United States | USCIS issues guidance on “good moral character” standard for US citizenship

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services released a memo on Aug. 15 providing guidance on the “good moral character” (GMC) standard as an eligibility factor for becoming a naturalized U.S. citizen.

Key Points:

• USCIS calls the policy guidance “an improved direction for making GMC determinations and signals a return to a comprehensive, totality of circumstances approach to GMC under section 101(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.”
• According to USCIS, the policy’s “holistic approach” to GMC determination includes “greater emphasis on positive attributes or contributions” and “greater scrutiny of disqualifying behavior and action.”
• The complete policy memo can be read here.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

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