Veteran surprised to learn he’s not a citizen

Resident who served
on juries, fought in a war unable to obtain passport
By dick metzgar
Staff Writer

JERRY WOLKOWITZ Iwan Terenin, a resident of Dunhams Corner Road in East Brunswick, discusses his surprise about learning he is not a U.S. citizen and being unable to obtain a passport.

EAST BRUNSWICK — It came as a huge shock to Iwan Terenin when he learned that he is a man without a country.

That shock turned to frustration and anger when the township resident, 58, was told by Immigration and Naturalization Services authorities that he cannot obtain a passport from either his native country, Austria, or his adopted country, the United States.

That has caused a considerable dilemma for Terenin — who came to America at the age of 5 with his father and mother in 1950 from the British zone in Austria as part of the Displaced Persons Program following World War II. He is seeking to spend much of his retirement in Europe.

What has made the situation even more maddening is that Terenin has done a number of things that are generally reserved for American citizens in good standing — he has been voting for 40 years, has served on "at least 15 juries," is a veteran of the Vietnam War, and had top security clearance when he was attached to the Adjutant General’s Office in Washington, D.C., in the 1960s.

Terenin is a retired employee of Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. His problems began when he first applied for a passport in October 2001 after deciding to visit his hometown of Seeboden in the middle of Austria.

"I was very surprised when I was told that I couldn’t get a passport because I was not an American citizen. I was able to obtain a temporary passport that was good for only one year so that I could visit Seeboden," Terenin said. "However, I have been unable to even get the temporary passport renewed."

Terenin said he even spent several thousand dollars on an attorney to help him in his effort to secure an American passport.

He said his attorney, Daniel Kraft, who has an office in East Brunswick, requested help in the matter from the office of Congressman Rush Holt (D-12). Though Kraft said he had little result, Holt said he has tried to work with Terenin and wants to expedite the process of making him a U.S. citizen.

"Another thing that bothers me is that this guy is a Vietnam veteran, has voted and served on juries, and has done everything else American citizens do and has a Social Security number," Kraft said.

Terenin said he was advised to go to the Austrian embassy in New York City and apply for an Austrian passport, which he said he did about a month ago, only to be thwarted once again.

"I was told that I was technically not an Austrian citizen because I had not renewed my citizenship there each year, which I learned is a requirement in that country," Terenin said. "I had not known about that requirement, so I can’t even get an Austrian passport, although I still have my original birth certificate from Austria."

To add insult to injury, Terenin’s father, Gregory Terenin, obtained his U.S. citizenship papers in 1957. Iwan Terenin’s son and daughter are also American citizens.

Terenin said he was led to believe by the U.S. Army that he was legally an American citizen after he enlisted on Sept. 26, 1963, when he was 18.

"I told the Army officials that I wanted to apply for my U.S citizenship papers after I enlisted, but they told me not to worry because I was already a citizen, and I was given top security clearance when I was attached to the adjutant general’s office," Terenin said.

His honorable discharge papers specify that Terenin is a U.S. citizen.

"I even contacted the Veterans’ Administration and was told that the U.S. military considers me a U.S. citizen," Terenin said.

That might have been the source of Terenin’s problems, going back to 1965, Kraft said.

"He probably should have followed through with his application for U.S. citizenship," Kraft said. "However, he claims the Army told him he was a citizen and not to bother. His discharge papers list him as a U.S. citizen."

Holt, who noted that there are "tens of thousands" of people who served the United States in wars who were not citizens, said there has always been, and continues to be, a great deal of misinformation regarding citizenship in this country, whether it’s the result of lost files or the spreading of false information by friends and lawyers.

"I spend a lot of time talking to people and helping them to work through the bureaucracy," he said. He noted that he and his office probably spend more time on immigration and citizenship issues than anything else.

Holt said he wants Terenin to fill out citizenship paperwork, and that he would help to expedite the process.

"I believe he should be a citizen," Holt said. "He’s not just a productive member of our society, but he served during the Vietnam years."

Terenin said it is vitally important for him to have a passport, and soon, because he has obtained a farm in Estonia, a small country in Europe on the border of Finland.

"I have to close on the property in Estonia by the end of this month, but I won’t be able to be there," Terenin said. "Fortunately, there is a person there who can handle that for me. The only way I could get there is by rowing a boat across the Atlantic Ocean. I understand that you don’t need to have a passport if you arrive in a country rowing a boat."

Meanwhile, the man without a country would settle for a passport from any place.

"I would take a passport from the moon, if that were possible," he said.

Terenin’s only recourse now may be to start from square one in the lengthy process to obtain his U.S. citizenship papers, according to Kraft.