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When a Chinese woman with a green card in Southern California applied for naturalization, she was found to be registered as a voter. Although she claimed she was unaware and did not vote, she still faced the risk of having her application withdrawn, reconfirmed, or rejected.
A Southern California Holdergreen card OfSugar When a woman recently applied for naturalization, the immigration officer discovered she had been registered as a voter. The person involved said he had no knowledge and no actual involvement.vote The Immigration Officer proposed that there are currently two processing guidelines: the person concerned can choose to withdraw the naturalization application; Or continue with the application, but may be rejected.
According to lawyer Deng Hong, the client, Ms. A, first came to the United States as an international student and later obtained a green card after marrying a citizen. After holding a green card for three years, Ms. A submitted an N-400 naturalization application in accordance with the relevant regulations. Unexpectedly, when the immigration officer reviewed the application, they discovered that he was suspected of having registered as a voter through the relevant procedures of the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) when renewing his driver’s license two years earlier.
“He had applied for a driving license online at that time, and he may have made a mistake while registering himself as a voter during the update.” Deng Hong said the California driver’s license application and renewal process includes voter registration options. If the applicant mistakenly selects the relevant items during the operation, or does not fully understand the content of the page, the registration record will remain without going through. Deng Hong pointed out that Ms. A is not a citizen and only has a green card, so she is not eligible for voter registration. When questioned by the immigration officer, Ms. A stated that she did not know that she had ever registered to vote, nor had she participated in any voting. “The person involved received a ballot, but he threw it away and did not use it.”
According to the California Secretary of State’s office, you must be a U.S. citizen and meet other legal qualifications to register as a voter. Current Bureau of Immigration policy also states that if a non-citizen illegally registers as a voter, knowing he or she is not eligible, or votes illegally as a non-citizen, it may affect the good moral character review in the naturalization application.
Deng Hong said that in this case, the federal government has obtained a list of Ms. A’s previous registered voters. However, because the person concerned has not voted, the immigration officer currently proposes two treatment guidelines: one is to withdraw the current N-400 naturalization application, first check the voter registration issues, and then consider re-applying, which may include paying the application fee; Second, the naturalization process is to continue, but the immigration officer may reject the application.
Deng Hong pointed out that if the person in question actually voted, the case may face a more serious immigration legal review and may even be transferred to the immigration court. “Because illegal voting is a federal crime, illegal voting can carry serious criminal and immigration consequences.” However, whether you will be denied naturalization, initiated into deportation proceedings, or have your green card status affected must be determined by the relevant authorities based on the specific facts and laws. The presence of a voter registration record does not necessarily lead to revocation of your green card or deportation.
Policy guidance updated by USCIS in 2025 explicitly addresses issues such as false declaration of citizenship, illegal voter registration, and illegal voting during naturalization review. The official guidance also requires immigration officers to evaluate the evidence on a case-by-case basis, including whether the applicant knowingly registered, declared citizenship, and whether the relevant registration or voting behavior violated applicable laws.
Deng Hong reminded that if green card holders receive a ballot or discover that they have been mistakenly registered as a voter when renewing a driver’s license, they should not ignore it or assume that the problem has been solved. Driver’s license renewal applications, voter registration notices and related letters should be saved as soon as possible, and registration records should be verified with the elections department; If you are applying for naturalization, or are concerned that registration may affect your immigration status, you should consult an attorney familiar with immigration and election laws as soon as possible to evaluate appropriate corrections and management methods.
Summary FAQ
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Because when the immigration officer reviewed the N-400, he discovered that when he renewed his California driver’s license two years ago, he was suspected of having registered as a voter through the DMV process. Since she was not a citizen at the time, this record became the focus of the naturalization review.
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She said she didn’t know she was registered and didn’t actually vote. He threw away the ballot paper after receiving it. The lawyer speculated that an error may have been made while renewing a driver’s license and the voter registration option may have been checked by mistake.
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Immigration officials currently offer two ways to deal with this: withdrawing the naturalization application, first clarifying the voter registration issue, or continuing with the application but may be denied. If the actual voting is discovered, there could be more serious criminal and immigration consequences.
