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luv2teach77

November 2017 N-400 Interview Experience - St. Louis Field Office

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Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Hong Kong
Timeline

Great job ! 

Congratulation on passing the interview! 

N-400 Naturalization Journey SAN FRANCISCO FIELD OFFICE

Total processing time from last successful submission to Oath Ceremony: 253 days (8 months and 11 days)

Spoiler

02/26/2012: Arrived SF airport. 

11/28/2016: Eligible for early-filling.

Day 00 - 12/23/2016: Sent N-400 + I-942 to Phoenix, AZ lockbox via USPS.

Day 03 - 12/26/2016: N-400 application marked delivered.

Day 25 - 01/17/2017: Sent email to support regards to application.

Day 26 - 01/18/2017: N-400 rejected because incorrect payment amount.

Day 32 - 01/24/2017: N-400 + I-942 resent.

Day 34 - 01/26/2017: N-400 application marked delivered.

Day 49 - 02/10/2017: N-400 rejected again because incorrect payment amount.

Day 52 - 02/13/2017: Email form USCIS support responded package was rejected in error (!?) for the first and second time submissions, they requested 3rd resubmission + tracking number in order to apply my earliest priority date. 

Day 52 - 02/13/2017: N-400 + I-942 resent on the same day, also sent a response to Lockbox to provide information to USCIS.

Day 54 (Day 0) - 02/15/2017: N-400 application marked delivered.

Day 62 (Day 8) - 02/23/2017: E-notification, E-mail from USCIS, E-mail from Support announced Resubmission was accepted.

Day 66 (Day 12)- 02/27/2017: Notice of Acceptance as Fees Waiver Approval received. (All fees were waived instead of reduced by half as supposed by filing form I-942)

Day 69 (Day 15) - 03/02/2017: Online Status Update: Fingerprint Appointment was scheduled. 

Day 70  (Day 16) - 03/03/2017: Fingerprint Appointment Letter received. Biometric will be on 3/15/17. 

Day 70  (Day 16) - 03/03/2017: Early Walked-In for Biometric at 3:45 PM.

Day 87 (Day 33) - 03/20/2017: Online Status Update: Case was placed in line for interview. 

Day 234 (Day 180) - 08/14/2017: Online Status Update: Interview has been scheduled.

Day 239 (Day 185) - 08/19/2017: Interview Letter received.

Day 269 (Day 215) - 09/18/2017: Interview 2:30 PM at USCIS SF Field Office. Recommended For Approval. 

Day 280 (Day 226) - 09/29/2017: Oath Ceremony Letter received. N400 is approved.

Day 291 (Day 237) - 10/10/2017: Last Online Status Update: Oath Letter was mailed. Too late!

Day 307 (Day 253) - 10/26/2017: Oath Ceremony in Oakland, CA. Citizenship granted.

Day 307 (Day 253) - 10/26/2017: Passport applied.

Day 321 (Day 267) - 11/09/2017: Passport Booklet received. 

Day 321 (Day 267) - 11/09/2017: Naturalization Certificate received. Journey done.

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Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Ukraine
Timeline

Thanks for sharing!!!
St.Louis, most likely, will be my filed office for N-400 interview,... sometime next year i hope :)  so it was really helpful!!!

 

and CONGRATS!!

Edited by Ksenia_O
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On 11/7/2017 at 8:52 PM, luv2teach77 said:

Here's a little more detail on my N-400 Naturalization interview yesterday.

 

My interview notice said I was scheduled for 8am so I arrived in the designated office on the 2nd floor at around 7.45. It was the same room I'd been to before to attend various infopass appointments over the last 12 years.  There were 4 or 5 other people already sat around, some had infopass appointments and were called in turn to talk to the woman manning the infopass desk.

 

Luckily, after about 10 minutes, the lady doing the infopass appointments asked if anyone was there for something other than an infopass appointment ?  I told her I was and she said that anyone here for an interview had to place our interview notices in the mailbox at the back of the room.  If she hadn't told me this, I'd have never known that was what was expected.  I could have been there all day !!  Anyways... I mailed my notice in the slot and almost immediately my name was called and I walked back to a smaller office with the interviewing officer.  She told me her name but so quickly that I had to ask for it again after I entered her office.  She made raise my right hand and swear to tell the truth before telling m to sit down.

