Forum	Title	Content	Member	Sex	Country	Date/Time
Removing Conditions on Residency General Discussion	Will USCIS update our status online after bio ?	can I just add something guys, I got the same "notice" online when I checked my status a few days ago, which was reassuring. However it says in the notice "we received this CRI89 PETITION TO REMOVE CONDITIONS OF PERMANENT RESIDENT STATUS RECEIVED, and mailed you a notice describing how we will process your case" but I never received this confirmation in the post like they said. Is that normal? I did submit a change of address a few months, and distinctly remember seeing my current address coming up on the screen in my biometrics appointment. But now I'm wondering do they have the correct address? let me know if you guys got a notice in the post regards Paul	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2008-07-04 20:07:00
Removing Conditions on Residency General Discussion	timelines for removing conditions for divorced applicants	QUOTE (gabrielarad @ Jul 4 2008, 07:36 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Hi, I sent my application on 6/13/07 to NSC, biometrics done on 7/12/07, got the transfer note to CSC on 4/9/08, since then , nothing, I called USCIS twice, case pending. Divorced here , too Gabrielarad, If I am reading this right, your biometrics were done on the 12th of July 2007, and you only got the transfer to CSC notice on the 9th of April 2008, 9 MONTHS LATER???!!! is that correct? I got my transfer notice a week after my biometrics! Can any other DIVORCED applicants give me their timeline please, thanks is advance Paul	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2008-07-04 19:51:00
Removing Conditions on Residency General Discussion	timelines for removing conditions for divorced applicants	Hey guys, My biometrics appointment for my lifting of conditions on my 2 yr GC was a few weeks ago, and now I guess it's time to sit and wait, and be patient. However, it would be nice to know about how long other applicants, going through the California service center, and having to submit their applications with a divorced status, took for their applications to be approved. I would normally look at the timeline section but it doesn't show applicants who have been divorced and are filing on their own, so can these successful applicants please let me know how long they had to wait? regards Paul	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2008-07-02 21:24:00
Removing Conditions on Residency General Discussion	10 year Green card in hand!	QUOTE (DouglasSheridan @ Sep 14 2008, 11:29 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> hi sharky, congrats on getting the card, mighty fast and mighty cool. If you don't mind me asking though... what prompted you to stay? (and tell me if I'm way outta line) I mean I'd stay cos we have a daughter together and well, I'd really have no choice.... do you? hey Douglas, no problem with your question. I don't mind at all. I have plenty of choices and options, but why not hang on in there and get your 10 yr GC, then you have more options to work in the US if you want to? I mean after all this stress and money to get to this point, why not apply and get the 10 yr GC instead of heading back home with "your tail between your legs". I'm a marine biologist and I live in California, which is a great place to be in my profession... it doesn't mean I will stay here, but why not keep your options open? I can leave the states for a maximum up to a year and still come back... and to be honest if McCain gets in here I may well consider leaving for good anyway.... but when you think of all those people out there sacrificing so much for these cards, the least I could do was to get mine aswell hope that helps Paul	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2008-09-23 17:33:00
Removing Conditions on Residency General Discussion	10 year Green card in hand!	QUOTE (yankee @ Aug 27 2008, 11:09 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (sharky @ Aug 26 2008, 02:44 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Hi Everybody, I just wanted to share my joy at receiving my 10 year Green card in the post, along with the approval notice!! I must admit this was COMPLETELY unexpected! California service center had received my application to remove conditions on MAY 19th, but I had applied on my own because I had divorced my wife after only 7 months of marriage. I was convinced that I would get a RFE, and when I looked online at the date the service center was processing, it said January 2008. My package included monthly bank statements, rental agreement, car insurance form, 2 affidavits from friends who attended our wedding, tax return in both our names but that was all. I simply can't believe it!!! All those people who are applying to lift conditions as a divorced applicant, don't give up hope. California is probably one of the quickest service centers in the country. My best wishes to all the VJ community and to people still waiting Paul Wow, This is really Cool!!! Congratulations!! I read your timeline and you filed your lifting conditions five months before your GC will expire???if that so, I will do the same thing cause our lawyer told me that I can apply 3months before the GC will expire...my congratulations again. I could file to lift conditions 5 months before my conditional status expired because I was DIVORCED. If you are not divorced you can only do this 3 months before. My divorced was finalized last September but I didn't realize that you could file when it was finalized.	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2008-09-23 17:27:00
