N-400, Application for Naturalization, Country of Birth
Asked on Mar 24th, 2023 on Immigration - North Carolina
More details to this question:
I am a Russian citizen filing N-400. The N-400 form has a drop-down list "Country of Birth", where both are available, "Russia" and "Soviet Union". The N-400 instructions clearly say "Use the name of the country at the time of your birth, even if the name of the country has changed." I was born in 1987, i. e. in the Soviet Union before it ended its existence in 1991, and per instructions, I must specify "Soviet Union". On my GC, however, I have "Russia" in the "Country of Birth" field, and not "Soviet Union". The reason is that when I filled out the documents for the GC, i. e. the I-485 form, 5+ years ago, there was no clear guidance on which country to specify, and I chose "Russia", as it officially exists today, and not "Soviet Union". My question is what exactly is the right course of action in my case? "Soviet Union" seems to be the way to proceed, yet in this case, there will be a mismatch between my GC where I have "Russia", and N-400, where I will have "Soviet Union".
Given the instructions, it appears that you should put down Soviet Union. I believe that most if not all USCIS personnel would not hold it against someone putting down Russia as opposed to the Soviet Union on a green card application. Putting down one or the other would in no way comprise a ground of misrepresentation. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee & Arthur Lee, Esqs.’ (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.
Consumers can use this platform to pose legal questions to real lawyers and receive free insights.
Participating legal professionals get the opportunity to speak directly with people who may need their services, as well as enhance their standing in the Lawyers.com community.