any info or advice on citizenship through naturalisation

[birds you cannot see]

i'm an american citizen that has been living and working in ireland for the most part of the last 11 years. i was married to an irish citizen for a number of years and we have recently divorced. originally i was able to live and study here due to my fathers job. after that expired i returned to the states for about a year before returning to marry my now ex husband. i have 5 years worth of stamps permitting me to live and work because of my marriage to an irish citizen. i'm considering applying for citizenship based on my residence but not my marriage since it is now over. i recently completed a degree and did not work during the last four years but i believe that period still counts as reconable residence since it was through my marriage and not just for study.

just wondering how long the process will probably take and if there will be a problem because i was permitted to remain because of a marriage that is now over? (my passport is stamped till 2013)
also is it really necessary to provide letters from every employer i've had since i lived here? i've waitressed and worked in a number of places some of which have now closed. i do however have all my payslips. i've only recently started working again so i don't have payslips or bank statements for the last 3 months. will that be a problem? (while in college my father supported me through an american bank account.) i've also lived in a number of places and can't remember the addresses or dates that i lived in them. would it be ok to just give the main ones? especially as there is probably no record of me living in several of them.

will i need to get a lawyer or can i do it on my own? is there anywhere i can go for free advice?

thanks for any advice or information you can give me!!
much appreciated!

[tiggs]

HI there,
Please find me input to your questions, but when in doubt always call up INIS naturalisation section :

q: how long the process will probably take ?
ans : On average Minimum 23 months to 36 Months. But there is no hard and fast rule about it. If you check this link, you will get rough idea :
http://www.editgrid.com/explore/user/sc ... nship_apps

q: is it really necessary to provide letters from every employer ?
a : only recent record of employment be required. That's why they ask for p21 and recent 3 payslips. Any sort to support that be help to your application. If you have proof of previous jobs attach it (else there is no need)

q: i've also lived in a number of places and can't remember the addresses or dates that ?
a: Atleast write the Garda station you were registered at if you don't remember the Addresses you have lived at. Stamps on your passport should be able to tell some. Cross either way addresses are not for tenancy check or past accommodation check, they are to cross check your residency and immigration history in Ireland. And Recent address matters most obviously for correspondence with em.

q: will i need to get a lawyer or can i do it on my own? is there anywhere i can go for free advice?
a: Well so far i haven't heard that using a lawyer speeds up process. Main thing is experienced lawyer may be able to crosscheck your application, but again final call is from INIS. So if your personal budget permitting go meet a solicitor, but Irish Immigration system isn't commercialized that much yet.

Thats just me input, others on this forum will add as well. Hope this help.

Regards
Tiggs

[LuasPassenger]

If I were you I would fill out the form to the best of my knowledge and also ask INIS for advice on specific questions.

You can also try making an appointment with the Immigrant Council of Ireland, it's a Non-Profit organisation and they give free advice to immigrants. http://www.immigrantcouncil.ie/

You can also talk to the Migrant Rights Centre Ireland (another non profit organisation): http://www.mrci.ie/

For the reckoning of your residence INIS will consider that you have lived in Ireland continuously for 1 year before you submit your application (so when you submit your application you must have been living and working in Ireland for 1 year). Then, they will look back at the previous 8 years and they will count the number of years that you were living and working in Ireland. The total number of years that you must have been living and working in Ireland must total 5. Details are described here: http://www.inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Informat ... 070409.pdf

From my understanding, this would be a valid scenario:
You apply on 20th October 2009 and you have been living and working in Ireland since the 20th October 2008 - this counts as 1 year.
From 20th October 2004 to 19th October 2008 you were studying. - This time will not be couned towards your naturalisation
From the 20th October 2000 to the 19th October 2004 you were working and living in Ireland - This time (4 years) will be counted towards your naturalisation.
In total, you would have lived 5 years in Ireland, so you qualify for naturalisation.
Now, this is my interpretation. I would recommend asking INIS and the Immigration Council/MRCI as well.

I don't think they would consider the time you were married since you're now divorced. But I'm not sure. Just remember that with your application you will have to submit copies of your marriage certificate and divorce certificate.

You could also make an appointment with a solicitor. But as tiggs said, applying through a solicitor will not make your application any faster and it will be more expensive. But maybe a chat will not be that expensive (you just pay for 1 hour of the solicitor's time).

Please note that your signature of the naturalisation form has to be witnessed by a solicitor (which will charge you around 10 euro for that). You could ask the solicitor at that moment these questions and whether he considers you fulfil the statutory residency requirements.

As for timelines, the INIS website claims that naturalisations are now taking 24 months to be processed. However, most of us have experienced delays of more than 36 months, as we applied before the Naturalisation Section was decentralised to Tipperary. Hopefully, you will get a decision within 24 months.

Good luck!

LP

[birds you cannot see]

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[birds you cannot see]

thanks for the info!!
i rang the immigrant council and got some advice.
i don't have to have been working for all 5 years. i didn't have a student visa. i was legal through my marriage so that counts as reckonable residence. if i had ever been on the dole it wouldn't be good but i never was so that's ok.
my problem is i have to notify the immigration office of my divorce and new address or i won't get citizenship because i didn't keep them informed. however my concern is that if i tell them about the divorce do i not risk deportation as my status here is legal through my marriage to an irish citizen?

so even though i meet the requirements for citizenship through naturalisation i'm not confident of my permission to remain in the country after my divorce.

what to do?? what to do?!?!

[tiggs]

Hi there,
Since you have been long time here in Ireland, hopefully you be ok. You mentioned you are working isnt it ?
If so, try to get ur Visa /GNIB category changed to work permit or green card. That should help your case.
States and Ireland do have some sort of agreement about people getting fast tracked work permits done (for first year or first two years) something like that. During that time your application can wait in naturalization queue and you don't have to be worried about gnib status.

Coz reading at inis website :
http://www.inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/WP07000024
Last question :

What are the conditions of my permission granted?

The permission is granted on the basis of genuine evidence of a valid and genuine marriage and of joint residence.

Any misinformation given during the application process will result in the application being refused.

There are no rights of retention of residence in the event of separation/divorce.

Successful applicants do not have an automatic right to family reunification.


Best of luck
Tiggs

[tiggs]

And do check old threads in this forum. there were few similar cases as yours. Might check with them what happened to their GNIB status. If i come across any link will post it here.
regards
Tiggs