Forum	Title	Content	Member	Sex	Country	Date/Time
US Citizenship General Discussion	filing my US citizenship but my middle initial from my green card is incorrect	Except . . . at the N-400 stage you can choose about any name you want anyway. So while I agree with saywhat in that what he suggested is most likely the most appropriate way to do this, you'll be asked at the interview anyway if you'd like to change your name. At that time you could point out that your middle name was spelled incorrectly but it had not bothered you since you don't use it, but would like the correct spelling to transfer to your new life as a US citizen. My only fear is that they will try and match records and birth certificates and FBI/Court records/Passport etc or whatever and find a discrepancy and it will throw em into a tiz woz. Anything that doesn't fit causes the wheels to fall off with these guys. It's even enough to get a credit card refused so its certainly enough to make a USCIS robot go 'does not compute'. Those guys are not interpretive like google even. My surname being entered wrongly on the POE record was enough for SS to refuse me a number. It was one letter wrong on a 4 letter surname (I wouldn't dare say that on the off topic forum). There is a regulation provision for fixing that informally (one letter)so I got em to accept it the next day. I accept that changing the whole name is possible at naturalization, but getting there with a mis-spelled GC might involve delays and queries If I had time before my intended filing date I would do an infopass and fix it first. It should have been fixed immediately on GC receipt if it was noticed, as these things only fester and hurt us later. We are not dealing with people - this is the USCIS who were brought from the purple prism planet to dissipate our will to live prior to conquest	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-09-07 19:03:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Interview is tomorrow!	Report is in: Arrived at 8:30am, interview was schedule at AM... Went through security with no problems (didn't even ask for id or interview letter!).. Drop interview letter in box... Wait 10 minutes, I was called (before 9am) for the test. All 6 questions answer correctly.. Some of the questions: One promise you make when you become a citizen... Name 2 US holidays... Governor of your state.. First President. War between the North and the South... Where is the Statue of Liberty... Then I was asked to read a question and write one... Everything was very quick, within 5-10 minutes the interview was over, and was asked to wait in the room for the next interview. Another 10 or 15 minutes passed (9:15 or so) and I was called for the immigration interview. The officer asked for my driver license, green card and passport. Asked a few questions from the application, Wanted to know if I was member of the communist party.. have been in jail, payed my taxes, was ready to fight for the US, etc.. etc... Then she ask me if I was able to attend the oath ceremony on June 16!.. I saw yes.. She congratulate me and ask me to wait in the waiting area for a oath ceremony document. 20 minutes later I had my oath letter and was ready to leave... Total time from 8:30 to 10:15 or so... Hopefully I don't forget the date of the ceremony wow fantastic ! excellent report : Course the oath thing doesn't help anyone else coz they are all different - but v interesting that they CAN give you the letter there and then... Talking to my hairdresser this morning (this is cowboy country and the barbers are all pudding bowl jockeys), she said they wait until they have a decent size batch of people before they arrange a ceremony in Spokane Of course things change but basically every office is totally different Really nice you got the ceremony date though coz you can read people on here who wait 6 months and then start writing to their Representative and it turns into a USCIS nightmare so hooray on all counts ! yankeefication looms !	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-06-02 13:25:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Interview is tomorrow!	George Washington teeth: hippo and elephant ivory, gold, etc... I'll report tomorrow Mega that's a commitment I have been trying to find out gap from interview to ceremony for Yakima Its not easy I finally found an article in a local paper there that implied two or three weeks Some report same day and some report 6 months A lot of the longer ones are people who want to change their name to sarah palin etc and time for mental condition reports must be added on I reckon most are 2 or 3 weeks ps ask em and report eh ? some will be non commital and some will say - no harm asking... Edited by saywhat, 01 June 2010 - 06:49 PM.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-06-01 18:47:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Interview is tomorrow!	At least I checked my paper work before the interview date!... Anyway, I listen to the 100 question CD in my commute and got them all ready... I also got a google map to the office, so that is also covered.... Aspirin for before or after Immodium ok now final test - from what wood was George Washington's false teeth made ?	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-06-01 18:17:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Interview is tomorrow!	Hi, my interview is tomorrow at 9am in the Houston office. A little nervous, some how I got confused and thought the interview was next Thursday!. luckily I check my papers last night. Got to call the sitter for tomorrow instead of Thursday!.. Any last minute tips? Do you know if Houston does same day ceremonies? Either use a calendar on your computer or buy a pocket calendar - I can't believe you forgot your interview date ! My dad would have said - I bet you would forget your head if it was loose. Here is a last minute tip - LEARN the 100 questions now and use the USCIS tool so you can be confident of not forgetting 5 of the 100 You dont have to get 6 out of 10, you have to get 96 out of 100 ! That's the way to look at it. If they ask 5 questions and they are the 5 you don't know, but you know the other 95, you are failed. This is hard love ! My file gets submitted 8 august at 9.30am and it's been finished 3 months except for the photos and I check it every 2 weeks ! PS remember to get the right address and get there early and take your GC and passport and don't turn up hung over and wait 5 seconds before answering each question - and leave your gun at home PPS the thing on the back of a car is the boot and the thing on the front is the bonnet and colour is spelled colour Actually no - bad examples !	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-06-01 15:54:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	lost green card	What - committing an offense (not carrying GC ) for all this time with total contempt for U.S. law ? As a persistent and deliberate law breaker, this isn't a person of good character and so cannot be granted citizenship ! Thumbs down.