British Expatriate Network

Hi all. I have my greencard so am a permanent resident. Husband is American, my kids were born here. What is the point of me getting my citizenship, apart from being able to vote? What difference does it make to me?

Thanks y'all. Oh, and happy fathers day to you daddy's out there.

8)

Mango, the main benefits of US citizensip that I see is that you are better protected should you get in trouble with the law (even if you are the victim of mistaken identity), and should you want to live outside the US for a few years, you wouldn't have to make a song and dance about getting back in.

But there are drawbacks too - the tax laws when you are living outside the US.

Its a matter of how much control you can get over your own life you gain some *rights * dont lose any but its a long and tedious process and quite expensive ,

travel in and out of us would be easier , you could hold a govt job . sit on any local govering body , have a say in who sits in the white house , and of course serve on a jury ..

Or you can as most permanent alien residence do, live peacefully without hindrence and go about your everyday bisiness with out ever becoming a US citizen .. its just a matter of personal choice really .

I am in the same postition as you. I was told that inheritance taxes would be applicable should hubby pre-decease me (I think that this was wrong, in fact, or only applied to this state). Also we were planning a year in Europe.

The best part of being a citizen is being able to vote - not just nationally, but locally. In fact now that I can have a say in local government, I feel entitled to share my views with my neighbors when it comes to pressing local issues. It makes me feel much more of an equal.

If I choose to do so, I can stay here for the rest of my life without question.

For me it was the thought of never having to deal with INS again. Otheriwse, it's just easier to travel between USA and Europe with less suspicion. Again, if I hadn't got citizenship, I wouldn't now have the enormous scholarship I have for the whole of next year. Most scholarships have citizenship as a requirement. Another thing which may or may not be applicable is the number of jobs which are closed to non-citizens....even working for the postal service (not the crappy band) is closed to non-citizens I believe.

I agree with that!

Yes.
As i pointed out im my post that is a very important part of becoming a citizen , you have much more say in who runs your local community and your vote ( as local elections never seem to atttract more then 10 % of the population ) has very much value .
In our local elections for mayor and a council seat last month the mayor ( new encumbant )got in by 20 votes and the councilperson( new imcumbant )got in by 1 vote .

Actually, some municipalities allow non-citizens to vote in local/education board elections already and more are pushing for this reform.

Until the 1920's, 22 states allowed voting, in everything up to Congressional seats, for non-citzens.

I believe I have been able to vote in local issues since I lived here but haven't bothered.

Regarding travel, I go through the same line with my Green Card as I would with a US passport and it seems to take exactly the same amount of time so no real gain there.

Work-wise, I suppose it is a bit limiting. I've seen some Federal jobs that appealed but required citizenship. Otherwise though, I don't have a problem without citizenship although I think ultimately I will probably get it.

Hey P. care to expand on that?
is the Great Lakes State of Miiiiiiiiiiiiiichigan on that list?

18 U.S.C. § 611 makes it unlawful for an “alien to vote in any election held solely or in part” to elect a candidate for federal office. However, the statute does explicitly permit aliens . . . to vote for [another] purpose under a State constitution or statute or a local ordinance . . . [if] voting for such other purpose is conducted independently of voting for a candidate for. . . [f]ederal offices, in such a manner that an alien has the opportunity to vote for such other purpose, but not an opportunity to vote for a candidate for any one or more of such Federal offices.

The statute does recognize a states’ prerogative to allow alien political participation in state and local matters, but it strongly emphasizes the fact that such participation must be sufficiently removed from the opportunity or ability to participate in federal elections.

I don't know if Michigan was on that list. Right now, I think Maryland has the most cities that allow non citizens to vote in local issues.

As the USC states above, States have a duty to prevent non-citizens from voting in Federal elections but tread a very fine line locally.

Thank you all for your replies. As it stands right now, I cannot imagine me becoming a citizen for a long time, if ever. I will eventually find out about the inheritance taxes. That is the only thing that may prompt me into doing it if it is true.

How long do you need to be a greencard holder b4 you can become a citizen, anyone know? wink Cheers.

You can apply after five years (unless married to a US citizen, then it's 3 years).

My sources tell me that Michigan removed the rights of non-citizens to vote quite early on - during the period 1894-1908 by rewriting its state constitution.

In other words, only three people are actually eligble to vote in Ann Arbor......

Probably - but then the entire US "democratic process" is built upon restricting eligible voters, in order to maintain the status quo. Why else would a self-proclaimed, "free-est nation" stop certain races (at various points in history) and those with a conviction (in several states) from registering to vote?

After all, they can't have massive swings that would come about if anyone remotely eligible actually bothered to vote.

Statistics from the past, limited as they are, sometimes suggest that new immigrants had the most to gain by voting and generally exercised this right with great effect - see New York City - Irish immigrants canvassed as they walked off the boat etc.