U S Government Accountability Office

Military naturalizations U S Government Accountability Office

From September 2001 to March 2009, approximately 47,000 noncitizen members of the U. S. military became naturalized U. S. citizens. The Department of Homeland Securitys (DHS) U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) and the Department of Defense (DOD) have taken steps to assist noncitizens with applying for naturalization. The Kendell Frederick Citizenship Assistance Act (Kendell Frederick Act) and the Military Personnel Citizenship Processing Act (MPCPA), enacted in 2008 to expedite application processing, each directed GAO to report on implementation of the acts. This report addresses (1) the extent to which USCIS met the processing deadlines established in the acts and (2) actions USCIS has taken to expedite the processing of applications, and any challenges it has faced. GAO reviewed relevant legislation and DHS reports and guidance related to processing applications; reviewed several generalizable samples of applicants case files (A-files); and interviewed USCIS officials.