Advice Regarding US Naturalization Certificate and Certificate of Citizenship (COC).
Posted - November 14th, 2024
Please Note: We are definitely NOT US immigration experts. The advice on this page is largely derived from an information session by Pro-Bono US immigration attorney Gregory Luce of Adoptee Rights Law. If you have questions, please direct your questions to Gregory Luce. Thank you!
We at Paperslip do however strongly recommend that if you are a Korean Adoptee (or Intercountry Adoptee in general) who has LOST your original Naturalization Certificate OR Certificate of Citizenship (COC) that you apply for a replacement soon. Please note that you only need one or the other, NOT both - please read below for more information.
Below are our notes from the November 14th, 2024 Zoom hosted by Adoptees ON: https://www.adopteeson.com/
Panelist: Gregory Luce, ProBono US Immigration Lawyer at AdopteeRightsLaw.com
Please note that Adoptees ON will upload a recording of the Zoom meeting soon. We will post a link here when it is available.
*IMPORTANT NOTE: If you are NOT Naturalized, please do NOT discuss this with us, or with anyone other than a US immigration lawyer, such as Gregory Luce of Adoptee Rights Law. He works pro-bono and encourages Adoptees to contact him with questions.
Information For Korean Adoptees (And Intercountry Adoptees In General) Who ARE Naturalized, But Who Have LOST Their Original Naturalization Certificate OR Their Certificate of Citizenship (COC).
IMPORTANT TERMS:
First it’s important to define some important TERMS. You do NOT need BOTH a Naturalization Certificate AND a Certificate of Citizenship (COC). You need ONE OR THE OTHER, depending on WHEN and HOW you were adopted to the US. According to Gregory Luce: “The only difference is how you became a citizen. There is no legal difference between the two.”
UPDATE - According to Greg Luce:
”Depending on 1) your year of birth; 2) the date of entry to the United States; and 3) the type of visa used to enter the United States, in general you will already have a:
A. CERTIFICATE OF NATURALIZATION if your parents naturalized you before you were 18 years old (Naturalization has been the only option to obtain citizenship for transnational adoptees who were born on or before February 27, 1983, the vast majority of whom are Korean-born adoptees);
B. CERTIFICATE OF CITIZENSHIP (COC) if you entered the country on an IR-3 or IH-3 visa and you were under 18 as of February 27, 2001. In addition, your adoptive parents may not have received a Certificate of Citizenship automatically---i.e., USCIS began to send them automatically through the mail--after your entry into the if your entry to the United States was prior to approximately 2004. You will need to apply for a Certificate of Citizenship instead, unless your adoptive parents did so already. The vast majority of these intercountry adoptees are Chinese.
C. CERTIFICATE OF CITIZENSHIP (COC) if 1) you entered the country on an IR-4 or IH-4 visa; 2) you were under 18 as of February 27, 2001; 3) your adoptive parents finalized your adoption in state court; and 4) your adoptive parents applied for a certificate of citizenship.
This is only general information and the best advice is to request a free legal screening from the Adoptees United legal clinic---which is overseen by Gregory Luce---to determine your status and whether there are additional steps you may need to take, either to secure citizenship, prove citizenship, or apply for a replacement certificate.”
Link to Adoptees United Legal Clinic
Child Citizenship Act of 2000:
https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/travel-legal-considerations/us-citizenship/child-citizenship-act-of-2000.html
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REPLACEMENT NATURALIZATION CERTIFICATE OR CERTIFICATE OF CITIZENSHIP (COC) DOCUMENTS:
If you have LOST your original Naturalization Certificate or Certificate of Citizenship, you can apply for a replacement.
Please see this page:
N-565, Application for Replacement Naturalization/Citizenship Document:
https://www.uscis.gov/n-565
Please see this page to calculate the costs of the replacement document for which you are applying:
Calculate Your Fees:
https://www.uscis.gov/feecalculator?form=n-565
*Select from the dropdown menu on the page above to choose the TYPE of document you are seeking to replace.
*Please note the DIFFERENCE IN FORM NUMBER FOR THE TYPE OF FORM YOU ARE SEEKING TO REPLACE - A Naturalization Certificate OR a Certificate of Citizenship (COC). DO NOT REQUEST A FORM YOU DO NOT NEED, AS THIS WILL BE AN EXPENSIVE MISTAKE FOR WHICH YOU WILL NOT RECEIVE A REFUND!
*IMPORTANT NOTE: Please make VERY sure that you apply for the RIGHT replacement document. It is VERY EXPENSIVE to pay for a replacement Naturalization Certificate. However it is FREE to replace a Certificate of Citizenship (COC) if you are an Intercountry Adoptee! You do NOT need a Naturalization Certificate if you already have a Certificate of Citizenship (COC), or vice versa. Do not pay for something which you do not need! It is up to you to investigate which document for which you will need a replacement.
Question: How much does the replacement Naturalization Certificate or Certificate of Citizenship (COC) / cost?
Gregory Luce says:
If you lose your Naturalization Certificate or Certificate of Citizenship (COC):
There are two downsides to applying for a replacement Naturalization Certificate:
Cost: The cost to replace a Naturalization Certificate is currently $505 unless you can do a fee waiver (on public assistance, or can show low income).
*Please note: The cost should be FREE to get a replacement Certificate of Citizenship (COC), if you are an Intercountry Adoptee.
Time: It takes a year to a year and a half to get a replacement Naturalization Certificate or Certificate of Citizenship (COC).
Upside: If your adoption was finalized in MINNESOTA, there may be funding to help cover the costs of replacement Naturalization Certificate or Certificate of Citizenship (COC)! Please contact www.fosteradoptmn.org for funding information.
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Question: If you have a Naturalization Certificate, do you also need to get a Certificate of Citizenship (COC)?
Gregory Luce says: You cannot have both. Which document you have / need depends on how you got citizenship. You have / need one or the other.
Important Note: A Photocopy Which You Receive Through A FOIA Request Of Your Naturalization Certificate or Certificate of Citizenship (COC) Is NOT Considered A Valid Copy For Legal Purposes.
You Must Apply For An Official Copy Of Your Naturalization Certificate or Certificate of Citizenship (COC) For Legal Purposes IF You Have Lost Your Original Document.
For those who have applied for a FREE FOIA request, there is often a photocopy of your Naturalization Certificate or Certificate of Citizenship (COC) included amongst your FOIA documents. Please note that this does NOT count as an official document for legal purposes. While we strongly encourage Korean Adoptees to file a FREE FOIA request (please read the entire FOIA page linked above BEFORE filing), the photocopies of the Naturalization Certificate or Certificate of Citizenship (COC) are not sufficient for legal purposes. Please read the information above this section to learn how to apply for an OFFICIAL REPLACEMENT document.