Many immigrants who have satisfied the requirements to become U.S. citizens are left in limbo for months or years due to slow processing of a background check called the FBI name check. Since 2003, there have been systemic delays in naturalization because the government changed the FBI name check procedure so that applicants’ names are checked not only against the names of suspects and targets of investigations, but also innocent people who have been in contact with the FBI, such as witnesses, victims, and people who have applied for security clearances. Tens of thousands of naturalization applicants have suffered from the delays.
In response to widespread citizenship delays, the ACLU and other civil rights organizations have filed proposed class action lawsuits seeking to hold the government accountable for its failure to process naturalization applications in a timely fashion and according to the immigration agency’s own regulations and federal statutes. The lawsuits have argued that these unreasonable delays violate the Administrative Procedure Act and Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment.
The ACLU continues to monitor delays in the naturalization process. We invite applicants who have not received a response from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services within 180 days of submitting a naturalization application to contact us. You may complete the questionnaire below and send to natz@aclu.org.
CASES
Tartakovsky v. Pierre (8/01/2007)
Ahmadi v. Chertoff (12/12/2008)
LEGAL DOCUMENTS
> ACLU Questionnare for Naturalization Applicants
> USCIS and FBI Joint Business Plan Regarding Name Checks
> Backlog Data from Tartakovsky v. Pierre (San Diego)
> Backlog Data from Ahmadi v. Chertoff (San Francisco)
PRESS RELEASES
> Immigrants' Rights Advocates And ACLU File Lawsuit To End Illegal Delays In Processing Citizenship Applications (4/1/2008)
> Southern Californians Demand Citizenship After Excessive Delays (8/1/2006)
> Lawsuit Challenges Unreasonable Delays in Granting Citizenship (10/29/2007)
> Settlement Reached in Lawsuit Challenging Unreasonable Delays in Granting Citizenship (8/12/2008)
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