The Long Hard Road to a U.S. Passport

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Byline: WILLIAM LOWTHER

GAINING American citizenship is a long and difficult process which involves several levels of checks and examinations.

It starts with a so-called 'green card', which is actually pink, and allows the holder to live and work in the U.S. as a resident alien.

Securing the card can take years, although a few are handed out to applicants who enter a government lottery.

Generally the cards go only to the close relatives of those who are already citizens or to those with qualifications that the Department of Justice believes will benefit the nation.

Currently, nuclear physicists, some university professors, aeronautical …