Continuous residence is a key milepost on the road from permanent resident

To qualify to become naturalized, an applicant must be a continuous resident of the U.S. for at least 5 years, or 3 years if married to, and living with, a U.S. citizen

More than 400 attorneys, government-accredited paralegals and trained community advocates will staff the call-in. If after speaking to an advocate you think you qualify for a benefit, the advocate will refer you to someone who can help you complete the necessary forms. The call-in will run from April 23 to April 27, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m with separate phone lines for English and Spanish callers. We will have available speakers of dozens of other languages as well. Besides the Daily News and CUNY, this year’s sponsors include media partner Univision, and sponsors Cisco, the American Immigration Lawyers Association, the Legal Aid Society, Gristedes, WADO 1280 AM, La Que Buena 92.7 and BlueWater, a Presidio Company.

You’ll find the call-in phone numbers in the April 23 Daily News.

Meanwhile, to prepare you for the call-in, over the next few weeks, I’ll answer some common questions about citizenship and immigration law. We start our discussion with the rules for naturalizing — the process where a permanent resident becomes a U.S. citizen. Today we discuss the “continuous residence” requirement for U.S. citizenship.

Q. How long must I be a permanent resident to qualify to naturalize?

A. Most naturalization applicants must have been a continuous resident for at least five years. The requirement is three years if you have been married to, and living with, the same U.S. citizen for the last three years while a permanent resident. You may file your application three months before you meet the five (or three) years of permanent residence. Special rules apply to veterans and members of the military.

If you came here as a refugee, your permanent residence date should be backdated to the day you arrived in the United States. If you were an asylee, it should be backdated on year. So, refugees count permanent residence since their day of entry, asylees one year from before the date the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service granted them permanent residence.

Continuous residence means you never abandoned your U.S. residence. If you have been abroad for a continuous period of more than six months, the USCIS may contest your continuous residence. Still, even after more than six months abroad, if you can prove that your primary residence was in the U.S., you should be able to show continuous residence. So for instance, if you were studying abroad, you would bring a school transcript to your interview. If you were taking care of a sick relative, you would bring a letter from a doctor. If you were simply vacationing, bring proof that you maintained a residence in the U.S. That proof might include a bank account, credit card account, proof that you returned to a job you had before you left, or an apartment lease.