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-06-07 15:32:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	Strange, indeed, and I agree with you. Being "re-spawned" as a rubber duck, in particular, would be interesting. No a real duck not a rubber duck. Had enough of rubber girlfriends - I want one that can lay eggs. Another advantage is we could move from country to country without the USCIS approval or paying for meals on the way - oh and have a universal accent	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-18 15:06:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	While I must admit that British humor is a bit "unique," I wouldn't imagine that my comment could be taken that seriously. Really? US and Sweden in a war? If that happened, we (as in the world) would have much more serious problems to worry about. That's good and it's nice it was a joke and Sweden is safe - viva ABBA - viva Agnetha BUT there is the point that the Wisconsin Germans did fight against Germany with no compunction - so it seems that people do fall in line with their new country when required and to a surprisng degree Perhaps we shouldnt be surprised as we have the example of the American civil war where sometimes brother killed brother with relish as soon as they had chosen sides. Strange folk us humans. I wish I was a duck sometimes.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-18 14:50:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	well you would certainly live it 24 hours but you wouldn't have to worry about doing any forms - just forums . Actually, while you will be finished filling out forms for USCIS (after you take your oath - you still have a form to check off when you get your oath letter ) you have more forms that will still need your attention - updating your SSN, applying for a US passport, updating your driver's license and registering to vote! oh they will be easy peasy and not USCIS forms that's the main thing... It's great at the SS office - you certainly see life in there...last one was Clearwater Florida. Passport forms done already but must check they dont get updated before i send em I have located a office max that does color photo copies near the Court building I have located a post office that does passports near the office max All in the GPS favorites ! So plan is to hurtle out of the court, get some color copies (for own use only of course), then go to post office and file for passport. All highly organized and like a military operation. Then I can go get drunk and drive home coz I cant be deported ! (joke) I cant file this sealed envelope for 3 weeks and apart from the photos (30 days max), it's been all done for 2 months ! My ONLY worry now is the gap between the interview and the ceremony coz I want to plan my spring holiday. I can't find anyway to get t0o know Yakima's time gap I will be doing it at Yakima ..here is the ceremony !	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-18 13:25:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	oops Edited by saywhat, 18 July 2010 - 11:29 AM.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-18 11:28:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	I could totally rationalise the USCIS and do it for 40% less and I could do that in less than 1 day. If they gave me 1% of the savings, I could afford a harem of 30 top notch birds like the sultan of brunei I used to think all the junk was built in to let people think twice about going through with whatever they were applying for. Then I used to think they were trying to put me off totally. Now I am convinced it's just incompetence. Having sealed this n400 application, I have just realised that I have finished with USC form filling - it's a weird feeling Think I will have to do a pilot's license or something as I am now addicted to being told I have 'passed' or 'been approved' It is actually a recognized condition and some people go all over the world passing driver's tests or scuba diver's tests, hang gliding competence certificates etc etc etc and they have a club for fellow sufferers I will try and do Spanish instead and see if that will give me the fix I need. Or become a moderator on VJ and live it 24 hours ! Edited by saywhat, 18 July 2010 - 11:16 AM.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-18 11:16:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	Seven years ago, I haven't even heard of the USCIS, in dealing with them, treated like I was guilty of fraud and had to prove we were innocent. But even at that receiving the naturalization certificate is not a sure sign of you made it. Read on the internet that some odd 5,000 court cases are pending on naturalized citizens for alleged fraud on their applications. All in all, cost me about $16,000.00 to bring my wife and daughter here, besides the fees, a major cost was that out of pocket expense for the I-693's two of them. But ironically back then, the bottom of form said, even if you have every major communicable disease, still admissible, just have to agree to counseling. See that was changed recently on this form. Wife and daughter had an issue with their lifetime tuberculous vaccinations our doctors never heard about giving a soreness not even the size of a dime. Both had to agree to take that medication for like nine months, don't recall the name of it, but could cause kidney damage, all of those x-rays and skin tests were out of pocket expenses. But recently, our AMA adapted that British blood test that is far more accurate, and both have been listed as negative. But it was nice to know, they were both disease free. One contradiction I ran into, since I am living with two people with supposed tuberculous, shouldn't I be tested as well? No, its not required. Another major expense not related to the USCIS was paying dearly for typos their former governments made in key documents, like marriage and birth certificates, mostly a V was used in place of a B in their names, ironically, these two keys are next to each other on a standard keyboard. Would have been much cheaper if we waited the two year court case load, but in those countries, the judges want a couple of bucks under the table to have their records reviewed in a reasonable period of time. While my wife could have translated all these documents, we elected to hire a certified translator for assured accuracy, that was also expensive. But in my first call to the USCIS, was asked if I wanted a Spanish line, if they have someone that speaks and reads Spanish, why do they want translated documents? Even though my wife's ex abandoned his daughter five years before I met her, she was awarded full custody, and he moved to a different country, still needed his permission to bring her over here. He used this as blackmail, but we responded with like ten years of child support payments to counter that. But we had to pay for the court cost for that letter of permission, another major expense. But that letter of permission, her divorce papers showing full custody was worthless in attempting to get my step daughters' passport renewed, she had to wait until she was 18. Again, nothing to do with the USCIS. We clocked over 1,350 miles for biometrics plus taking days off, more for interviews due to their delays in the I-751 processing. In that our field