USA Passport Application: What Do You Mean I’m Not a US Citizen?

USA Passport Application: Over the past year, I’ve had more than a few heart-wrenching conversations that start with the same disbelief, the same confusion, and ultimately, the same question.

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It usually begins at the Department of Driver Services, specifically, the Georgia DDS, but it could be anywhere. A person walks in thinking it’s just another routine license renewal. Maybe they brought their old ID, a utility bill, or even their Social Security card. But then, an employee delivers unexpected news: You’re not in our system as a US citizen.

Cue the panic.

They’re told this because they don’t have what the system considers the ultimate proof of citizenship: a U.S. birth certificate or a U.S. passport. For people who have grown up here, attended school here, worked and paid taxes, voted sometimes, or even served in the military, this kind of declaration doesn’t just challenge paperwork; it strikes at the very heart of their identity.

The Woman Born in Canada by Accident

I remember one woman vividly. She told me her parents lived in a small town in Vermont, just a stone’s throw from the Canadian border. When she was due to be born, the local hospital happened to be closed for renovations. So, when the contractions started, they raced to the nearest hospital, which just happened to be in Canada.

She grew up believing she was a US citizen. Citizen. Her whole life was here. She had no reason to doubt it. But when she tried to renew her driver's license last year, she was told she wasn’t a citizen because her birth occurred across the border.

The situation was far more complex than a yes-or-no answer. Was she born in wedlock? What was the citizenship status of her parents at the time? What were the laws at the time of her birth? As immigration attorneys, we know these aren’t simple questions. The answers determine everything from eligibility for a passport to whether someone has a right to stay in the country they’ve called home for decades.

USA Passport Application: US Citizenship in a Passport but Not in the Law

Another woman was born in Canada to a Canadian father and a US citizen mother. As a child, she moved freely between the two countries. Her expired Canadian passport even included a handwritten note from a Customs and Border Protection officer labeling her a USC, United States Citizen.

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But when we dug into her background, and more importantly, into U.S. immigration law, we realized something chilling: she didn’t qualify for citizenship under the laws at the time.

Imagine waking up one day to find that a scribbled note in a passport and decades of living in the US meant nothing legally. Fortunately, she had a 21-year-old son, who gave us a path to pursue adjustment of status. But the emotional toll? That’s not something you fix with forms.

Born in the US, Registered in Mexico

Then there was the man whose mother came to the US with a Border Crossing Card just to shop, she thought. But she went into early labor and gave birth at a friend’s house in the US.

Afterward, she returned to Mexico and registered the child there, thinking it would make school enrollment and medical access easier.

Years later, she applied for a delayed US visa. Birth certificate, but when we submitted an N-600 Application for Certificate of Citizenship, it was denied. Why the government wanted a U.S. birth certificate.

It’s a perfect example of the catch-22 so many people face. If he had that certificate, he wouldn’t need to file the N-600 at all. But the system isn’t built for exceptions; it’s built for clarity, even if life is anything but.

When Parents Are the Only Source of Proof

I’ve sat with clients who, throughout their whole lives, believed they were citizens because that’s what their parents told them. They filled out college applications as citizens, took jobs, filed taxes, all under the assumption they were fully documented.

And then one day, maybe in their 30s or even 40s, they learn it’s not true. They were never officially recognized as citizens. Now they face a terrifying legal hurdle: false claim to US citizenship. It’s one of the most damaging charges in immigration law, often without a waiver.

USA Passport Application: The New Gatekeepers States

What’s become more clear in recent years is how much state governments, particularly DMV-type agencies, have inserted themselves into the immigration conversation. This wasn’t always the case.

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Now, renewing a driver's license in many states requires near-perfect documentation. And for people who don't fit neatly into bureaucratic boxes, that means more hurdles, more red tape, more emotional fallout.

Sometimes it’s as simple as bringing a few extra documents. Other times, it sets off an identity crisis that upends someone’s entire life.

From Undocumented to Citizen, and Vice Versa

It’s hard to believe, but it’s entirely possible to live for years thinking you’re undocumented only to discover, through careful legal research, that you are a US citizen. Citizen. Just as shockingly, it’s possible to live for decades thinking you are a citizen, only to learn that, legally speaking, you are not.

That’s why this work matters. It’s why immigration attorneys do more than just file forms; we investigate, we verify, and often, we help people rediscover who they are in the eyes of the law.

Bringing Awareness to the Forefront

As chair of the Family Track for AILA’s Annual Conference, I saw firsthand how seriously the legal community is taking these issues. We designed sessions focused specifically on these identity challenges, how to trace citizenship through generations, how to research family history, and how to respond when clients come in with incomplete or conflicting records.

Final Thoughts

If you’ve ever been told you’re not a US citizen despite a lifetime of believing otherwise, know that you are not alone. You are not the first, and sadly, you will not be the last. Your story matters. Your identity matters. And even if the paperwork doesn’t immediately reflect who you believe you are, there are paths to explore, histories to uncover, and legal strategies to pursue.

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