Applications for U.S. Citizenship Surge

Immigrants Nationwide Responding to Threat of Congressional Crackdown

Driven by the fierce congressional debate over immigration, immigrants nationwide are applying for U.S. citizenship in record numbers or seeking to solidify their legal status in a move to protect themselves at a time of political uncertainty.

Many fear that laws could toughen, preventing them from becoming naturalized or from bringing relatives into the United States; others appear to be motivated by the chance to obtain more rights and boost their political clout through voting.

Between January and April, immigrants filed 251,385 applications, an 18 percent increase from the same period last year, immigration officials said yesterday. They also report a record surge in petitions to sponsor relatives for residency, also up 18 percent for the time period.

Last month, the number of visits to the agency's Web site soared to 6.3 million, up 12 percent from May of last year. Visitors downloaded 140,000 citizenship applications, nearly twice as many as a year before. Green card applications downloaded also rose significantly from May 2005.

"We saw a dramatically higher upswing than we have ever seen before," said Chris Bentley, a spokesman with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security.

The surge, say immigration advocates, reflects widespread ambiguity over the direction of immigration legislation being debated in Congress. Although the political tussle centers on illegal immigrants, many noncitizens residing in this country legally are concerned that they and their families, here and in their homelands, could be affected.

"People get worried that they will change the rules, and the changing of the rules will impact them personally, in terms of their status," said Rep. Luis V. Gutierrez (D-Ill.), who chairs the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Immigration Task Force.

"Immigration policy is complicated enough," he said. "If you're a recent immigrant, legally here, the debate here is scary."

In January, about 50 people attended a "citizenship workshop" at Hogar Hispano, an immigrant services program of Catholic Charities in Arlington. At the workshop, volunteers helped eligible permanent residents -- those who have held green cards for at least five years -- fill out naturalization forms.

In March, 88 people showed up. And last month, there were 92 -- the largest turnout coordinator Esmael Hussieni has seen in the nine years he has overseen the workshops. He said good weather and better marketing efforts played a role in the rise. So did fear.

"Even lately, with the green card, people don't think it's going to be safe," he said.

In other parts of the country, groups working with immigrants say they are seeing similar jumps in applicants. In Chicago, more than a 1,000 people showed up for a citizenship workshop April 29, said Gutierrez, who helped promote the event. They were expecting about 300 to 400 applicants, he said.