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Achieving U.S. Citizenship Through The Military
Daily Policy Digest

Government & Political Issues / Defense Personnel

Thursday, August 22, 2002
Thousands of people from foreign countries who are not citizens of the U.S. are serving in this nation's armed forces -- and are using their service as a stepping-stone to citizenship.

  • Some 31,044 non-citizens serve in branches of the armed forces -- 2 percent of the 1.4 million active force.
  • The Navy is home to 15,708 of them -- with significantly lesser numbers spread out in the Marine Corps, Army and Air Force.
  • A Pentagon "information paper" states that each foreign applicant to the services "must first undergo a series of background checks, and the positions in which they can serve are limited."
  • Each must be a permanent legal U.S. resident, holding a green card from the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
The Pentagon plays no role in supporting a person's citizenship and calls the process "an individual responsibility." But military service does speed up the process. Permanent residents must wait five years for a chance at citizenship. But those serving in the military must, in most cases, only wait three years.

Source: Robert Scarborough, "Foreigners Find Military Fast Track to Citizenship," Washington Times, August 22, 2002.

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