As a top citizenship attorney office in Utah, we at Buhler Thomas Law, PC spend a lot of time in this space educating you about various requirements or strategies for immigration and citizenship. Today, let’s take a bit of a step back: What are the reasons why someone should want citizenship in the first place?
It’s a good question and one that has a few specific answers. Beyond the simple ability to enjoy a safe, opportunity-heavy life in the United States, several other benefits come with US citizenship. Here are a few of the most prominent.
When you become a US citizen, you obtain the right to travel using a US passport. A US passport is one of the most respected in the world, allowing you to travel to more countries and with fewer visa fees.
As of the year 2012, American citizens and nationals had a list of 166 countries they could travel to, including nearly everywhere in Europe and South America. You can travel to any of these locations without the risk of losing your immigration status, with no restrictions. Also, you get the protections of the US government throughout your trip – the US has embassies and consulates in nearly 200 countries and puts a lot of resources into the fair treatment of its citizens.
There are multiple financial areas where becoming a US citizen benefits you, as well. For one, if you’re staying in the country using a green card, permanent citizenship is cheaper in the long run – renewing a green card costs $540 every time, and you have to do it once every 10 years. Citizenship, however, costs a one-time application fee of $725 and nothing more, meaning you spend less than a second green card renewal.
Also, being a citizen allows you significant benefits when it comes to qualifying for scholarships. Many of these require US citizenship.
US citizenship also qualifies you for certain federal jobs. Most federal government jobs require citizenship, and these are generally great jobs – they come with fair wages, great pension plans, and dependable situations.
For more on how US citizenship can benefit you, or to learn about how an immigration attorney can help, speak to the staff at the offices of Buhler Thomas Law, PC today.