Removing Conditions on Residency General Discussion	10 year Green card in hand!	QUOTE (AussieDude @ Aug 26 2008, 02:55 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Congrats! But Jesus, I gotta say there's a huge difference between adjudicators. Another poster, still happily married, got an RFE with much more evidence than yours, there's so much randomness in the system. (Not putting you down by the way, just amazed at the breadth of experiences). Enjoy the relief! I know.... I feel that I am VERY lucky.. I hope others get some of the same luck with their journeys	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2008-08-26 15:47:00
Removing Conditions on Residency General Discussion	10 year Green card in hand!	Hi Everybody, I just wanted to share my joy at receiving my 10 year Green card in the post, along with the approval notice!! I must admit this was COMPLETELY unexpected! California service center had received my application to remove conditions on MAY 19th, but I had applied on my own because I had divorced my wife after only 7 months of marriage. I was convinced that I would get a RFE, and when I looked online at the date the service center was processing, it said January 2008. My package included monthly bank statements, rental agreement, car insurance form, 2 affidavits from friends who attended our wedding, tax return in both our names but that was all. I simply can't believe it!!! All those people who are applying to lift conditions as a divorced applicant, don't give up hope. California is probably one of the quickest service centers in the country. My best wishes to all the VJ community and to people still waiting Paul	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2008-08-26 14:44:00
Removing Conditions on Residency General Discussion	Decision finally!! Approved!!!	congratulations! Merry Christmas!	jhcruz18	Female	Philippines	2008-12-19 18:43:00
Removing Conditions on Residency General Discussion	What does this mean?	It was for my husband's Ir-1 visa. Thank you for your quick reply. God bless always! Happy holidays!	jhcruz18	Female	Philippines	2008-12-24 16:11:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Bad news	QUOTE (sharky @ Sep 23 2008, 05:50 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (kmineo @ Sep 23 2008, 04:49 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (sus @ Sep 23 2008, 04:43 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Wow, long link, sorry! http://www.uscis.gov...00045f3d6a1RCRD It says that you require a re-entry permit for trips greater than one year. Sorry to hear your bad news Sorry to hear the news. I think if you stay over 6 months your 3 year clock for citizenship has to start over. I know there are some exceptions to that but I don't think (not positive though) your situation would fall under that. I think it is based on work with a US company or the military. Yes I am pretty sure you can stay out for under a year without a permit. They can revoke your GC if they think that you are giving up your residency status in the states and that can be from any trip length (but I hear it is rare) but I think that is where some people get the no trips over 6 months from too. I don't think you would have to worry about it, if you are back over there for family medical reasons. Liam, long time since I spoke to you mate! Guess we both have our 10 yr GC's now! Sorry to hear about the family member. Everything I have read about this subject states that you can stay outside the states for up to a YEAR, not six months. I'm not sure about the previous post of your 3 yr clock starting over if you stay over 6 months? surely this isn't right? My interpretation was that the time you spent away was not INCLUDED in the total time you needed until you could apply for citizenship, not that the clock starts again! Anyhow good to hear from you and hope you're doing well, we got there finally eh? Paul see FAQ section in this forum: A...As a spouse of a US Citizen, you can apply for citizenship 3 (three) years after approval of your Adjustment of Status. Back at the AOS interview, your passport was stamped with the I-551 stamp and a date. The 3 year countdown begins with that date. This 3 year period does not include long absences from the United States.	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2008-09-23 17:57:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Bad news	QUOTE (kmineo @ Sep 23 2008, 04:49 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (sus @ Sep 23 2008, 04:43 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Wow, long link, sorry! http://www.uscis.gov...00045f3d6a1RCRD It says that you require a re-entry permit for trips greater than one year. Sorry to hear your bad news Sorry to hear the news. I think if you stay over 6 months your 3 year clock for citizenship has to start over. I know there are some exceptions to that but I don't think (not positive though) your situation would fall under that. I think it is based on work with a US company or the military. Yes I am pretty sure you can stay out for under a year without a permit. They can revoke your GC if they think that you are giving up your residency status in the states and that can be from any trip length (but I hear it is rare) but I think that is where some people get the no trips over 6 months from too. I don't think you would have to worry about it, if you are back over there for family medical reasons. Liam, long time since I spoke to you mate! Guess we both have our 10 yr GC's now! Sorry to hear about the family member. Everything I have read about this subject states that you can stay outside the states for up to a YEAR, not six months. I'm not sure about the previous post of your 3 yr clock starting over if you stay over 6 months? surely this isn't right? My interpretation was that the time you spent away was not INCLUDED in the total time you needed until you could apply for citizenship, not that the clock starts again! Anyhow good to hear from you and hope you're doing well, we got there finally eh? Paul Edited by sharky, 23 September 2008 - 05:52 PM.	