Family Based Survivor Benefits

A person who is the surviving spouse, child, or parent of a United States citizen, whose citizen spouse, parent, or child dies during a period of honorable service in an active duty status in the U.S. Armed Forces may be eligible for naturalization.

Generally, service in the armed forces means service in one of the following branches: Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard, certain reserve components of the National Guard, and the Selected Reserve of the Ready Reserve.

Surviving family members seeking immigration benefits are given special consideration in the processing of their application for permanent residence or for classification as an immediate relative.

Survivor Benefits for Relatives of U.S. Citizen Service Members

For information on survivor benefits for relatives of U.S. armed forces members who were U.S. citizens at the time of death, to include those who obtained posthumous citizenship under section 329A of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), see the "Survivor Benefits for Relatives of U.S. Citizen Military Members" link to the left.

Survivor Benefits for Relatives of Non-U.S. Citizen Service Members

For information on survivor benefits for relatives of U.S. armed forces members who were not U.S. citizens at the time of death, see the "Survivor Benefits for Relatives of Non-U.S. Citizen Military Members" link to the left.