office does not have same day oaths, that was yet another long trip. But this is our fault for not living across the street from the nearest USCIS office. Was always a panic during our winter appointments for a severe snow storm, but the Lord was with us, we made all the appointments. Today, we just have to maintain a Colombian passport so my wife can visit her mom. Ha, when I read at the time of our AOS, the USCIS was giving free green cards to Cubans picked up by the USCG, suggested to my wife I tow my boat down, build a raft and drop them off in the gulf about 30 miles off shore to save on USCIS expenses. Of course, she didn't like that idea, but was another option to bring people over here. I reckon those who have had to go through the slings and arrows of the USCIS(everyone on here) are the most anti amnesty in the country. Unlike the other antis, we generally are not for machine gunning illegals in the river, but resentful of the idea they can just get it given on a plate. Whatever they get, it should NOT be a path to citizenship and their kids born here should not be able to sponsor them. They should go the normal system for a GC even if they get a permit to stay. I just sealed my USC application yesterday and it's ready to mail in a couple of weeks. I take your point about it's never really over. Suppose I was Mel Gibson and his wife was the USC - imagine the stuff she could say about my previous applications to get the USC reversed. Invitation to blackmail. I was looking at the UK regs and they can tear a naturalised UK passport up on the whim of the Home Secretary with little or no process ! So as much as we moan (and we do), there is a level of public scrutiny in the US that there isn't in the UK. Having torn my hair out at the HMRC for 3 years, it makes me think the unthinkable - that the USCIS isn't really as ridiculously incompetent as they seem - well in comparison to most companies they are totally useless and should be zapped - but in contrast to the UK tax people, they actually look good ! That takes some doing. I am certain my USC application will be approved by xmas but I have no idea when the ceremony will take place and there is no way to find out - so my spring vacation cannot be planned Edited by saywhat, 18 July 2010 - 10:11 AM.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-18 10:09:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	My first comment was to Masterpiece; my second warning was to the both of you as well as a general warning to anyone who was thinking of escalating the discussion to an inappropriate level. I'm glad to know that you are not interested in letting things get heated up . Thanks for that clarification Alan	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-17 20:13:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	If they were to put oath ceremonies to a vote, my vote would be for same as interview oath ceremonies. Your IO went through the N-400 with you, verified all of your required evidence, gave you he civics and English test, have you read the oath aloud and sign it in his/her presence. Have the supervisor come in and take a couple of minutes to check over your application and evidence and sign it off. But I think your IO is being approved more than you are in that everything was done right. Give you your certificate, they have your photos, and send you on your way. One improvement would be to combine the USCIS with the DOS, most of their functions are redundant, in that way, they can also hand you a US passport at the same time. And send you away with that as well. That's a brilliant idea but you know how these gov depts work - so they will never do that. Same with paying bills in the GC process - they could have online credit card but no - bills going backwards and forwards in the mail over months...	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-17 18:57:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	You realize that you are responding to a post that appeared in May 2009 - 15 months ago? Why bring this up now? Also - making insulting statements about other posters is a violation of the Terms of Service for Visa Journey so tone down the aggressive posturing or future posts will be removed. Hi Kathryn you quote Masterpiece but just to clarify - do you mean me or him ? thanks alan	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-17 18:54:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	You realize that you are responding to a post that appeared in May 2009 - 15 months ago? Why bring this up now? Thread reopened today and not by me - but I was subscribed so it popped up in my email today. Masterpiece says he wants to be aggressive but I don't so:	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-17 18:50:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	@ SayWhat.... Yes i will stay aggressive....i do that when folks over-generalize such as you did in the statement i highlighted. There is no amount of "round-the-blocking" you can do, or profess to doing, that would equal the experiences folks have had.....not read or heard about....so please give me a break! I reiterate: There are millions of folks in 20th world countries who would rather be home than become American Citizens. I am not one of them just like "i am no mugu" statement does not give you "street cred". Clearly you are not wise enough to know when you made a mistake that you can easily retract without losing face and moving on... I shall leave you to bask in your ignorance and perceived statesmanship. Hallucinations are certainly not confined to the auditory or visual with you.... So you are saying that America isn't a honey pot for people who live in collapsed societies where slavery and rape and no sewers and disease is the order of the day ? Good luck selling that one - haha you are a funny guy man You sound deranged. Sit down and have a nice cup of tea - you will feel much better.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-17 17:59:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	Saywhat-Lol...Me and nukes don't mix.... And no, I won't nuke my family or anyone else, regardless....So no worries about that.... And as far as Canada/America relations..They have been pretty friendly for the past 200+ years or so.... Lol..The last time Canada/America had a war was in 1812...So it's highly unlikely it will come to that scenario again.. Actually, if war does happen...more likely than not, Canada will join with the USA (I think they have done that already).. So in that sense, I'll be on the same side..... But then again..They probably wouldn't want me fighting in any type of war, regardless.... Go figure...I agreed to bear arms in theory, as according to the oath of citizenship.... But in reality I'm useless with a gun and/or other weapons.....lol..I would probably end up accidently shooting myself before shooting others.....Blah... I would also go the peace route before I went the war route.... Peace wins....War loses..... Sigh...I wish America and other countries can learn a thing or two about peace too.... Ant haha - no it was the Swedish chap who said he would go to war against Sweden no problem and his reasoning