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2008-09-23 17:50:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	absences from US effecting timeline?	Yes, an absence from the US for 6 months or more breaks the continuous residency requirement (unless proven otherwise). A continuous absence of 1 year or more resets the naturalization clock. From what you posted....you have'nt broken nor reset your clock....your good to pass and Go.. thanks for all those posts guys, you put my mind at rest!	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-02-17 12:03:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	absences from US effecting timeline?	Hi Everyone, I have a basic question about the timeline for submitting the N400 package. My 5 year limit will be up in October so I worked out that I can apply in July. However I was wondering if when I traveled for 3 months in NZ and Aus a few years ago would set this timeline back (by a period of 3 months?). I read in the VJ links that you are eligible if: "has resided continuously as a lawful permanent resident in the U.S. for at least 5 years prior to filing with no single absence from the United States of more than one year; "has been physically present in the United States for at least 30 months out of the previous five years (absences of more than six months but less than one year shall disrupt the applicant's continuity of residence unless the applicant can establish that he or she did not abandon his or her residence during such period)has resided within a state or district for at least three months can anyone help clarify? Paul	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-02-17 00:11:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	N400 form; filling out dates of departure over last 5 years	Since they only want to know your trips for the last five years, one thing you can do is to start a new five year cycle and this time keep track of your trips, employment, and addresses. Can only share experiences on the expired passport, wifes' IO wanted to see it as well as her current foreign passport, but this is not to imply your IO would also want to see yours. Maybe I spoiled my wife and stepdaughter, they left their home country and everything behind it, made a promise to them I would learn and handle their immigration so kept their records as time went by. By simply asking one simple question at our AOS, what is ahead of us? Was told the I-751 and N-400, so when we got home, downloaded the forms and all the instructions. Even printed out a large sign that was pasted to our refrigerator door so we would meet those dates. Even had most of those forms filled out, but had to do some copying and pasting for the latest updated forms. Ha, use to be a boy scout, first thing they taught us was to be prepared. Still a bit brainwashed from the USCIS, if something comes in the mail, is this evidence I should save? I definitely need therapy after seven years of this #######. Your IO may not only want correct dates, but proof of those dates, only a crystal ball can tell what they want. How do you do that if you pitched your old passport? Wife was going to pitch hers, said, NO, you need that. OK I've read the N400 and am familiar with the naturalization guidelines (read on VJ) and NOWHERE does it say "keep your old passport" once it has expired!!! So no I didn't keep my old passport, why should I? It would only have the date of return to the US stamped in there anyway. SO my question again is, will it be a problem if I can't remember a 2 week holiday back to the UK in 2007, when filling out the N400? Of course I realize that each IO will be different, but if they see that I did indeed go back in 2007 and that I didn't include it, ask me about it in the N400 interview and I am simply tell them the truth and say that I didn't know the EXACT dates, would that be OK? It's not like I am trying to be deceitful or lie about something, I just simply can not remember the dates and have NO way (apart from G639 form) of knowing whether I did indeed travel or not. I appreciate answers that begin "in hindsight you should have collected everything...." but it doesn't help me make my next decision Edited by sharky, 10 June 2011 - 10:34 AM.	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-06-10 10:33:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	N400 form; filling out dates of departure over last 5 years	Yeah Joan has a point..those are one of your option.Okay pertaining of your old passport that has to be keep.but you said is gone .what you can do is try to ask the airline costumer service if you still remember the airline.For sure they would have all your records for travel.if you do have Airline Miles you can check that online to track all of your travel dates.Remember Think twice or more till you'll catch up!!!good luck Thanks to both of you for that, have checked Expedia (but they don't have those details that far back) diaries, family etc and no one can remember the dates. I'll check with my bank statement to locate the airline, that may help. There is one way of actually getting the details the official way however, that I found out. It seems USCIS doesn't actually keep this information, but