From Yahoo Finance:
He lived a complete life in the U.S. He went to school, worked in law enforcement, got married, raised a family, paid his taxes and voted in elections.
But in 2020 — when Klass [oddly the article never mentions Klass' first name] was gearing down to live out his retirement in Clearwater, Florida — one of the benefits of a post-working life he thought that he earned was suddenly ripped away from him.
Klass received a shocking letter from the Social Security Administration (SSA) stating he would not be sent the $1,649.90 monthly retirement benefits he’d previously been approved for because he’s not actually a U.S. citizen. ...
Klass was born in Canada. His mom was Canadian and his father was American, born and raised in New York. The family moved to the U.S. in 1959, and Klass has lived in the country ever since — believing he was a dual citizen.
He told the news station his roots were never questioned when he secured critical pieces of ID, including his Social Security card, driver’s license and voter registration card. He was approved to serve as a marine in the U.S. military and later worked for the New Jersey state police. He says his citizenship status was never questioned.
“I’ve been voting for over 40 years,” he chuckled, adding: “I guess I’m in a lot of trouble.” ...
I've had a client who was in a similar situation -- born in France to a woman who then married a U.S. citizen. The family moved to the U.S. when the child was stil quite young. The parents were supposed to file some paperwork so the child would officially be a U.S. citizen but they never got around to it. The child was unaware of the problem until Social Security discovered it and denied benefits.
By the way, should this foreigner be locked up for voting all those times in the U.S.?
I will never understand how someone born outside the US to a US citizen parent or parents lives their entire life without having documentation they are a US citizens. The laws regarding one parent derivative citizenship have changed over the last 100 years so the only way to prove US citizenship is by applying for proof of citizenship, a passport or derivative citizenship document. This situation typically happens with people born in Canada or Europe because their citizenship is not questioned as it would be for people born in other countries to US citizens. Why this is a surprise issue is beyond me. It is clear you have to show US citizenship or lawful presence when you apply if you were not born in the US. These people know they were not born in the US.
ReplyDeleteI saw this story a few days ago and something does not seem right about it but I can't put my finger on it. I am not a proponent of the voter fraud conspiracy but cases like this one does raise questions not so much as to wide spread fraud but as to tightening up the process
ReplyDeleteI had cases like this where the claimant was born abroad to one US parent but had no proof they were a citizen. Usually they came to the US when they were a small child or infant and were told they were a citizen so never questioned it. The cases I had usually resolved themselves in about a year but it was quite a bit of work for the claimant to get immigration to help them. The claims weren't denied, just put into suspense until proof was submitted.
ReplyDeleteRe voter fraud: I am sure this will work out in Mr. Klass' favor eventually.
How did he get a SS number? Retirement benefits can be paid to legal residents as well as to citizens. Maybe he did not renew his green card? Lot's of questions here
ReplyDelete@1232. Prior to sometime in the 70s one didn't need to show proofs to get an SSN.
DeleteI doubt he had a green card since he thought he was a citizen and likely is one. If he had a green card it wouldn't have come with an expiration date, assuming he got it when he was young.
He is a dual citizen but he may need to establish that with the US State Dept. if he was born outside the USA to one or both American parents. It's called Reporting A Birth Abroad. Usually the American parent reports this shortly after birth of the child. The State Dept then establishes the infant's citizenship.
ReplyDeleteIt's common among the US Military stationed overseas to have a child born outside the USA.
This exact situation is me...born to US citizens outside the US. I guard my naturalization certificate with all my life. Without it, i have no proof i am a US citizen.
ReplyDeleteHe is a citizen but he needs to register and show proof of his connection to the US to obtain a passport (He may already have one) to establish his citizenship.
ReplyDeleteHe needs to discuss with an Immigration lawyer for the details of what needs to be done and once it is done, that will rectify the situation.
My cousin who was born outside the US to two US Citizens had to do this and also did the same in the US fo this three infant children to establish their citizenship. Their mother is not a US citizen.
birth certificate?
ReplyDelete9:31, it can happen even when the person was born in the US and has a passport, see https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/11/25/virginia-doctor-passport-citizenship-nightmare/
ReplyDeleteSometimes people in these situations end up with private bills in Congress to make them citizens.
I'm a dual national, born to Irish parents in US who had not yet become American citizens, but it was only formalized when I filed my birth with Ireland in the 1990s.
ReplyDeleteThe "blame" is on his parents for not taking steps, I'm guessing mom never applied for citizenship, else this would have come to light. His presumption he was a dual national of course was strengthened by the fact multiple government agencies did not raise it as an issue.
For birth between December 24, 1952 and November 13, 1986, the U.S. citizen parent must have been physically present in the United States or one of its outlying possessions for 10 years prior to the person’s birth, at least five of which were after the age of 14 for the person to acquire U.S. citizenship at birth. In these cases, either the U.S. citizen parent or their alien spouse must have a genetic or gestational connection to the child in order for the U.S. parent to transmit U.S. citizenship to the child.
As a genealogist, it can be a bit daunting to try and find records of a family member, where did they live in 1950 census, the 1940 census, were they in the military and when. The lawyer will help,as they may need proofs for very specific years. Heck, if dad was living in Canada at age 19, even if he was born when dad was 20, he'll fail the 5 years after the age of 14 rule (which would be dad must be in US ages 15-20).
I find it hard to blame him, esp given his employment history (military, state police)
Waaaaaay more than meets the story. He certainly had a conversation with a Claims Specialist who asked him for citizenship and/or permanent resident docs. This was NOT a surprise. The Claims Specialist will work with the applicant to give whatever time is needed to get the documents. Mr. Klass must have declined, and was denied accordingly. He will get his benefit, but once he does his due diligence.
ReplyDeleteThis comes up when someone requests a replacement social security card. If there's no citizenship posted to the record, citizenship and/or permanent residence documents must be submitted. It's a pain, but it is what it is.
@5:27
ReplyDeleteWould it make a difference that he is a veteran? I mean, is it possible that he got through some early steps through inter-agency communications with the VA or DoD?
@1159. Not 5:27 here but being a veteran makes no difference. It's very frustrating as a claims specialist because you know they should be paid but you need some paperwork they don't have and will take many months to obtain. Plus, you and the agency look like the bad guy to someone who has served in the military and lived their life as a good citizen. Their parents didn't know to have it handled when their kid was young.
DeleteIt makes no difference in the present system. The rules require direct evidence. Even a passport would do, but Mr. Klass clearly did not have one.
DeleteMy son was born outside the US. We didn't get a FS 240 from a consulate when he was born. So, we got a certificate of citizenship a few years later when we came back to the US. We submitted the documents and paid the fee. Mr. Klass likely needs to so the same.
I saw where he already had Medicare so he had shown proof of age. If he did it in person or by phone the claims specialist could have mentioned he will need citizenship proof to get paid when he files later.
ReplyDelete@4:45pm,
ReplyDeleteYou have to provide proof of citizenship/legal status with Medicare-only claims, too.
It isn't well known by the public, but a quirk in the law requires Medicare to deny all non-ESRD claims for non-citizens who are entilted to Medicare but not legally admitted to the US. FWIW, that is a rule enforced by Medicare, not an SSA rule.
SSA will still enroll you and collect the required premiums, but it won't do you much good otherwise.
@837. So he'd be entitled to Medicare through SSA as lack of citizenship would just suspend his cash payments (S9) but CMS would deny his claims?
Delete@1:33am,
ReplyDeleteYes, exactly.
We actually had a claimant once that this happened to. I don't know that he ever managed to fix it.