This one is about immigration.?
Answer:
You are very confused on certain aspects of the law.
If your Father was not naturalized before you were born, you have no claim to citizenship based on your Father's naturalization. He would have had to petition for your legal residency status as an alien child before you turned 15. If that was never done, or any other action was never taken to legalize your status, then you are in the US as an undocumented alien! If you had derivative status by your Father's naturalization, you wouldn't need his certificate, you would have your own. If you had derivative status and were living outside the US then you must register at a US Immigration office before age 18.
There have been many changes to the law since I retired so you best check with an immigration lawyer or the nearest immigration office.
You would need to write to the Immigration & Naturalization Office to explain your situation.
You would need to give them as much information as you know for finding your father's "Naturalization Number."
Remember dates
Remember locations
Remember names
Remember as much as you possibly can; it would be better to give them too much information, as opposed to giving them not enough information.
Be patient; bureaucracy takes time to sort through.
As far as I know, if your father is naturalized citizen before you are born that means you are automatic citizen, at your birth your father acknowledge you as his son. For this time you havent got any chance to go out, you have to get Immigration attorney, to check your immigration status here. If you did not remember if your father submit your birth certificate to INS to be naturalized citizen means you dont have any status at all. Better go to immigration help. Goodluck!
An analysis of the answers so far:
Guy from Korea.
Takes the Drixn at his word that he actually needs a copy of his dad's natz (naturalization certificate). Let's see if this is actually necessary later.
Dreamer.
Not much here.
At least it says to consult an imigration lawyer.
Retired INS guy.
I am not sure that he understands the Drixn's question. I think that he believes that the Drixn does not have a green card. If Drixn's dad had natzed before Drixn came to the US, it seems very unlikely (not impossible, but unlikely) that Drixn doesn't have a green card. So let's assume that Drixn does have a green card.
Now, onward with Drixn's question.
We can kind of figure out from your limited info that you were born in 1966 and that you entered the US in 1973. Probably you have had the same green card all these years. For whatever reason you have not gotten your citizenship, and now would like to do it. Like most people I know, you would like this automatically and you really have better things to do with the $400 filing fee.
You didn't say that your mother was a citizen so I will assume that she has a green card like you. Noncitizen parents are usually closer to their home country than the children, so this is probably why she never bothered to get citizenship.
You were maybe referring in your question to "The Child Citizenship Act of 2000" (CCA). (first link below brought to you by fine folks at The State Department)
Let's look at the requirements to get an automatic passport under the CCA. To have the CCA apply a person on February 27, 2001 or thereafter (but not earlier to this, because the CCA is not retroactive) must fullfil these requirements:
1. Have at least one American citizen parent by birth or naturalization;
2. Be under 18 years of age;
3. Live in the legal and physical custody of the American citizen parent; and
4. Be admitted as an immigrant for lawful permanent residence.
As previously stated, the effective date of the Child Citizenship Act is February 27, 2001. So since you were too old on February 27, 2001 the CCA would not apply to you. BOTH of your parents would have needed to be citizens under the previous automatic citizenship law.
If both of your parents had become naturalized citizens OR you were adopted by your US citizen "dad" (i.e. He's not your biological father), then you still might have a shot at automatic citizenship and may want to read through the N600 form (3rd link)
So what now?
You will need to fill out an N400 (second link), pay the $400 and study for the citizenship test like everyone else. Lucky for you, you went to school here in the US, so you've taken enough US history and government to pass the test easily.
And, you won't need your dad's natz certificate for filling out an N400.
After you pass your citizenship test you may apply for a US passport. (fourth link)
Note: You can still possibly get a passport from your home country while you are waiting to become a US citizen. But, If the country is Canada, it's a bit more complicated, as you may have lost your citizenship under their previous arcane immigration laws.
Final caveats: Don't have any criminal problems in your past. Just because something you pleaded guilty to in the past was dismissed by a court, doesn't mean that it doesn't still count for deportation. If you have any skeletons in your closet (theft, guns, drugs, even misdemeanor domestic violence that you didn't spend any jail time for) Schmegicky sez: "Get Thee to an AILA Member Immigration Attorney to Advise You BEFORE you file anything.. or you may find yourself going "bye bye" when you bring yourself to the govt's attention."
Good Luck,
~Mr. Schmegicky
Thorn in the backside of the DHS
The immigration information post by website user , MyTend.com not guarantee correctness