Also known as: naturalized citizens · naturalization · citizen by naturalization
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A foreign-born person who attains citizenship by law. The status carries the same constitutional protections against involuntary divestment as citizenship acquired by birth.
Nathan Nguyen completed the statutory residency and examination requirements and received a certificate of naturalization from a federal district court. When a state official attempted to impose an additional state-level test before recognizing his status, Nathan sued. The court held that only the uniform federal process created under Congress's Article I power governs the creation of naturalized citizens.
Nicholas Nunez, a naturalized citizen, refused to register under a state alien-registration statute that imposed ongoing obligations after naturalization. State officers cited him for noncompliance. The court enjoined enforcement because federal naturalization law occupies the field and precludes additional state burdens on naturalized citizens.
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Noah Nakamura, a naturalized citizen facing deportation proceedings, obtained an INS suspension of deportation. One house of Congress passed a resolution nullifying the suspension. Noah sued, arguing the one-house action was invalid. The court reinstated the suspension because the legislative veto violated bicameralism and presentment requirements.
Norman Nash, born abroad to a U.S. citizen parent, petitioned for recognition as a naturalized citizen after his parent naturalized him as a minor. State authorities denied him voting rights on the ground that only birthright citizenship counted. The court ordered his registration because naturalized citizenship confers identical rights and privileges.
Noreen Nguyen, a naturalized citizen, distributed leaflets criticizing U.S. involvement in a foreign conflict. Prosecutors charged her under an espionage statute that treated her naturalized status as evidence of divided loyalty. The court dismissed the charges because naturalized citizens enjoy the same First Amendment protections as other citizens.
Nigel Nelson, a naturalized citizen of Japanese ancestry, was detained under an executive order targeting persons of that ancestry during wartime. He sued for release, asserting that his naturalized status entitled him to the same protections as native-born citizens. The court ordered his release because the Constitution forbids treating naturalized citizens as a suspect subclass subject to automatic detention.
No. The Fourteenth Amendment protects citizenship acquired by naturalization from involuntary divestment. A statute that treats foreign voting as conclusive proof of relinquishment without evidence of the citizen's actual intent to renounce violates the constitutional requirement of voluntary consent.
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Yes. Once citizenship is acquired through naturalization, the Fourteenth Amendment treats it as a vested constitutional status that Congress may not strip without the individual's voluntary relinquishment. Automatic expatriation rules based solely on conduct are invalid for both naturalized and native-born citizens.
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Black's Law Dictionary defines a naturalized citizen as a foreign-born person who attains citizenship by law, distinguishing the status from citizenship acquired by birth within the jurisdiction.
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…The matters of national concern are enumerated in the Constitution: war, taxes, patents, and copyrights, uniform rules of naturalization and bankruptcy, types of commerce, and so on. See generally Art. I, § 8. Gibbons ' emphatic statements that Congress could not regulate many matters that affect commerce confirm that the…