customs and border protection does. You can fill out a form to request all the dates you left the country, BUT it takes 8-10 weeks (quickest time) and there's no way of expediting it. This doesn't work for me because I am filing my N400 next month and I can't wait for this form to come back. SO what I would like to know is, what would be the consequences if I just didn't included this trip and just said at the interview, "I think I went back to the UK in 2007, but I just can't remember the dates" in my N400 interview? Would that cause problems? Paul	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-06-10 07:10:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	N400 form; filling out dates of departure over last 5 years	Actually everything transaction you have made was on your passport.here how it works.just count the days those previous travel for the past 5 years "2006-2011".then calculate all days..so be sure not over 190 days prior for citizenship..IO are very strict onto this.if IO will asked you WHY during on your day interview ?it should be a valid reason..answer them straight and be specific.. Most of the things that need to be concerned are: Tax Year, Travel Time Outside US which is Your Residency if its stable,Identity background and also you need to past the Civic Test(Reading,Written,Speaking). Hi Mex, Thanks for the information. Yes you are right, that information would have been on my passport, BUT I have a new one, the old one is gone and so the information pertaining to the 2007 trip is gone too! I know I haven't been out of the country for more than 190 days in the last 5 years, but I also know I was out in 2007 for 2 weeks but can't remember when! What I need to know is how can I get this information, and if I don't include this on the N400, will that be a problem? cheers Paul	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-06-08 10:01:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	N400 form; filling out dates of departure over last 5 years	Hey everyone, I've just come back from a two week trip to visit family in the UK and found that in 2007 I went back to the UK for a short visit. I don't, however, remember the dates and was wondering of this would be a problem when I fill in my N400 form next month. I was going to ask the immigration officer when he swiped my green card if he knew the dates when I came back this time, but he was soooooo miserable I couldn't be bothered getting him more annoyed anyhow I'm sure lots of people can't remember the exact dates for trips out of the country for the last 5 years, but I'd be interested in knowing VJ's opinion on this one!	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-06-07 16:46:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	hi alllllllllll	AND you will have just lost $680 (the filing fee) because that is NON refundable!	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-07-18 12:12:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Question about the money order	see http://www.uscis.gov.../n-400instr.pdf especially the filing fee section at the end you don't put an address "on" the money order, you just make it payable to US Dept of Homeland Security Hello everyone, I have a question about the money order. Does anyone know what address for U.S. Department of Homeland security is needed to be put on the money order? Thank you in advance for your help.	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-08-22 18:35:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Getting started... a couple of questions	Good to know! I know it approximately down to very little days now, since I found my stamps in my passport and know I never was gone for more than 31 days as plane tickets get way more expensive if the stay is longer than one month! I still will attach a letter though explaining that I don't remember the exact dates I left, just in case. We also moved so much - we moved out of our apartment and DH went on a TDY and I lived with MIL for a couple of weeks, then we stayed in TLF (temporary housing for military) for a bit, I mean it really adds up (my list is long for the past 5 years, hahaha). Anna, I had the same problem when my brother told me about a trip that I had forgotten to mention on my N400. You can get those dates if you fill out the G639 form from the customs and border protection website: https://help.cbp.gov...7486/1273089588 however, it will take time (around 8 weeks) for them to get back to you on the request, if they get back at all. I'm still waiting for mine, and just went ahead with the N400 process anyway! good luck Paul Anna, I had the same problem when my brother told me about a trip that I had forgotten to mention on my N400. You can get those dates if you fill out the G639 form from the customs and border protection website: https://help.cbp.gov...7486/1273089588 however, it will take time (around 8 weeks) for them to get back to you on the request, if they get back at all. I'm still waiting for mine, and just went ahead with the N400 process anyway! good luck Paul oops! wrong link! http://www.uscis.gov.../form/g-639.pdf	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-08-26 12:40:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Has anyone done an early interview?	Never heard of an early interview. You should go on your scheduled day. As far as I'm aware when you said "they let me do my fingerprints early" you mean you just went and did a walk in biometrics appointment? They didn't "let" you do it, and some offices won't accept it, so as the other posters said, there is no way to have a N400 interview before the one they assign to you. Personally I've been grateful that my appointments and interviews have been within my local office timelines, some poor people on here have to wait months past their schedule dates without hearing anything.. Edited by sharky, 11 October 2011 - 03:06 PM.	