was that the USA would win... I imagined him nuking his mom and brothers and sisters and thinking it was worth it to get USC. I am sure some would. Glad to know you would at least think twice which is more human. The USA was worried in WW2 that the Germans in Wisconsin etc would think twice and that was a reason to delay - in the event, even those German-Americans in Wisconsin who had aunts and uncles etc in Germany were quite willing to go and bomb em. Perhaps it's me that's different in that I would certainly have doubts about bombing my daughter and grandchildren in England. Luckily the US don't know I have been a National class marksman since 1967 so I should be able to avoid the draft due to my presumed decrepitude. Sorry to go off topic but someone said the US is the best country in the world - I recognize non such as I am an internationalist who sees good and bad all over - so I had to respond. ok	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-17 17:24:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	@ Say What... For every one African that considers becoming a USC "salvation", there are ten others who would prefer to stay home. Period! Please do not embark on a war of words, or facts, with me. You will lose..........MISERABLY!!!!!!!! You have not been around the block long enough to make a generalization of that magnitude. You should have said some...keyword some...3rd world or 10th world (you probably prefer the latter) country folks equate Salvation with the acquisition of USC. why are you so threatening and aggressive ? what is your problem ? I have been round a lot of blocks all over the world so why say something you can't possibly know ? Calm down I no mugu	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-17 17:01:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	Bit surprised that you guys are prepared to nuke your families back in Sweden/Canada respectively. Most people struggle with that bit of it. I am sure you will be most welcome as new citizens in the USA	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-17 16:50:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	"......So in my book it's ok to point out some aspects of the U.S. and say they are superb (and I do), but fauning over America as some kind of heaven on earth is a bit yucky and not realistic unless one comes from a 3rd world country where becoming an American (or a citizen of anywhere in the West), really is salvation......." @ Say What..... Sayyyy what???? Salvation???? Please be careful how you make such general statements that stray very far from the truth... Axiom 1: By 3rd world country you are referring to most countries in Sub-sahara Africa and perhaps some South American countries Axiom 2: By citizen of anywhere in the West... as in Western Hemisphere....you would include countries like Haiti (even before the earthquake) Say what??? I won`t even dwell too much on this one because it shows a great level of ignorance, on your part,to make such generalization and over-arching assumption.You clearly have not been to the places you call 3rd world countries (last time i checked the politically correct terms were developing and under-developed nation....but hey who`s checking....perspectives come a dime a dozen..) and may have not interacted long enough with those who continue to proudly declare their motherland and place of birth as the number 1 place they`d rather be. Truth be told most folks i know that have left Africa are here, in the main, just like other immigrants......for economic reasons!Here`s a simple example- true story! I hustled to get green cards for my parents. Both parents made their inital entry to U.S, validated the 1-485 filed for them and promptly returned to Nigeria. No thanks! Salvation? I think not! Yes there are generation X kids--- the MTV-influenced teenagers who dream about nothing else (okay call it salvation) but travelling to U.S but the fact is simple- you will find a subset of this population in practically every nation (outside the states) simply because U.S portrays a certain amount of freedom. [Keyword: Portrays I bet an analysis of these teens would reveal that ten years after entry into U.S, they begin to yearn, all too fervently, for their homeland because they have appreciated that the so-called U.S freedom is a little bit more of a mirage, an illusion if you will... Say What??? Dont let me expound anymore...simply curtail your statements to very little generalizations. It certainly is a more prudent approach to take when your discourse is in a public forum such as visajourney.com Say What??? Did you ever hear about the 1986 Nobel Prize winner for Literature? A certain gentleman who picked up his prize in Norway (think West!!) and despite all the doors that opened up decided to make his home country his place of abode. Say What?? If i begin to delve into examples here, we will not leave this thread. So enough said! A retraction of a generalization should be your logical move. Say what? Yeah you heard me. That's just playing with words. ok instead of 3rd world, substitute any word you like because you know exactly what I mean. ...and you can see some VJ ers falling on the floor with tears and relief at getting their USC and they are invariably from those countries that you have just chosen a word for. To them it is salvation. oh I am not saying that West Europeans are exempt from having a small tear of relief/pride at the end of the journey because many do; but there are many countries where they are actually escaping a living hell - and that doesn't apply to West European countries /Australia/New Zealand/Canada etc Let me give you an example: If you were a non - arab woman from Dafur, you would probably be in heaven at being able to become a USC - especially if you then had a husband/family in the US. Read the forums - the stories are there. That is just one example but there are many. Hope that helps you to understand the context Edited by saywhat, 17 July 2010 - 04:19 PM.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-17 16:17:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	QUOTE Alan, I think you're right. It's an extremely relative question, and also a very personal question. I've been lucky enough to have experienced many cultures on many different continents, and to me, the U.S. is as good as it gets. All countries have pros and cons. Their weights, I believe, depends on what you value as an individual. I'm taking the oath on July 15th. I will remain a Swedish citizen, and therefore have dual-citizenship. However, I am fully aware (and willing) to renounce my allegiance to Sweden. In other words, if the U.S. ever declared war on Sweden, I will fight for the U.S. Which, I don't think, is a particularly bad idea considering the military powers of each country Of course, Sweden will always have a place in my heart, but I would never have sought U.S. Citizenship if I was not willing to be fully loyal to the U.S. and accept the U.S. Culture. Cheers, Goran I have been visiting the US for 25 years and living here on and off for 5, and living here full time for 18 months and I must say the place is growing on me. The