MATTER OF S—M-- 

In EXCLUSION Proceedings 

A-12709704 

DeoZded by Board May 10,100 

Loss of citizenship—Section 350—Dual national—Use of communal land in 

Mexico. 

A cum nanonal or the Milled Stu Le' and hieAle%) who accepte the right to 

develop a parcel. of laud in a communal project in Mexico limited to "Mexicans by birth" ttlereby voluntarily enjoys a benefit of Mexican nationality. 

Since he has resAl€,-,1 in Mexico for 3 years after his 22cl birthday and after 

the benefit was accepted, both occurring after December 24, 1952, he has 

lost United States citizenship under section 350 of the 1952 Act. 

EXCLUDABLE: Act of 1952—Section 212(a) (20) [8 U.S.C. 1182 (a ) (20) ]—No 

valid immigrant visa. 

BEFORE THE BOARD 

DISCUSSION: The special inquiry officer ordered the applicant 

excluded from admission on the ground stated above and certified the 

case to this Board for final decision. No change will be made in the 

special inquiry officer's order. 

The applicant seeks admission as a citizen of the United States. 

The Service claims that he lost his United States citizenship under 

section 350 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. 1482, 

by accepting the right to develop a parcel of land in a communal 

project (ejido) in Mexico. The issue here is, in our opinion, whether 

the applicant voluntarily utilized benefits from the Mexican government which he would not have been eligible to receive except for the 

fact that he was a citizen of Mexico. 

Section 350 of the Immigration and Nationality Act provides, with 

certain exceptions not applicable here, that : 

A person who acquired at birth the nationality of the United States and of 

a foreign state and who has voluntarily sought or claimed benefits of the 

nationality of any foreign state shall lose his United States nationality by 

hereafter having a continuous residence for three years in the foreign state 

of which he is a national by birth nt any time after attaining the age of 

twenty-two years • • •. 

The following extract from Article 27 of the Mexican Constitution 

is considered pertinent: 

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The ability to acquire domain over the lands and waters of the nation shall 

be governed by the following laws: (1) Only Mcxicans by birth or naturalization and Mexican societies have the right to acquire domain over lands, 

waters and their accessions, or to obtain grants t, ,exploit mines, waters or 

combustible minerals in the Mexican Republic. The state may grant the same 

right to foreigners if they agree before the Secretary of Relations to be considered as nations with respect to said rights. and not to invoke, by the same 

token, the protection of their government insofar as it refers to them; under 

the penalty, in case of failure-to comply with the agreement, of losing, to the 

benefit of the nation, whatever rights they would have acquired by virtue of 

same. In a zone of 100 kilometers along the land boundaries or 50 along the 

sea shores, for no reason may foreigners acquire direct domain over lands and 

waters. (Exh. 11) 

The following articles of the Agrarian Code of Mexico are applicable: 

Article 54: Those country dwellers who fulfill the following requirements 

will have capacity to obtain unit of endowment or parcel by means of endowment, enlargement, creation of new centers of population or accommodation on 

surplus public lands: 

1. To be a Mexicau by birth, a male over 16 years, if single, or of any age, 

if married, or a single woman or widow if she has a family in her charge. 

Article 112: Upon partition of the cultivated lands, the possession of these 

will pass, with the limitations established by this Code, to the landholders in 

whose favor the parcels of land shall he adjudicated. 

Article 154: The certificates of agrarian rights will be issued prior to the 

determination of the annual rental and should not be extended in a greater 

number than the landholders who can conveniently maintain or support themselves from the land, hearing in mind the extent and quality of the lands 

over which he commands. (Exh. 12, parts 1 and 

The facts are fully stated by the special inquiry officer. Briefly, 

the applicant was born in Texas on March 19, 1923, to parents who 

are natives and citizens of Mexico. At birth he acquired the nationality both of the United States and Mexico. He was taken to Mexico 

when he was about four years of age to be raised by his grandparents 

since his mother was ill_ In 1040, he learned for the first time 

that he had been born in the United Stales. In 1940, .Mexico granted 

him the right to farm a plot of about 30 acres in a communal project. 

On September 10, 1951, he was granted a "title" to the plot which is 

about 31 kilometers from the border. The title guarantees the applicant's rights over the plot of land and guarantees that lie may freely 

enjoy the benefits of his plot according to the "lawful regulations 

in effect" and guarantees him "peaceful possession" of the plot (Exh. 

7). The applicant continues to farm the plot and has resided in 

Mexico continuously since he was brought there at the age of four. 

The Service urges that the applicant's loss of United States nationality was brought about under section 350 when, claiming the benefits 

of his Mexican nationality, he accepted the right offered by the Government of Mexico to develop the plot of land to which lie subsequently obtained "title'' and continued to take advantage of the bene665 
fits of such membership for three years after December 24, 1952, 

when section 350 became effective. 1 

Counsel contends that the Service has failed to show that the applicant's claiming of benefits was voluntary, since applicant's testimony 

reveals that he did not apply for the use of the land, but it was 

granted to him as a matter of course because of his service in the 

Mexican army. Counsel contends also that the constitutional requirement that "domain" over land within 100 kilometers be reserved to 

Mexicans is not applicable because the applicant was not the owner 

of the land but merely has certain rights in the land. 

It is unnecessary to decide whether the applicant's rights to the 

land constituted the "direct domain" reserved in the border zone 

only to Mexicans by the constitution, for it appears to Ila that 

Article 54 of the Agrarian Code of Mexico limits the obtaining of a 

unit in the communal projects to "a Mexican by birth"; thus, the obtaining of a unit in such a parcel would be the enjoyment of a benefit 

which could not have been obtained by one who was not a Mexican 

by birth. Moreover, we believe that there was a voluntary enjoyment 

of this benefit. Whether applicant applied for it or not, it was 

made available to him if he desired to take it. It is not shown 

that the law required that a former soldier enjoy such a benefit, 

and it appears he was free to take or reject the right to work the 

communal land. We must, therefore, conclude that the applicant 

voluntarily accepted the benefits of his Mexican nationality ; he has 

maintained a continuous residence in Mexico for three years after 

his 22d birthday and after the benefit was accepted; therefore, he 

has lost United States citizenship under section 350 of the Act (Metter of C— E—,7-599). 

ORDER: It is ordered that no change be made in the order of the 

special inquiry officer. 

1To fall within section 350 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, the 

use of the benefit must be after December 24, 1952, the effective date of the 

Act, and foreign residence must continue for 3 years after the same date, and 

after the person reached the age of - twenty-two (Matter of G—Q—, 7-195). 

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