Who issues naturalization certificate

The certificate serves as proof that the person whose name and photo the form bears has obtained U. Naturalization is the process by which U.

The process involves filling out and submitting U. Once approved and sworn in at an oath ceremony, they are officially U. No, people who become naturalized citizens will automatically be given a certificate of naturalization at their swearing-in ceremony. You will, however, separately need to apply for a U. This will be an important document to have if you travel outside the United States. It is also easier to carry around with you than the naturalization certificate especially if you decide to frame the certificate.

You should be given an opportunity to fill out an application for a U. Normally, you must mail the form, along with a letter explaining your request and requesting for a confirmation receipt.

In order to visit the U. If you were naturalized through the Maryland office, but now live out-of-state, you should use the USCIS office in your new state, not Maryland. The Court maintains copies of Petitions for Name Change dating back to In making your request, you must provide the date you were naturalized in order for us to find your Petition. This information is on your Certificate of Naturalization. Records of name changes dated prior to can be requested through the National Archives branch in Philadelphia.

Certificates of citizenship were issued by the Federal courts until October when naturalization became an administrative function under the INS. Online Indexes and Finding Aids Please Note : If a name index is not available online, researchers should contact the National Archives facility serving the state in which the petitioner resided as many indexes exist only in the research room. Now you can order copies of naturalization records online through the OrderOnline system!

Top Skip to main content. Naturalization Quick Reference. Naturalization records dated prior to October from the Federal courts are at the National Archives. In most cases, the National Archives will not have a copy of the certificate of citizenship granted to a petitioner — our holdings normally include only the declaration of intention with any accompanying certificate of arrival and petition for naturalization.

Naturalization records from state or local courts are often at state archives or county historical societies. For More Information. Hickey For more detailed information about naturalization laws and procedures , consult: Kettner, James H. The colony where the immigrant was living had jurisdiction over naturalizations. An immigrant may have completed naturalization proceedings through any of 5, federal, state, or local courts that had the authority to grant citizenship.

Naturalization proceedings could happen in county, superior or common pleas courts, or in state and U. Although, numerous courts could naturalize, including municipal, police, criminal, chancery, probate, surrogate and marine. You need to search the records of all of the courts covering an area to make sure you have exhausted your search. You may need to search the records of each place where your immigrant ancestor lived to locate both naturalization records.

He may have filed the declaration of intention in one court in one state and filed the petition several years later in another court and state. Making a timeline of your ancestor to see where they lived helps in narrowing your search. Search first the place the immigrant first lived in the US. Then search the place they were living five years later for the petition.

Beginning in September , the federal government began regulating the naturalization process. Only these forms could be used and the Bureau controlled the number of courts able to naturalize by controlling distribution of the forms. However, both state and federal courts were allowed to naturalize. The Declaration of Intent Form was completed in triplicate. The court kept the original and gave copies to the applicant and the Bureau. The applicant was to use the declaration to apply for the petition.

If the declaration is still in possession of the family, the immigrant probably did not complete the process and was not a citizen. The Certificate of Naturalization Form was given to the new citizen and a stub of the Certificate was kept in the court to prove it was issued. A duplicate of the petition was sent to the INS.

In , the INS changed the forms and required photographs of the applicants. Because the new forms were not distributed immediately, many state courts ceased naturalizing. However, naturalizations were still taking place in local county courts as well as federal courts after , and the records of any court still naturalizing should be consulted to locate your ancestor's records. Immigrants could naturalize in any court that performed naturalizations.

That included city, county, state and federal courts. After , federal courts naturalized many immigrants, however, other local courts continued to naturalize as late as Check all possible courts in the area your ancestor lived.

Begin by looking for naturalization records in the courts of the county or city where the immigrant lived. Look first for the petition second papers , because they are usually easier to find in courts near where the immigrant eventually settled. After , the declaration can be filed with the petition as the immigrant was required to submit a copy when he submitted the petition.

Because immigrants were allowed to naturalize in any court, they often selected the most convenient court. If an immigrant lived on the border of a county, they may have naturalized in the adjacent county because the courthouse may have been closer.

One federal court that may contain your ancestor's naturalization records is the District Court. However, to search the these records you must first determine the correct district court. You must know the county your ancestor resided in. There are many online resources available for researching naturalization records.

These online resources include naturalization indexes as well as digital images of naturalization records. Naturalization records at the library are listed in the Place Search of the FamilySearch Catalog under one of the following:. In some states, naturalization records are included in other court records and are not separately identified. Search the Wiki for the name of the state and the word "naturalization" to help you locate these records. The clerk of the court where the immigrant was naturalized may still have the original records.

Some copies of court naturalization records have been transferred to National Archives regional branches. National Archive regional branches have websites that often state which naturalization records they have available. To locate the regional branch covering the location of the court where the naturalization document was filed, click here. The following records can be requested online or by mail :. When ordering by mail, use forms G for an index search and Ga for obtaining the record.

Do not submit a request for records until you have completed an index search. When ordering on-line, begin with a valid file number. Then make a request on-line.

Once the form is filled out, include a money order or cashier's check. Cash or a personal check will not be accepted. There are no refunds for incorrect file numbers submitted or for negative results.