differences which seemed so huge are becoming more explainable and natural and the idea of keeping my hands on the steering wheel when a police officer approaches me is becoming 'normal' in my mind whereas it was simply appalling at first. So my 'mind set' is progressing, but it still un-nerves me when people start saying that America and therefore Americans are superior to others. I suppose my age does not help as I am 61 and therefore closer to the second world war which was fought over these issues. An unbiased observer would point out many aspects of American society which are far inferior to any western european country - but the wide open spaces and easy parking and driving , and the efficient and cheap mail order etc may be 'shallow' criteria, but they are important to me and therefore a plus for the US. I wouldn't fly a bomber over London and bomb St Paul's cathedral in order to validate my US citizenship when it comes, but I spend all my money here and wouldn't do anything to harm the US, and would like to promote it's finer ideals, so America will have to be content with that if they allow my application I think Goran, that you would think twice before dropping napalm on your old school friends and their children and your family in Sweden on behalf of the US - I really do. People of German ancestry from Wisconsin thought nothing of flattening Germany, (The US govt thought they might), but you and I are closer to our roots than that I like the high minded stuff that Obama spouts and I would like to swallow the high ideals of America and promote them, but I hope I can do that without embracing blind nationalism and beating the superiority drum which is too close to the Nazis for my liking - so 'finest country in the history of the world' will always ruffle my feathers I can see that someone from an awful starving murderous swampy steamy corrupt 3rd world country would fall to their knees and weep at idea of being a US citizen, so I guess I should try and cut them a bit of slack when they express that. I would do the same thing in their position The American ideals are well said and mostly expressed and inherited from England, (Even the stars and stripes were the Washington family's crest in England), so the aspiration towards them is a fine thing. l therefore think the ceremony should be more meaningful, or have more gravitas than 300 people muttering something. If it were more personal, I reckon it would solidify people's idealism rather just being something that allows one to bring one's family in and removes the possibilty of deportation Without Obama's wordy idealism, and if Bush or Cheney or those other grizzly torturers and religious intolerants had continued in power, I would have not have considered applying for US citizenship any more than I would be a citizen of red China or Albania, but now I reckon I can embrace it and work to keep it from slipping back	Captain Oates	Male	England	2009-05-31 12:43:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Warning about naturalization ceremony	QUOTE (jasman0717 @ Jan 15 2009, 02:56 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Anticlimactic or not, he is still a citizen of the greatest country in the world On what basis ? A certain Austrian gentleman thought it was a good idea to trumpet his country and people as superior in every way - and look where that ended up. I will be a dual citizen of the U.S. and the U.K. but claiming superiority over other countries is not a necessary qualification unless one is Rush Limbaugh fan. Mitt Romney says the U.S. is the 'finest country in the history of the world', but a stroll round downtown Seattle at midnight (dare you), might have people wondering about that. On the basis of the ratio of doctors to patients (4 times as many as the U.K.), and the quality and cost of care, France for instance, beats the U.K. and the U.S. easily - so the criteria is important So in my book it's ok to point out some aspects of the U.S. and say they are superb (and I do), but fauning over America as some kind of heaven on earth is a bit yucky and not realistic unless one comes from a 3rd world country where becoming an American (or a citizen of anywhere in the West), really is salvation. On the basis of the quality and gravitas of the citizenship ceremony, it seems the US has some way to go, and it sounds like a sausage machine with little regard to the importance of the occasion to the individual . It would probably have more solemnity to do it at the end of the interview on a one to one basis with relatives present then	Captain Oates	Male	England	2009-05-29 11:37:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	3 mos. state residency requirement	No, the 3 month residency does not apply to traveling. It only applies when you move within the US and the new residence is serviced by a different district office. If so, then you will need to wait 3 months before you become eligible to apply for naturalization based on the new residence. What I always forget is whether that 3 month State residency is required all the way through to the ceremony (and some ceremonies are months after the interview) It's probably a moot point as the process to transfer it halfway through is so sticky that it would take a long time.. but it would save the $675 as it's the same application ? I agree that traveling prior to the application and indeed traveling DURING the processing of the application, is no problem so long as the total days in the 3 years/5 years are not exceeded I am filing in 9 days and as soon as I get the fingerprints date I will book a 2 week holiday to start the day after... the gap from fingerprints to interview is at least 6 weeks to allow CIA FBI MI5 M16, Secret Service and a personal conversation between O and god to take place. come on ceremony so I can bin all this manure Edited by saywhat, 30 July 2010 - 11:48 AM.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-30 11:47:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Traffic tickets - look out !	Foreign nationals in any country should just follow the damn law. Follow the law and you don't have problems. I am glad this persons' naturalization was denied. I hope he is deported. I don't want to drive on the road thinking he may be there, speaking on his stupid cell phone and speeding. And it sounds like the kind of person who will hit you and run and never appear for a court hearing. Give me a break. Would a public waterboarding be too lenient ? It doesn't work like that. What percentage of the people you see speeding and talking on their cell phones are Green Card holders ? Get real. The USCIS is looking for conduct to be the same as the average citizen Looking at the telly, you would think that a couple of murders would still be ok to meet the USA standard. In a country with 2.5 million people in jail and awash with drugs demanded by snow white oh so perfect USC's, it's not hard to look good. In Washington State, we are allowed TWENTY tickets in a five year period before our licenses are suspended and that is is because they hand em out like confetti. I have one ticket (ever). We flew 3,200 miles from Florida for my wife's interview in Washington State and I rented a car and it had no cruise control. I got a ticket for $113, and it was 40 miles from the nearest town, and I drove straight to the courthouse and paid it in cash - I paid it so quickly that they didn't have the ticket record as the ticket was one hour old. I have the receipt I reckon I am above the standard for an average US Citizen - so sorry bud but I won't be deported. In 5 months I will be a USC and then I will be able to speed past you and on my cell phone - but you won't mind coz I will be a USC Civis Romanus sum ! Edited by saywhat, 02 August 2010 - 12:59 PM.