 

She had my file on her desk already and asked me for my green card, drivers license and my passports (current and expired).  I had made copies of all of those documents plus birth certificates, marriage certificates, divorce decrees, last 3 years of tax returns but was never asked for any of them.  Although I came to the US on a K-1 Visa back in 2005, I've been a green card holder long enough to file based on years of permanent residency.  That drastically reduced the amount of supporting documentation I submitted with my application and also what was required for the interview !!

 

The USCIS interviewer told me she preferred to give the test(s) first and started with the reading / writing "test".  I'm 40 years old and English is my first language so this was never going to be a problem but I was tested anyway.  I had to read "What month is Columbus Day ?" and then write "Columbus Day is in October".  Easy peasy !!  Then onto the civics test...

 

I should say that although I've had the book (and accompanying CD) since my biometrics appointment in January, I truly hadn't started looking at it until about 2 weeks ago.  Between several study sessions with my wife and 8 year old daughter and having the CD on a loop in my car during my 2 hour round trip to work, I felt pretty confident.  I was told she had to take my first answer.  She asked the following 6 questions (which I answered correctly so didn't need any more)...

 

1) Who would serve as president if the President and Vice President were unable to ? - Speaker of the house

2) What does the Cabinet do ? - Advises the president

3) How many supreme court judges are there ? - 9

4) How long do we appoint a US senator for ? - 6 years

5) Name one branch of the Federal Government ? - Executive branch

6) <The last question escapes me but I know I got it right :) !!>

 

At that point she very quickly went over my application, verifying some details and updating some others (I started a new job 3 weeks ago).  She thumbed through my passport and asked if I'd made any trips outside the US since applying (I hadn't).

 

At that point she said that she was approving me and that I would be notified of the date and location of my oath ceremony soon.  One piece of information I wasn't aware of was that although I interviewed in St. Louis, my interview will be in Illinois near where I live.  She confirmed that I knew what taking the oath of allegiance meant, had me sign one last piece of paper and that was it.  The whole interview took less than 15 minutes.

 

Hopefully this account is of some use to someone in the future.  The interviewer was very personable and the whole process went very smoothly.

 

Thanks,

 

Mark

 

Thanks for sharing and congrats 

st Luis is my field office and I’ll be sending my application next week,just wanna know how long it took you from the date they received your app till the interview date

thank you

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Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: England
Timeline
42 minutes ago, HB05 said:

Thanks for sharing and congrats 

st Luis is my field office and I’ll be sending my application next week,just wanna know how long it took you from the date they received your app till the interview date

thank you

I'm not 100% sure when the St. Louis office received my file.  My online status didn't update between my biometrics being scheduled and receiving my interview notice in the mail.  I submitted my N-400 paperwork in late December, 2016 and just had my interview this week.  I can't be any more specific with the St. Louis part of the timeline than that I'm afraid.

Our Full Timeline From K-1 Application through to Receiving my Green Card

Timeline Summary

11/30/2007 - I-751 Mailed to Nebraska

12/28/2007 - NOA Received (application has been forwarded to California)

01/09/2008 - Biometrics taken in St. Louis

03/27/2008 - I-751 Approved, 10 Yr Greencard in the mail !!

12/20/2016 - N-400 mailed to Phoenix lockbox

01/17/2017 - NOA Received

01/25/2017 - Attended biometrics in St. Louis

09/29/2017 - Received I-797C notice dated 09/27/17.  Interview Scheduled for November 6th @ 8am

11/06/2017 - N400 interview in St. Louis.  Approved !!:jest:

02/05/2018 - Notice of Oath Ceremony date received.  March 1st, 2018 @ 8.30am

 

"Though miles once lay between us, we were never far apart, for true love doesn't count the miles, it's measured by the heart"

Check out our website - "Our Journey Together"

View Our Online Photo Albums - "Mark and Debs' Webshots Albums"

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14 minutes ago, luv2teach77 said:

I'm not 100% sure when the St. Louis office received my file.  My online status didn't update between my biometrics being scheduled and receiving my interview notice in the mail.  I submitted my N-400 paperwork in late December, 2016 and just had my interview this week.  I can't be any more specific with the St. Louis part of the timeline than that I'm afraid.

