Microloan program to help legal immigrants cover naturalization costs

Lawful permanent residents seeking to naturalize have a new lender to cover naturalization fees. The Washington Post reports that

“Ernestina Pacas completed her citizenship application last week, 17 years after she moved to the United States from El Salvador. This week she is awaiting approval of a loan for $680, which she plans to use to pay the application fees charged by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Pacas, 42, is among the first to apply for a new microloan designed to help legal permanent residents cover their naturalization costs. . . . . She said she did not apply [to naturalize] earlier because she did not have the money to pay the fees. Organizers expect hundreds of green card holders such as Pacas to qualify for the pilot program being launched Tuesday by CASA of Maryland — the state’s largest immigrant advocacy group — in partnership with Citi and other financial institutions and nonprofit groups.”

KJ