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-08-02 12:59:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Traffic tickets - look out !	Hi, And thanks alot for ur reply. Now, i didn't get the receipt yet. should i call them and ask them for it? and do i need to go to he DMV and get license record ? and Yes i have the receipt from the Bank that i send Cashiar check. and i wanna check the Bank statement as well. Thanks alot. nah it's not necessary The guy who got caught out was a bad boy mainly because he dodged his tickets rather than just the getting of the tickets - and he did have 7 !! I have 1 ticket. I have not shown it on the n400 because it says you shouldn't I have a receipt though. I would recommend having something to prove you have paid it just for the 1 in million chance they think you are a fine dodger. Once you have the receipt, don't lose it but don't volunteer it either. It's just in case someone screws a record up. 1 in a million. I always carry my receipt in my wallet in case the police pull me and claim I didn't pay. They jail you in some places for that ! Welcome to America. You will be fine. I will be fine.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-25 22:56:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Traffic tickets - look out !	I had gotten used to the concept of 'moral turpitude' with the GC but of course with the n400 thing they can be much pickier and convoluted in saying you are not of 'good moral character'. I reckon Mr Gibson would be on the first plane out if he applied for n400 Instead he is almost a billionaire Great caution required for the USC process - it isn't automatic I didn't realise that traffic tickets would do it if not handled properly but it just shows.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-25 19:59:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Traffic tickets - look out !	Hi, I got a ticket in Atlanta-GA, on the traffic citition it says i was driving 69 MPH in a 55 MPH zone and for sure i had to send a $250 Cashair Checks to them, the good thing i dont have to go to appear to the Court, and if it was 1 Miles. extra i will be paying extra for Insurance too. i was in Vacation to GA. so i dont have to fly to GA from CA to appear. but still worried if this will make any problem for me when i apply for my Citizenship this next 2 months. and i dont know if i have to write it down in the N-400 form that i got a ticket, Thanks alot. It says on the n400 instructions that ordinary traffic tickets need not be declared even. Make sure you pay it promptly and don't get a lot of them (or any more if poss !) and you will be just fine Ask for a receipt Keep your bank statement showing the payment and have it in your folder for the interview. One in a million chance they would even question it - and only if it's unpaid. Your standard is the 'average American law abiding citizen'. You are still within this so far	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-25 18:38:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Traffic tickets - look out !	Or simply obey all the traffic laws and avoid those way overpriced tickets. But then that is getting hard to do, use to be able to drive a block and a half to a 55 mph limit and that 55 mph limit use to be 65 mph. Keep on building homes and businesses on state highways, drop the limit to 25, then add stop signs or worse yet, traffic signals that turn red for an hour while nobody is coming. Getting to the point where our towns are a half a block wide and ten miles long. Lower taxes by doing that as the state pays for the roads. While our science magazines predicted everyone will be traveling at 300 mph by the year 2000, feel they are a bit off, 3 mph is more like it. Washington State is insanely over policed. I can't drive 20 miles without seeing 4 or 5 police cars and one of the 4 speed monitoring planes. They will ticket for 5mph over They follow me and everyone all round town all day long. I even use cruise control in the 25 mph areas They got me on my first visit 40 miles from nowhere when we came here the first time for interview. 70 in a 60 coming down off the mountain. They wait half way down. It was a rental from Seattle and it had no cruise control. That was day 1. I have been here 2.5 years now and they have no chance of getting me again as I drive in my mirror instead of looking for pedestrians in front. I am allowed 20 tickets in 5 years before a ban - that is indicative of the volume of tickets which is immense. The Sheriff is up for election and the posters say he is GOP. What chance people with liberal bumper stickers ? There is no State Income Tax so the money is collected via totally distracting levels of Policing Washington State Police Use Ticket Quotas Officials with the Washington State Patrol set numeric goals that encourage state police officers to issue as many traffic citations as possible. The effect has been a significant increase in the number of tickets written — 50,000 additional tickets were issued between 2005 and 2006. A Bellvue state patrol sergeant issued a memo ordering troopers to meet the accountability goals, writing: “No matter how many cars you stop, the goal… is 80 percent enforcement (tickets).” Those failing to meet the goal may lose vacation time or receive other sanctions. Edited by saywhat, 25 July 2010 - 06:06 PM.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-25 18:04:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Traffic tickets - look out !	Found a case of a guy who was denied based on traffic tickets. Actually it was a combination of the tickets and how he dealt with them. 4 tickets for using a cell phone while driving 3 tickets for speeding In my opinion he should be denied on grounds of not being intelligent enough for citizenship and the psychological component of his green card medical should be questioned; but it was a mixture of the tickets PLUS the way he dealt with them. He messed about with appeals, failed to pay and the USCIS said this wasn't the conduct of an average USC DENIED So just because the N400 form says traffic tickets are not a problem, make sure you pay them quickly or it can lead to denial if you have enough of them and mess about.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-07-25 13:49:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	worried about the Writing test	Dont worry I am like you too, If you wrote this Post by urself, then you should be fine. Good luck Did you mean to put 'urself' or is it text language ? I think a lot of people who appear dyslexic are just usuing text language that they have become used to. For non-native English speakers, I think texting is bound to lead to bad English becoming embedded as normal.