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-10-11 15:06:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	N400 application for divorced applicant	IGalin, I agree. Yes I was divorced from the person who petitioned me to come over (on a K1 fiancee visa) and so any problems USCIS would have had with a potential "fraudulent" aspect of the marriage would have been addressed at the renewal of the Greencard at the 2 year stage. This passed without any problems so I would be very surprised if I had to provide proof again at the citizenship interview. I would assume that you divorced person who brought you here to USA before 3 years of your marriage, otherwise you could have applied for citizenship based on 3 years marriage to US citizen which you didn't. So you must have gone through I-751 Petition to Remove the Conditions of Residency in order to obtain 10 year green card again assuming you got 2/3 year temporary green card based on your marriage. So if there would be any suspicion about fraudulent marriage USCIS wouldn't approve 10 year green card and that would be end of story. But if USCIS did approve your petition and granted you 10 year green card than it's fine and there should be no concern or questions asked when you file for naturalization. Just to stress my point let me reiterate again this: Person files for naturalization based on 5 years residency and should NOT worry if he/she was brought to US through marriage and divorced spouse before 3 years anniversary and went through I-751 petition because if it would matter USCIS wouldn't approve that person's 10 years green card on that I-751 petition in the first place. Those are solely my assumptions, so please do correct me if I'm wrong. Anyone's input with similar case would be greatly appreciated.	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-07-07 14:06:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	N400 application for divorced applicant	Hey guys, Just wanted to check one last thing before I file my N400 package next week. It wasn't specifically clear from the N400 but after reading the instructions on the USCIS website if you are divorced and filing at the 5 year mark you need to include a photocopy of the divorce paper in the N400 package? So my package would consist of the N400, the fee, the photos, the copy of the greencard (both sides) and a copy of the divorce? Just wanted to make sure I'm not missing something, thanks	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-07-06 18:13:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	N400 decision "for further review" speculation or valid concern	Looks like you applied too early. Too early doesn't mean that you sent in your N-400 outside of the 90-day window, but so early that your interview was over and done with before you were actually eligible to become a U.S. citizen. Hence the advice not to mail in the N-400 on the button but 7 to 10 days later. Now you know why. It often happens that an N-400 that would commonly be approved and put on the stack to be scheduled for the Oath Ceremony gets put on another stack labeled "need to wait." That can cause a delay of several months, and my guess is that your N-400 is on such a stack right now, waiting for an I.O. who is bored to look through it. The Infopass appointment maybe a move in the right direction indeed. That's an interesting point Brother, I have been looking at the stats for my month etc., and I came to the same conclusion a few weeks ago. Ironic isn't it that my N400 was processed TOO quickly lol. Not sure if that is the main reason for the "further review" but it's a very valid point, and my I-751 (as I stated in the original post) was approved online with no problem whatsoever.... I just really hope that your conclusion about being on a big stack of papers is not what has happened but who's to say I will even find out even with the infopass appt.?	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-10-26 16:15:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	N400 decision "for further review" speculation or valid concern	I would call them or schedule an infopass appointment to ask about your status. have one scheduled for the 1st of November	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-10-26 15:40:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	N400 decision "for further review" speculation or valid concern	Hey VJ community, I had my N400 interview on October 6th with a very nice IO in the Seattle field office. After going through my application and test (which I passed) he gave me the N-652 form with the "cannot make a decision" box checked and his words written next to it: "for further review". At the time I didn't bother to ask the officer what this referred to or what it meant as my 5 year anniversary was the week after and so I thought it was standard to write this. However the 12th has come and gone and I have heard zero updates about a potential oath ceremony. My question is with regards to whether I am worrying about nothing or whether it's valid concern. The IO asked me about my marriage (which was unfortunately short, we were together for only 7 months) and I was honest with him and told him the explanation for this could be put down to "naivety". Now I'm worried that my short marriage could prove to be a major hurdle in this final step. Surely anything to do with that should have been addressed at