm Beach Field Office, what was happening regarding her decision.

application had been approved