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-08-03 09:56:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	worried about the Writing test	I can't say how strict they'll be on the test but I hope it makes you feel better to know that many native English speakers have trouble spelling. You certainly are not alone! My son is English born and educated He told me his girlfriend had called him an imber seal	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-08-02 17:14:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	USCIS is doing my head in	I think if you survive the torturous "adventure" with USCIS, then you deserve to get the GC. Look at it as civilian boot-camp - actually, it is more like civilian and financial boot-camp If these guys had done the GC process first, they would have been able to laugh the water boarding off no problem : Remember what they say - 'what doesn't kill you leaves you a cabbage': Khalid Sheikh Mohammed was waterboarded 183 times in March 2003 and Abu Zubaydah was waterboarded 83 times in August 2002. Edited by saywhat, 03 August 2010 - 12:46 PM.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-08-03 12:45:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	USCIS is doing my head in	Good God Almighty, what a mess! I feel your pain, honestly I do. I think only people who have immigrated to the US can fully appreciate how taxing the process is. I used to say online dating (how I met my husband) was not for the faint of heart. Now I say the same about dealing with the USCIS. My advice to anyone who is thinking of climbing onto the immigration train is simple: if you have any drama going on in your life, wait until it resolves itself because this process will wear you down. Let me be quick to add I do not think immigration should be easy nor necessarily fast. I also don't believe it is my 'right' to become an American citizen. BUT after many hundreds of dollars in fees, mountains of paperwork to complete, a full cavity search of my finances, a five (?!) hour physical, a complete police background check, and several rounds of fingerprinting, is it really too much to expect to be treated fairly, consistently, and respectfully. I know, I know, I'm such a dreamer......... Here's hoping your N-400 is accepted without a hitch! Some of the folks on VJ were sailing along while I was being waterboarded.. and then I got my unconditional GC and they hit a world of hurt at the last minute and it took em a year to sort it out You can never tell. When she got her UK green card it was a piece of cake. No medical, no police certificate NOTHING. We walked into the UK consulate in Chicago and came out with a UK GC after 20 minutes. That was 2006. I have had tougher library ticket applications. We shall overcome. I can understand why people on VJ end up praying and then laying prostrate on the ground in front of god and weeping when they get approved. I have felt like that a few times over the last few years. Of course we Brits are made of sterner stuff - but we are human. Could be the US is testing our mettle to see if we will make warriors for the Empire. My warrior days are over unless they try and steal my $675 in which case they can look out.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-08-03 12:24:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	USCIS is doing my head in	I had a look at your timeline and that's a bloody nightmare! Don't you just love how you can get so far in the process and then suddenly they are questionning you about a criminal record. Huh? A similar thing happened to me at my K-1 interview even though I had a criminal background check in hand. The stories we can tell when this is over, oy vey!!! Just for fun I Googled "USCIS sucks" yesterday and got pages of hits. Some of the stories had me laughing so hard I had tears running down my face. I know they're not funny to the immigrant who is in the middle of the mess but hopefully we can appreciate the comedy the USCIS offers us after the fact. I've never come close to dealing with an organization that seems so disorganized, poorly trained, and ineffective. When I've spoken to a few of my elected representatives in person about how bad it is, they just roll their eyes and tell me there is no rhyme nor reason to some of the ####### that goes down. My husband and I refer to the USCIS as 'The Stumblebums' or alternatively 'The Keystone Cops'. We were living in the UK and she had a UK conditional GC equivalent. We applied to Nebraska as that covered her last residence in the US They waited a couple of months and sent it back saying she is in the UK so apply to London. We applied to London They sent it back and said she is conditional so apply to Nebraska Applied to Nebraska again with a copy of the London letter and they sent it to California. California sent it back saying apply to London This went on for a while and then we got to the more usual snags Then in the last month they said she wasn't domiciled in England coz she was conditional and she wasn't domiciled in the US as she had sold her house and so she was a USC without a domicile and could not sponsor anyone. If we had lived in a non-State Income Tax State like Florida or Washington State we would have been snookered She fished out her State income tax return (Wisconsin) and they eventually relented Then the fiasco at the London embassy for the GC where they said I had gate crashed the embassy security without a valid letter I am still a bit depressed from it all Next week its the N400 in the mail - can't wait for all the ####### to come raining down. Think I will go into the lotus position when I get back from the post office and try and prepare myself for the nightmare to come Edited by saywhat, 03 August 2010 - 10:12 AM.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-08-03 10:09:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	USCIS is doing my head in	I applied more than a year ago and was denied for applying too early. I was told by various USCIS staff that: (1) I applied within the proper timeframe (unfortunately these people carried no weight); (2) that I applied six days too early; (3) that I applied seventeen days too early, and (4) that I applied two months too early. I was even called by a USCIS Special Agent from my regional office who told me "off the record" to pursue my grievance because I had a case. You can see my frustration. If they were all singing from the same song sheet perhaps they could convince me that I was in error but alas, we are dealing with the USCIS here! After getting the run-around for many months and realizing I was getting nowhere, I broke down and applied again. Obviously patience is not one of my strong suits. At this point I just want my money back for the first application as crazy as that must sound. I can't think of anybody else to contact at this point so I'm probably SOL. In your case, I don't know what to tell you. This idiot I was talking to today probably can't walk and chew gum at the same time. If