It’s ok ,just wanna have an idea so if u fill late December and u just got ur interview so we’re looking at 11 months and that’s a lot from what I read ,they said it average 5 to 8 months 

thanks 

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Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: England
Timeline
18 minutes ago, HB05 said:

It’s ok ,just wanna have an idea so if u fill late December and u just got ur interview so we’re looking at 11 months and that’s a lot from what I read ,they said it average 5 to 8 months 

thanks 

Like everything immigration related, potential timelines are very elastic.  Priority dates are pretty rigid from an adjudication point of view and the USCIS stays pretty tight lipped until you reach or exceed that date.  Everything else is pretty fluid and the best plan is to not expect anything to go per the advertised guidelines.  I engaged my local congressman as I approached my priority date but can't be sure if that sped anything up or not.

 

Good luck !!

 

Mark

Our Full Timeline From K-1 Application through to Receiving my Green Card

Timeline Summary

11/30/2007 - I-751 Mailed to Nebraska

12/28/2007 - NOA Received (application has been forwarded to California)

01/09/2008 - Biometrics taken in St. Louis

03/27/2008 - I-751 Approved, 10 Yr Greencard in the mail !!

12/20/2016 - N-400 mailed to Phoenix lockbox

01/17/2017 - NOA Received

01/25/2017 - Attended biometrics in St. Louis

09/29/2017 - Received I-797C notice dated 09/27/17.  Interview Scheduled for November 6th @ 8am

11/06/2017 - N400 interview in St. Louis.  Approved !!:jest:

02/05/2018 - Notice of Oath Ceremony date received.  March 1st, 2018 @ 8.30am

 

"Though miles once lay between us, we were never far apart, for true love doesn't count the miles, it's measured by the heart"

Check out our website - "Our Journey Together"

View Our Online Photo Albums - "Mark and Debs' Webshots Albums"

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Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Ecuador
Timeline

*** Thread is moved from the US Citizenship main forum to the Case Progress subforum. ***

06-04-2007 = TSC stamps postal return-receipt for I-129f.

06-11-2007 = NOA1 date (unknown to me).

07-20-2007 = Phoned Immigration Officer; got WAC#; where's NOA1?

09-25-2007 = Touch (first-ever).

09-28-2007 = NOA1, 23 days after their 45-day promise to send it (grrrr).

10-20 & 11-14-2007 = Phoned ImmOffs; "still pending."

12-11-2007 = 180 days; file is "between workstations, may be early Jan."; touches 12/11 & 12/12.

12-18-2007 = Call; file is with Division 9 ofcr. (bckgrnd check); e-prompt to shake it; touch.

12-19-2007 = NOA2 by e-mail & web, dated 12-18-07 (187 days; 201 per VJ); in mail 12/24/07.

01-09-2008 = File from USCIS to NVC, 1-4-08; NVC creates file, 1/15/08; to consulate 1/16/08.

01-23-2008 = Consulate gets file; outdated Packet 4 mailed to fiancee 1/27/08; rec'd 3/3/08.

04-29-2008 = Fiancee's 4-min. consular interview, 8:30 a.m.; much evidence brought but not allowed to be presented (consul: "More proof! Second interview! Bring your fiance!").

05-05-2008 = Infuriating $12 call to non-English-speaking consulate appointment-setter.

05-06-2008 = Better $12 call to English-speaker; "joint" interview date 6/30/08 (my selection).

06-30-2008 = Stokes Interrogations w/Ecuadorian (not USC); "wait 2 weeks; we'll mail her."

07-2008 = Daily calls to DOS: "currently processing"; 8/05 = Phoned consulate, got Section Chief; wrote him.

08-07-08 = E-mail from consulate, promising to issue visa "as soon as we get her passport" (on 8/12, per DHL).

08-27-08 = Phoned consulate (they "couldn't find" our file); visa DHL'd 8/28; in hand 9/1; through POE on 10/9 with NO hassles(!).

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  • 11 months later...

My interview today, 15 November, at Spruce Street, St Louis, was almost identical to the one above! It was so painless and not at all what I expected. I also passed and am now waiting for my Oath Ceremony. Out of interest, my biometrics were taken 18 April so the process was much faster than I thought it would be.

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