Montana Attorney General Opinion 15-480

Opinion No. 480. Vetel'ans-Citizenship---Overseas SeI"Vice. HELD: A veteran who sen'ed over- seas is not automatically admitted to citizenship but must file an "overseas petition" and take the oath of alle- giance in proper form. March 2, 1934. We have your letter of Fehruary 27th in which you ask: "Does a man who went overseas and fought for the U. S. A. automatically become a citizen of the United States at the time of his en- listment?" ·We are unable to find any Act of Congress authorizing such automatic lldmission to citizenship, but on the contrary those Jl'ederal Statutes which exempt aliens in the military service of the United States in the World War from certain requirements of the na- turalization laws ne\'ertheless require that such aliens file what is called an ;'overseas petition" with, and take the oath of allegiance before, some court authorized to naturalize aliens. (See, Act of :\fay 9. WIS. Chap. 6H, 40 Stat. 542, 543 and 54-!; U. S. C. A., Title 8. Sec. 3S,Q, 3HO, 3m, and 3!J2.) Your question must therefore he 8n- s\yered in the negative.