Originally Posted by
krisk17
Made me ponder....
1.
"Whoever, without lawful authority, prints, photographs, makes or executes any print or impression in the likeness of a certificate of arrival, declaration of intention to become a citizen, or certificate of naturalization or citizenship, or any part thereof—"
Think this would apply, if say John Doe, impersonates a naturalized citizen for immigration benefits.
Would it be illegal for the naturalized citizen to make a copy of his/her own certificate?Who owns the NC?
2. "IT IS PUNISHABLE BY U.S. LAW TO COPY, PRINT, OR PHOTOGRAPH THIS CERTIFICATE, WITHOUT LAWFUL AUTHORITY"
Not sure how old that NC link was, but they sure changed the verbiage since. Mine says "Alteration or misuse of this document is a federal offense and punishable by law"
Thoughts?
Either way, I agree, certified copies from USCIS is the way to go!
Re: personal copies. Many people are
informally instructed by USCIS officers at their naturalization ceremony to make copies of their naturalization certificate and store it in a safe place. Especially when combined with a reasonable reason to make the copies ("to be able to still prove my citizenship in case of burglary, fire, or natural disaster"), those people could very likely make a claim of "lawful authority" required by 18 USC 1426 -- or at a minimum, have a successful defense. Of course, it is *extremely* unlikely the average person would even be considered for prosecution under those circumstances. (And, in practical terms, apparently
even immigration attorneys advise their clients they can make photocopies of the certificate.)
Explicit allowances for copying are also made in a number of situations, like when individuals
need to submit a photocopy when applying for a U.S. passport, or when
state Medicaid employees need to photocopy the certificate.
As for ownership, while the individual probably technically possesses or owns the document, the federal government may also establish laws and regulations about activities that are illegal to perform upon the certificate.
Re: copying wording. Interesting -- you're right,
that certificate was from 1999.
Apparently, the language I thought was current ("IT IS PUNISHABLE BY U.S. LAW...") was only
in use until about 2009. And
from about 2010 to 2012, there was
no warning at all
! By
2014, the wording you mentioned ("ALTERATION OR MISUSE OF THIS DOCUMENT IS A FEDERAL OFFENSE AND PUNISHABLE BY LAW") was added to the certificate.