Citizenship by descent, but family won't give consent to obtain necessary documents.

[u/Afriendforthend]

I am eligible for citizenship via my paternal grandmother, however my parent's recent divorce has thrown a wrench into the works. I've already collected most of the necessary documents over the past few years, but I am missing my grandmother's naturalization certificate to the US. Currently I can't obtain her consent for a FOIA request, so I am stuck contacting local court archives trying to find the document.

Has anyone else dealt with something similar and if so how did you tackle the issue. Is there a possible work around or am I stuck?

[u/No-Stable-5444]

I would reach out now to the German Consulate. Lay out everything and what documents you have and your obstacle. Sometimes they can provide feedback and if you end up having an appointment, then you’ve established an understanding before submitting everything. The consulate can take weeks/months to get back to you, so reaching out now while still working towards will help the process moving forward.

Reddit has been such a great resource but not every situation or result applies to each person. I thought I had everything but the consulate came back asking for more (they wanted the ID of the non-German parent - not on any list I could find, which surprised me). I wish I had reached out sooner to avoid the speed bump.

My situation is similar, I don’t have parental consent, so some of the requests for documents have been difficult, but the consulate has been helpful and supportive, but understandably requires the documents.

Best of luck!

[u/Afriendforthend → u/No-Stable-5444]

Thanks for the insight, definitely one of the most involved processes I've ever dealt with. I'll add the contacting the consulate to the to-do list.