At the time Omar went through the process, federal law allowed immigrants under the age of 18 to get naturalized as U.S. citizens if both of their parents had become U.S. citizens. The law was eventually replaced by a new law in 2001, which only requires one parent to become a citizen for the children to be naturalized. 

At the center of this investigation is whether Omar’s father, Nur Omar Mohamed, lied about her age in immigration documents so she could be eligible to derive citizenship through him, according to The Washington Post, which cited two unnamed sources. 

According to Arthur, the former immigration judge, if Omar was 18 at the time of the naturalization application, she may have been able to apply for her citizenship on her own after having a valid green card for five years. 

The allegations regarding Omar’s citizenship gained attention among conservative activists and commentators starting in 2019, when Omar became a member of Congress. Shortly after her election, Omar’s staff sought to change her official birth year in public records from 1981 to 1982, according to multipleoutlets.