Full Definition of Naturalization and Citizenship

The United States of America makes a clear distinction between an individual who is an American citizen and one who is a lawful permanent resident of the country by virtue of having immigrated to it on a valid visa and applying for the adjustment of their status to permanency, in effect obtaining a green card. The processes of immigration and naturalization are two distinct processes in the path from residency in a foreign land to full citizenship on American soil; one should not assume that acquiring permanent residency affords him or her all the privileges and duties of an American citizen.

Naturalization is the process by which a foreign-born resident of the United States comes to be legally authorized as a U.S. citizen. Immigration and naturalization lawyers are among the most sought after in the country, as naturalization is taken very seriously by the federal government and involves many specific steps for which the proper rules and regulations must be followed. Otherwise, the alien resident will be excluded from some American institutions.

To really understand what makes the concept of nationalization so vital to foreign residents of the United States of America, though, one must undoubtedly have a firm grasp of what citizenship is all about. A citizen is a legally recognized member of a nation, commonwealth or other municipality that, in exchange for a pledge to uphold the nation's ideals and swear allegiance to its identity and symbols, the nation agrees to protect and provide with certain unalienable rights. As regards the United States, amendments

Naturalization, then, is of critical concern to a number of immigrants to the country, especially those who come from large families and want to see the entirety of their families make it to America for the sake of better employability and more freedom. In more symbolic terms, immigration and naturalization collectively is an individual's or family's ticket to living the "American dream."

As discussed, naturalization is a process, and at that, literally a means of attributing the rights and responsibilities of a citizen of the United States of America. The qualifications for naturalization usually include, among several other things, a certain minimum period for residency in the country and conditions of literacy. Processing of nationalization services used to be handled by Immigration and Naturalization Services, but that role is now handled by the Department of Homeland Security.

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