the 2 year mark? I actually was not interviewed at that point, my case was approved online and my 10 yr GC arrived in the post shortly after. So, in my humble opinion, this whole matter has already been dealt with, so am I unnecessarily worrying about nothing? or is it a a valid concern? any advice is appreciated	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-10-26 14:22:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Do we get alert when the send Bipmetrics Appointment letter	Now that I received my NOA and case number, I have signed up the online alerts. Do we get an alert when they send out the letter for the Biometrics appointment? Or do we just wait for the letter to arrive. Would the online case status change once they send the Biometrics letter? Please also be aware that the online case status updates can be inherently unreliable! There are many VJ members who have passed their n400 interview, attended the oath and even got their passport, and their online status still shows "schedule you for a N400 interview". Just saying don't RELY on these updates or you'll go	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-10-31 13:40:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	When do they take your Green Card?	Just to give you the heads up, when you are done with your interview, you will most definitely receive a document saying "A decision cannot be made at this time". That is entirely due to the fact that you are interviewing 10 days prior to your 3rd year of being a LPR. Once that date passes, your online status will update to approved and then followed up with oath related updated. that's the "theory" v333k but we all know things don't run that smoothly even at this late stage. The time period between the anniversary passing and getting approved can be anything from days to weeks to even months!	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-10-28 14:00:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	When do they take your Green Card?	Hi all, I'm not clear on when they take your Green Card....at your interview? or at your Oath Ceremony? or at your interview if you have a same day Oath? I am scheduled for my interview on Nov 29 (which) is about 10 days before my 3 year GC anniversary, so I am trying to figure out all the timing, so I can figure if I will have a GC or a Passport (or be between the two!) to leave the country to go and visit my family sometime over the Christmas/New Year holidays. Many thanks for your assistance! yes, it's the oath ceremony. However I think having your passport before xmas will be a tall order. Obviously each field office is different as to processing times etc., but if you research the posts on this site you will find that many people who have had their N400 interview BEFORE their 3/5yr anniversary face weeks of waiting after just for an oath ceremony date. Apparently to avoid this it is more sensible to file the n400 at say 60 days before the anniversary instead of 90 days. I wish I read that somewhere on VJ before I filed my application because now I too am waiting and need a passport before xmas (my interview was Oct 6th). Ironic isn't it that applicants are punished for USCIS processing N400's TOO quickly lol	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-10-28 12:08:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Post Naturalization	Here is what I did right after naturalization: 1. Applied for passport 2. After receiving passport, went to the Social Security Administration (SSA) with my passport to update my info 3. Registered to vote http://www.newcitizen.us/after.html	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-11-05 12:19:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Filed 6/18/11-Passed interview 10/13/11, no oath scheduled???	With the some odd 80 different field offices, each with their own policy on this issue, never found a site that specifies offices with a same day oath. But this only occurs if your interview is scheduled in the morning. When my wife had her interview at St. Paul, they were running nine months wait for the oath, office manager then like a huge crowd. But according to some law that really nobody wants to exercise, suppose to give you your oath within 120 days of your interview. One fellow here from St. Paul was waiting 135 days with no response, claim they are still checking on him, he never came back, this was about a month ago. Still feel this ceremonies are ridiculous, attended four already, watch some worthless videos on an old 27" TV set, lip sync the oath, you already read and signed that at your interview, hand you your certificate and leave. No one else gives a damn about your family or friends, only you do. Just more long lines and one hell of a long drive. Keith, I'm sure you're checking other posts on the forums too, just read a recent one: http://www.visajourn...ship-interview/ this poor guy has been waiting a LONG time and he still seems to be no closer to the oath ceremony. The more you research the subject the more I get worried, if you would have told me a few months ago that the biggest delay in waiting is AFTER the N400 interview, I would have laughed in your face.... I'm calling the 1 800 number today and insisting on speaking to a level 2 officer, I just don't trust what is or is not happening with my case... good luck to everyone, we all sure as hell need it	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-11-15 11:16:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Filed 6/18/11-Passed interview 10/13/11, no oath scheduled???	