The IRC in Charlottesville assisted with 53 applications for U.S. citizenship in 2011, more than twice as many as during the previous year, Immigration Specialist Nada Aladhami reports. The IRC also assisted 218 people with applications for legal permanent residency and 17 with family reunification petitions during the year.
Funding from the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation and the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) last year enabled the IRC to expand its staff, partner with the Adult Learning Center of the Charlottesville City Schools to offer civics and citizenship preparation classes, and engage in significant outreach activities to all community members, not just refugees.
Services including counseling and assistance in completing applications such as for legal permanent residence (“green cards”), naturalization as a U.S. citizen, petitions for family reunification, and replacement of lost documents. While IRC’s immigration services program operates on a fee-for-service model, fees are kept at a modest level in consideration of the low income of most of the clients.
The number of citizenship applications is expected to continue growing in the coming years, says IRC’s Aladhami. “As more people learn that this service is available locally at a low cost, we hope more will take advantage of it.”
The service is available to all area residents in need of immigration assistance. Call 434-979-7772 ext. 110 for more information.
