I’ve had my permanent resident card from the time I was 8 up until two months before my 18^th birthday. It didn’t dwell on me since it has been part of me for almost 10 years of my life until six months before it expired.

I was still 17 at the time, but I was emancipated, which allowed me to do my citizenship paperwork as an adult. The first step to becoming a citizen is filing the necessary paperwork. Since I had no idea what I was doing at the time, I went to the Family Liaison at my high school. (A family liaison is like a counselor that helps with non-academic issues.) She emailed me the necessary paperwork I had to do.

My first step was to file an I-90 form which is an application to renew my green card, and I also had to submit an I-912, which is a fee waiver to waive the application fee. For me to qualify for the fee waiver I had to send in my IRS tax information as well as documentation, such as any government assistance I was receiving. I had to write about my financial situation as to why I could not afford the fees to get my green card replaced.

While waiting to receive notifications on my appointment to renew my green card, I filed the form N-400 which is an application to naturalization.

A few weeks after my citizenship expired, I received a letter in the mail with an appointment to get my green card renewed.  I needed to bring documentation such as an expired green card, a state ID and my social security card. When I got to the U.S. Citizen Immigration Service office on Prairie View Road,  I had to be scanned and I had to show a form of ID to gain entrance to the building. After I was clear, I had to sit down and wait until I was called. When I got called, I gave my green card to the immigration officer. He put a green sticker on the back of my green card which had the month it would be valid. It was renewed for six  months.

A few weeks after my green card was renewed, I received a letter in the mail stating the time  I would go in to get my biometrics done. After I got my biometrics done, three months later I was notified that I had to do a interview.. The interview determined if I would become a U.S. citizen. I was asked questions like: “What is your full name? How long have you been in the United States? Have you ever been a member of a communist party? Etc…”

After I completed my interview, I was issued a written notice which told me I was approved to become a permanent United States citizen. A huge weight was lifted off my shoulders. I was overfilled with joy.

Two weeks later I received a notice in the mail that I had to take the oath of allegiance to the U.S. at the 16^th Circuit Court in  Jackson County, Missouri. When I arrived at the courthouse, I had to complete form I-445 which contained the same questions I was asked when I did my interview.. Once I completed I-445, I turned it in to the immigration officers upstairs where I then  went into the courtroom to hear a speech from the judge about what being a citizen means and the responsibility that comes with being a U.S citizens. After the speech, I went to get my certificate of naturalization and an envelope that had pamphlets, a U.S flag and papers about being a citizen.

If you know someone that is in the process of getting their citizenship they should know that the process takes time and can often be very expensive. If they don’t have a way of paying for the fees, they should apply for a fee waiver and submit the necessary documents so the fees can be waived.