Another topic that I think is extremely important that I wanted to share with everybody
is delayed Social Security cards. The Social Security office has been closed
since the beginning of the pandemic. It's been well over a year and it's having a huge
impact not only on individuals who are going through an immigration process but basically
everybody in the United States who has a Social Security Number. They only are
allowing individuals to come in person for appointments and extreme emergency circumstances
which is not helpful because there's a lot of things that are really extreme that it can
have an impact on your life if you can't update your Social Security records. Examples would be
you might not be able to work, renew your driver's license, change your name.
This is happening not just in the immigration context but individuals who recently
had babies and they're applying for the Social Security Number to receive that for the first time
There's been a huge delay with those cards being issued. It's having an impact on ability
of individuals to file taxes, the list goes on. Social Security Numbers are important right so
with the Social Security offices being closed, it's having a huge impact on individuals
getting their Social Security cards. We used to see that individuals who would
be approved and receive their green card that within a few weeks later they would receive their
Social Security card in the mail. That's not the case. It's taking many many months
for people to receive their Social Security card. I'm really making this video to make all
of you aware. If you're in that position and you haven't received your Social Security card,
unfortunately there are delays right now and I also wanted to encourage all of you. This
video really is a call to action that US senators and congressional representatives have been in
contact with the Social Security office asking when they're going to open, what their plan is
because they have not made any type of announcement yet about when they will open
When people can come in for appointments, to do things such as
updating their Social Security records, to change their name, or their lawful status
They still haven't made an announcement but what I would encourage all of you to do
if you're in a position where you haven't received your Social Security card yet
or you need to make an appointment to update your Social Security records after becoming a citizen,
you can contact your congressional representatives, senators and let them know how this is impacting
your life. It's really important to do that. They are aware of the issue but if they can hear
from all of you, from their constituents about how not having the Social Security card is impacting
your life, it will be very helpful so they can continue to push the Social Security office
to figure out what their plan is to reopen. I'm also making this video to give all of you a few
tips about things you can do with delayed Social Security cards. Some planning tips. One of
the things that we see is that individuals who are going to be naturalizing,
becoming a citizen, something you can do is if you have a driver's license and it's going to be
expiring soon and you haven't had your interview yet, I highly recommend to all of my clients renew
your driver's license before you become a citizen. I say that because if you become
a citizen, then the next step is you'll have an oath ceremony and you'll receive
a naturalization certificate. Your next step is to update your records with the Social
Security office which has been next to impossible now that the Social Security office is closed.
If you have a driver's license that will be expiring soon, definitely renew it before
because if you can't change your status at the Social Security office, it can in some states make
it difficult for you to renew your driver's license. That's just
one tip that I wanted to make sure all of you are aware of. My other tip would be
for people who are applying for naturalization to receive to become a citizen
I also recommend that as soon as you have your oath ceremony and you receive your certificate
of naturalization, that you apply for your US passport right away. There are a lot of changes
now with flights being able to fly and that your driver's license has to be a real ID
Once you become a citizen, you'll be turning in your green card. You'll need proof
of your status and the best way to do that is to apply for your US passport. That's just
my other tip. Make sure that once you become a citizen, you apply for your passport
right away because that'll help with some of the issues that are caused by the delay in
the Social Security cards and the closure of the Social Security offices. Again, please be sure
to contact your congressional representatives and senators and let them know if you're going through
any issues with receiving your Social Security card and how it's impacting your life.