What is a Certificate of Naturalization?

A Certificate of Naturalization (Form N-550) is the official federal document that proves a person became a U.S. citizen through the naturalization process. The certificate is issued by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services at the conclusion of the Oath of Allegiance ceremony and bears the citizen's name, photograph, certificate number, date of admission to citizenship, and the embossed seal of the Department of Homeland Security. The certificate is governed by section 338 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. section 1449), which directs that any person admitted to citizenship under the Act receive a certificate of naturalization.

The certificate serves as primary evidence of citizenship for the rest of the holder's life and is accepted by every federal agency, every state government, and every private entity that needs to verify U.S. citizenship. It is the document used to apply for a U.S. passport, register to vote, update Social Security records, prove eligibility for federal employment that requires U.S. citizenship, petition for the immigration of family members under sections 201 and 203 of the Act, transmit citizenship to children born abroad after naturalization under section 322, and establish identity in immigration proceedings.

The certificate is distinct from a Certificate of Citizenship (Form N-560 or N-561), which is issued to people who were already U.S. citizens at birth or who derived citizenship from a U.S. citizen parent (typically children of naturalized citizens who were under 18 when the parent naturalized). The certificate is also distinct from a Consular Report of Birth Abroad (Form FS-240), issued by the Department of State to children of U.S. citizens born abroad.

A naturalized citizen typically also obtains a U.S. passport (Form DS-11) within weeks of the oath ceremony, which provides a more portable form of proof of citizenship that does not need to be guarded as carefully as the original certificate. Federal law (18 U.S.C. section 1426) makes it a federal crime to forge, counterfeit, alter, or knowingly use a false certificate of naturalization, with penalties of up to 25 years in prison. The certificate should never be laminated (lamination obscures the security features and can invalidate the document) and should be stored in a safe location with other vital records.