Please reference my timeline and the status of my N-400. After the interview process I was handed my N-652, Naturalization Interview Results that state: Congratulations! Your application has been recommended for approval. At this time it appears that you have established your eligibility for naturalization. If final approval is granted, you will be notified when and where to report for the Oath Ceremony. It has been over a month now, no letter via snail mail, no emails, status is in the Post Decision Activity. Is there any course of action that I should take or just ride it out? =========================================================================== USCIS Lincoln, Nebraska Lockbox (Filing Under 319b, 328, or 329 of the INA) =========================================================================== Keith&Xiang.........|06/18/11.|06/24/11.|06/24/11.|08/08/11.|09/06/11.|10/13/11.|--/--/--.|Detroit, MI Post Decision Activity Your case is under review with a supervisor. For approved applications/petitions, post-decision activity may include USCIS sending notification of the approved application/petition to the National Visa Center or the Department of State. For denied applications/petitions, post-decision activity may include the processing of an appeal and/or motions to reopen or reconsider and revocations. Thank you, Keith & Xiang Keith & Xiang, If it's any consolation, my N400 interview was a week before yours at the Seattle field office, and my IO handed me the N-652 with the box that says "can't make a decision at the moment etc.." next to it he wrote "under review". I never asked what that referred to at the time because I thought it was a standard procedure to write if you attended your N400 interview before your anniversary (my 5yr anniversary was the week after). Since then I made an infopass appointment and went down to Seattle field office on the 1st of November to try and find out what was going on (my online update status is stuck on "we have scheduled you for your N400 interview"!)... The IO at the desk looked on her computer and could only tell me "it's still with the officer"..... what that means I have NO idea she even smirked a little and said "it's only been a few weeks"!! wish I could have shared her humour on the subject. So to summate you could always make an infopass appointment to try and find out what's going on, but it may not help at all. I have no idea what "under review" even means on an N-652, and if anyone else knows, PLEASE do tell me. Personally I think it's appalling that our cases are delayed for so long when I had nothing to review on my case! Hope that helps mate, hang in there, seems it's a waiting game as per usual	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-11-14 18:09:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	oath ceremony dates in December, is there a cut off date?	If you are still waiting for the decision that means you are not yet elligible for Oath. You can only be scheduled for Oath when you will get approved. So most likely it will not happen in December, as you probably would've been notified already. I DO realize what my current status is! I just wanted to know what the last day of oath ceremonies are in December? Do they vary between field offices?	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-11-28 13:18:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	oath ceremony dates in December, is there a cut off date?	Hey everyone, Hope you all had a great thanksgiving! I am currently in the July filers group, had my N400 interview on the 6th of October and am still waiting for a decision. I've been down to the field office (Seattle) twice only to be told be a very nice IO (same woman on both occasions) that no decision had been made yet. What worries me is that I have three flights booked out of the country starting January 10th and whilst I thought I would have plenty of time, now things are getting very stressful. As we move in to December I'm wondering when the last day is that field offices schedule oaths for, is there like a cut-off date? Obviously with xmas etc. it won't be a like a normal month, I'd just like to know from people if they had an oath ceremony in late December (past the 20th).... thanks guys and have a great day Edited by sharky, 28 November 2011 - 09:43 AM.	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-11-28 09:43:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Walk-in fingerprinting in Austin. Is it doable?	To the contrary -- if your file has to be pulled out of its regular order in the stack so that your biometric information can be entered, someone might decide to go ahead and process it "early." That may have happened to a January 2011 ROC filer, if I remember correctly. and what I am saying is that processing your N400 too quickly i.e. getting your N400 interview BEFORE your 3 or 5 yr anniversary has actually passed can be MORE disadvantageous to the applicant. Research here on the forums, many people think "hey I'm gonna speed things along; apply at exactly or even a few days prior to the 90 day before you file date, and secondly do walk in biometrics because it's quicker".... and what happens to them? they end up getting the IO at their N400 interview telling them "can't approve your case at the moment" because their anniversary hadn't passed and then their case gets placed on another HUGE pile with other applicants that did the same thing. Many people on here recommend waiting at least 2 weeks before sending in the original application, you want to time it so your interview is just PAST your anniversary date. Of course all field offices process cases at different speeds so this doesn't apply to everyone. I think there really needs to be some notes on this subject in the VJ guidelines, it would really help some applicants!	