What should college student put as address on Form N-400?


I'm in college in New York state, but my parents live in California, and I live with them during the summers. I have a green card now, and am ready to apply for U.S. citizenship. In filling out the Form N-400, what should I put for my residence address?


Applying for naturalization while you're in college, and don't have a steady address, can be a bit tricky. It involves both legal and practical issues.

Legally speaking, you can use either your college address or your parents' address as your residence -- that is, the first address that you list in Part 4, Question 1 of the N-400. This comes from the Code of Federal Regulations, at 8 C.F.R. § 316.5(b)(2).

If you choose to use your college address, make sure you have lived there for three months or more already, which is a requirement for naturalization. (See Nolo's articles on "Who Is Legally Eligible for Naturalized U.S. Citizenship" for more information.)

If you would prefer to use your parents' address, make sure you can show that you are financially dependent on your parents at the time you submit the N-400 naturalization application to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and that you continue to be so until you are approved (or denied) for U.S. citizenship.

Practically speaking, you will also need to make sure that, whichever address you choose, you will be able to receive notifications from there for the next several months, so that you will hear about your biometrics (fingerprinting) appointment and your interview appointment, either or both of which could be scheduled for several months after you submit the application.

If, for example, you're living with a bunch of other students in a group house, summer break is coming, and you will all be moving to different places next year, don't count on the subsequent tenants (or even the U.S. Postal Service) to forward the all-important pieces of USCIS mail to you.

Also realize that whichever address you put down as your place of residence will be the one USCIS assumes you need to be closest to in choosing the location for your biometrics appointment and interview. So, for example, if you use your parents' address and you are called for one of these appointments while in school, you'll have to be ready to quickly book a cross-country flight.

One thing that might help with your planning is to look into the typical processing times (between filing the N-400 and being called for your interview) at the USCIS offices serving both your parents' address in California and the city where your college is located. To do so, check the "USCIS Proceesing Time Information" page of the agency's website.

By the way, we're assuming that you are already 18 years old, which is another requirement for naturalization.

Talk to a Lawyer

Need a lawyer? Start here.

How it Works

  1. Briefly tell us about your case
  2. Provide your contact information
  3. Choose attorneys to contact you
Swipe to view more

Talk to an Immigration attorney.

We've helped 85 clients find attorneys today.

How It Works

  1. Briefly tell us about your case
  2. Provide your contact information
  3. Choose attorneys to contact you