I was in your shoes, in less there is some dire emergency to do so, I'd wait an extra month before applying to be safe. Hundreds of people on this website have applied 90 days prior to meeting residency and been successful but there have been a few people who have had a situation like me. oh Dear Jo-Anne I am so sorry for that run around. They are rotten to mess people like that. Wait until you are USC in a couple of months then sue em in the small claims court. Add 10k for trauma in addition to your fees. DO NOT LET THEM WIN. I had it at GC stage and even inside the London Embassy the guy called me to the counter and said "You don't have an appointment today - just how did you get past security ?" I showed him my letter and he said "That was canceled - we sent you a new appointment yesterday". I had traveled 200 miles the day before to get there so the new appointment was on my doormat when I got home ! Anyway he gave in and I got the GC - he even trusted my travel date and made it unconditional ! It's a bloody lottery Don't let em get away with it - 3 more letters then sue their battys off ! I had many more traumas and only now, 3 years later, am I feeling happier - they really saddened and depressed me and we were stuck in a dump in Lancashire for a year while they fooled around.. uuuurgggh ok you are almost there. I think Yakima where I go has two or three months after the interview before they do the ceremony !!!! rat bags Edited by saywhat, 02 August 2010 - 04:19 PM.	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-08-02 16:18:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	USCIS is doing my head in	I have no dispute with the USCIS about when the oath can be made and this was never discussed in my conversation with the person in the Washington office this morning. We were "discussing" the date on which one can apply for naturalization. I have written to the Associate Director for Field Operations three times and she keeps pawning me off to this same underling who is totally clueless. I don't have to tell the people on this website how frustrating it is to deal with these people. It really is like talking to a wall (or park bench). At any rate, if I'm successful at my interview in two weeks (this will be my second and last attempt), like you, my joy will be all about never having to deal with the USCIS again. Unfortunately they have tainted any happiness I may have felt about becoming a citizen. I always thought the oath day would be such a joyous occasion and now it's just the marking of the end of a long, horrible experience. Maybe I'm just in a bad mood due to the call today but I"ve gotten to the point where I'm wondering why I just didn't stop at becoming a permanent resident. Thanks for weighing in. No comprendo senora ! If your USC interview is in 2 weeks then they have already accepted that you applied in the correct 90 day window ? Did you apply within the 90 days that we non- Klingons see as 90 days, or the 3 months as defined by the USCIS talking parrot which is 60 days to everyone else in the universe ? ie no earlier than 15 June for a 15 august anniversary ? I am applying next week 90 days prior to my early November anniversary so it's crucial if the USCIS are going to say early November people cannot apply before early September... tell me this isn't how it is...	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-08-02 15:36:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	USCIS is doing my head in	A supervisor from the "customer service" branch of the USCIS Field Directorate in Washington called me this morning. Although I was very surprised to receive a phone call, it didn't come totally out of the blue. I have written a number of letters to various officials about immigration reform and about my specific immigration journey which has been fraught with mistakes, glitches, delays, you name it. With regards to applying for naturalization, she stated the USCIS counts "complete months" (her words) when applying before residency is met. Huh? All the instructions that I've read, state: "....you may apply for naturalization up to 90 days before you meet the 'continuous residency' requirement". She actually said if you meet your residency, say on August 15, that counts as one month and so the earliest you can apply is June 15 because June and July would each count for one month. I don't have a degree in math but using her example, I count 61 days before meeting the residency requirement. She would not back down on this nor could she quote me on any statute or regulation to drive home her point. I'm I out to lunch here (honestly, tell me if I am) or is this woman badly informed? I'd love to hear your feedback. Thanks. Going by my prior conversations with USCIS, you are better off talking to a park bench. My sister is in a residential home for people with mental problems or alzheimers I have had more intelligent conversations with the patients in there than the USCIS 90 days are 90 days and I can't see when 90 days would be 60 days As the previous poster mentioned, applying early, even if you could, would not help with the ceremony date which cannot be before the third or fifth anniversary I apply next week and my 3rd anniversary is early november Never mind 17 bloody 76, my ceremony date will be the biggest freedom event in my life and I am talking freedom from the USCIS, not freedom from Being a UK Citizen where we know everyone is under the heel of a dictator (The Queen) and there is no freedom of speech and nobody can vote blah blah blah ra ra ra	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-08-02 11:38:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	319(b) + N400 With missing green card	If this is a re-entry permit you applied for so you can stay outside the US for a period longer than 6 months (or 1 year) then re-entry permit alone is not enough to enter the US. They will ask for the GC as well. Do you have any documents that show you filed that the GC is lost? You probably need those. I would contact your local US consulate and ask them... although I regret advising you to do so.... That is good advice. This needs sorting out BEFORE traveling.. and yes the naturalization needs 18 of the last 36 months actually in the US - AND no one trip over 6 months in the 3 year period. Looks like the N400 will have to wait for some years	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-08-03 13:27:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Check that N400 again !	i did the same over and over again.... My main challenge was the Address and work history....lol But thank God i sent it in first week in june and they never found an error,.....did my biometrics 2 wks ago.. so time to biometrics say 5 weeeks ? time to bio letter 3 weeks ? I am trying to get a UK holiday in after biometrics so I am trying to guess the date I am going to try a walk in as soon as I get the bio letter - they can only say no... I take comfort from the poster who said they forgot the marriage certificate and the USCIS simply said bring it to the interview That was a rare burst of common sense so I hope it goes well	Captain Oates	Male	England	2010-08-04 12:21:00