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-11-29 11:26:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Walk-in fingerprinting in Austin. Is it doable?	I just wanted to let you guys know (in case someone wants to do the same in the future) that I just came back from my walk-in bio (it's Wednesday) and they didn't even ask for a reason. I just showed them the appointment letter and asked if I could do a walk-in then they said "sure". There were no people waiting in there and I was out in 10 minutes. Everybody was EXTREMELY courteous and friendly in this Austin ASC. I don't know if it's always like this but today I certainly had a great experience with them! It took some time to find the building since the GPS couldn't recognize the address. It's in the same mall as the Bed, Bath and Beyond (right next to it), near the Home Depot. When you can see the Home Depot, you are there. any reason WHY you would want to do an early walk in biometrics? That could come back to bite you in the butt later on.... Edited by sharky, 26 November 2011 - 02:01 AM.	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-11-26 02:01:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Wrong Date!!! What happens next?	In addition to Maad's comments, which I agree as well, excitement! Just wanna get it out of the way and have it done with! As a result of which, I didn't realize there was actually a calculator. I just subtracted 90 days to come to 11/10 and applied. Didn't realize they were so particular. BTW, I did talk to my attorney and he did mention it is the date they receive that matters. You guys should be made aware of the DISADVANTAGES of filing exactly 90 days before, if your application gets processed too quickly (and this can happen depending on what field office you have) you will end up having your N400 interview before your 3 or 5 year anniversary date. This means they won't issue you with an oath date there and then, and your application may go on a BIG pile of defer cases... many VJers have experienced long waits after the N400 interview for oaths because of this (myself also) so it makes more sense to actually WAIT 2-3 weeks after this date and then file. just my opinion, although too late for me	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-11-17 14:07:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	Do you still lose your birth countries citizenship?	more to the point, why the hell would you want to move from NZ to the USA, lol	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-07-26 09:08:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	N-400 July Filers	Icede, I am very confused about what this officer apparently "said" to your husband? I am no expert but why does the "90 day rule not apply to him"? As far as I knew everyone can file 90 days prior to their 5 0r 3 year anniversary for US citizenship, why would he be different? and I think he is wrong saying that people HAVE to file on their anniversary dates. NO ONE I know on this whole forum has done that? AND also even if the application was sent in too early they should have sent it back and not processed it to tell you he was DENIED! As I said earlier I am no attorney but I think you have a clear right to appeal, this just doesn't sound fair or right? Well, when my husband came to the interview, the officer told him that he has bad news... first of all the officer said that the N-400 was send too early... when they spent an hour and a half trying to understand how officers are counting the days they came to the consensus that the n-400 was sent on time. Then officer told my husband that even if the documents were send on time the 90days rule doesn't apply to him... 5 years anniversary of being a green card holder was on 25th of August 2011. We sent n-400 on 27th of July... that means only 30 days earlier... The officer told him that his case was somehow different from others and my husband did not have the right to send it 30 days earlier. He said all people should send their n-400 on the day of their 5 years anniversary... And the officer was very patient and persistent but also told a lot of unpleasant things... He told my husband that he was over educated and that he was thinking too much... Also he said that this document http://www.uscis.gov...ticle/M-476.pdf is a total bullshit and that no one should take it seriously and everyone should study the law... so... he was a typical bureaucrat. Edited by sharky, 02 January 2012 - 01:29 PM.	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2012-01-02 13:27:00
US Citizenship General Discussion	N-400 July Filers	Yeah sharky! How did it go? I must admit the day didn't start as I was hoping it to. We were all upstairs waiting to be called and some guy comes out and says there's a problem with the printer and the certificates and we all had to wait another 40 minutes. But once it got going everything went fine and I was out just after 1.20 pm Went straight to the passport agency and applied for my expedited passport. The woman was really nice and she said I could come and collect it after christmas at the agency, the whole process took 20 mins! Not sure Lili if you were there on a busy day but the woman told me it was a slow day.. still got the social security thing to do, will probably do that after new year... I just wanted to thank everyone on VJ especially you guys; the July filers. having people to share this whole process is so rewarding. I wish you all a happy christmas and a peaceful new year... I AM DONE WITH USCIS!!!!	sharky	Male	United Kingdom	2011-12-23 14:14:00