Jimmy Klass, Florida man, 66, discovers he’s not a citizen despite living in the US for 64 years as he fights to collect social security retirement payments, this despite paying taxes, voting and even receiving a social securities card.
A Florida man has found out he’s not a citizen despite having lived in the United States for over six decades.
Jimmy Klass, 66, discovered he was not actually a citizen when he applied for social security retirement papers recently, after living in the country for over 60 years.
Klass, who came to US aged two, has lived in the country ever since – even receiving a Social Security Card, a driver’s license and a voter registration card.
Florida man who arrived in 1959, ‘figured he was a U.S citizen’
To boot the Florida resident has voted in multiple elections and was even accepted into the Marine Corps and the police force, before ultimately choosing a union job instead, according to News 6.
‘They sent me a letter that said, ‘Oh, you’re eligible,’ you know? Yada-yada-yada. You’ll get your first check the second Wednesday of January 2020,’ he told the outlet.
‘But instead, I got a notification that it was frozen because I hadn’t proven to them that I was here legally. That was their determination.’
Klass believed he was a citizen his whole life. His father’s birth certificate proves he was a natural-born US citizen. His mother is of Canadian descent, and his paternal grandparents came from Germany.
Klass, who was brought to the US when he was 2 years old in 1959 according to ABC Action News, telling the outlet that for decades figured that he had been granted citizenship through his father.
‘Well, nobody showed up at my door to arrest me yet,’ he told News 6.
‘My dad’s roots were in Brooklyn, New York… And two years into my existence, they decided to load up the truck and move to Beverly, so to speak’ he said. ‘We moved to Tennessee Avenue in Long Island, to be more specific. And we moved into the house next to my grandparents.’
‘I acted like a regular citizen’
Klass shared that he’s even voted in multiple elections, which is a federal crime for non-citizens, according to the FBI, however, nothing has ever led him to believe that he wasn’t.
‘I have all those documents, as well. I mean, I was accepted everything: photo ID card, I voted here. You know, I acted like a regular citizen. Never, ever, ever came about where I was here illegally, even though Social Security says I didn’t prove it to them. They gave me my Medicare for over a year and a half.’Well, nobody showed up at my door to arrest me yet,’ he said.
‘But yeah, technically, if you vote, and you’re illegal — it’s federal charges.’I’ve even been to the Canadian consulate in Miami, all right?’ he stated. ‘I’ve been spending thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars to try to get my money that I paid into Social Security my entire life.’
Klass has now been left with no choice but to go on the defense with US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to fix the problem — sending the agency multiple documents proving he’s been living in the US for over 60 years as a full citizen.
‘I’ve sent all that stuff to USCIS and they still denied me,’ Klass said.
He’s even visited the Canadian Consulate in Miami in hopes that it would help clarify things — but to no avail.
Even worse, the retiree has been using his savings to try to clear up the issue.
‘I’ve been spending thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars to try to get my money that I paid into Social Security my entire life,’ he said.
Now, Klass is unable to receive his Social Security payments and is forced to go back to work.
‘I even said to them, ‘Well, if you’re not gonna pay me monthly, give me everything that I paid with interest, and we’ll call it a day,’ he said. ‘And they go, ‘Oh, we can’t do that, either.’ I said, ‘Well, what can you do?’
Does he still have a chance to collect social?
In the meantime, Klass has set up a GoFundMe to help cover this unexpected lifetstyle change.
He has raised $495 of his $10,000 goal as of Thursday.
‘Good day everyone,’ he wrote. ‘The reason I am starting a go fund me is that the United States government does not pay me my Social Security that I paid in for my entire life as they indicate that I am not here legally even though I’ve been here for 64 years.
‘My dad was an American born citizen my mom was a Canadian born citizen and the fight with having to hire attorneys and genealogist and retrieving documents for USCIS.’
‘My case is now in the hands of the media. As I am getting older and not collecting what I am do it’s becoming a financial burden and before I lose my home I am looking for charitable assistance any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.’
A child born abroad automatically becomes a US citizen if at least one parent is an American citizen, the child is under 18, a lawful permanent resident, and residing in the US under the legal and physical custody of the US citizen parent, according to the Child Citizenship Act of 2000.
Unfortunately for Klass, this law was not in effect when he moved to America as a 2-year-old.
USCIS said in a statement to News 6 that it is unable to discuss the matter ‘due to privacy considerations.’
‘As a matter of practice, and due to privacy considerations, USCIS does not comment on individual immigration cases, and the agency does not share, confirm, or deny immigration information about specific individuals. We adjudicate each application on a case-by-case basis to determine if it meets all standards required under the law. Applicants receive a written decision in the mail, which fully explains our action and lists any appeal rights.’
