Legal Question in Immigration Law in New York

My mother is an American and was born in NJ. I was born in Canada and want to apply for my passport. I am over 18 and it is too late to report my birth abroad, and according to the USIS, I can apply for a passport or for citizenship to establish my American roots.

According to the passport application, what I can provide as proof of my citizenship is;

my mother's birth certificate, my foreign birth certificate and an affidavit stating her relationship to me as well as how much time she has spent in the usa.

My problem is that I have read the following on the American Consulate website: "If you were born on or after 12/24/52 and before 11/14/86, and ONE of your parents was a U.S. citizen at the time of your birth, you may have acquired U.S. citizenship at birth if the U.S. citizen parent was physically present in the USA for periods totaling 10 years prior to your birth, at least 5 of which were after their 14th birthday."

My mom has lived most of her life in Canada and doesn't remember all or how much time she has been physically present in the usa. I am worried that it won't add up to 10 years.

Is the USA flexible on this, will they still give me the passport even if my mom hasn't been in America for 10 years??

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