N-400 Decision can't be made

[Htp901 0]

Hello everyone,

 

Married to USC for a few years now; my n-400 interview was earlier this week. I thought I did very well, and the officer was nice. i passed English and civic tests, and my background is clean as a whistle. Went over all the questions and answers with no issue. However, IO gave me option B: Decision can't be made. And told me it takes a few weeks to get a decision in the mail. 

I am a little worried. What could it possibly be? How long does it usually take to hear back from them after this kind of decision?  I honestly thought I would get option A: approval, as two of my friends were approved on the spot last year. 

 

 

[Holt 73]

The IO needs to verify some information before he/she will be able to recommend you for an approval. 

There is no need to be worried if the interview went well. Wish you luck!

PS: "A" box is not Approval, but Recommend for Approval. This is different. 

Edited October 13, 2017 by Holt

[geowrian 22,335]

Most interviews go this way from what I'm reading nowadays. It's not a cause for concern...just waiting.

[SteveG1003 1]

Unfortunately, we have a new president & new directives for the USCIS now. They have gotten a lot more strict with N-400 based on marriage. Please keep us update, but I bet you will get a letter in a couple of week, asking you to come back for another interview. If you do, get a good lawyer! Don't make the mistake that we made.

[Htp901 0]

Another interview? Seriously? You scared me SteveG1003. i hope it doesn't happen to me. Believe it or not we spent most time of the interview chit chatting, and IO didn't even ask me to show any documents or anything, besides my green card. 

[Holt 73]

5 minutes ago, Htp901 said:

Another interview? Seriously? You scared me SteveG1003. i hope it doesn't happen to me. Believe it or not we spent most time of the interview chit chatting, and IO didn't even ask me to show any documents or anything, besides my green card. 

No, I don't believe he is giving a true information, I also haven't seen anyone who got "Decision can't be made" is getting a second interview. 

I don't know where did he get his information but it seems not reliable, at least to me. 

Usually, if the IO wants to know something or a supervisor wants to take a deep look to your case, a RFE will be sent.

Otherwise, you either get your Oath Letter or Denial Letter. 

 

 

[Liam2021 551]

"Decision can't be made" that means that Officer just open your case few hours before the interview was taken, and he wants to check it again, so don't stressed out. It happend with me last year. At the end of the interview i asked the IO , and he explained that he just open the case only 30 mins before interview, and he wants to checked it again after interview. Oak letter come in the mail 10 days later.

Edited October 14, 2017 by H&T

[canadian_wife 1,791]

I got the "A decision cannot be made at this time" but mine was for a unique reason.  I was the officer's son's math teacher and there was a conflict of interest.  I had the choice of making a new appointment with a new officer or going through the with the interview at the time but the officer could not make the final decision. 

 

You can see by my timeline that I really should have rebooked.  Good luck, I hope you don't have to wait as long as I did.

 

[Htp901 0]

Thank you guys for your answers.

Canadian_wife OMG that's a very long wait between Sep 2013 and Oct 2015. Your case is very rare. I have been reading about all those who got option B: decision can't be made, and looks like the majority of them had to wait between 10 days up to months. 

One thing worries me a bit is after I left, I missed two phone calls from that office since I was on the road.  The number was blocked except area code, so I couldn't call back. However, I called 1800 number and customer service told me: Sorry we can't help you, you can always schedule an info pass to find out.

 

What could it be?

 

[Going through 5,668]

At my interview, even though the officer told me I was approved, and that her supervisor was scheduling me in for the oath ceremony already, my paper still said "a decision cannot be made".   My oath ceremony letter was mailed an hour later, according to the online case status.

 

It's common.

Edited October 14, 2017 by Going through

[Going through 5,668]

5 minutes ago, Htp901 said:

One thing worries me a bit is after I left, I missed two phone calls from that office since I was on the road.  The number was blocked except area code, so I couldn't call back. However, I called 1800 number and customer service told me: Sorry we can't help you, you can always schedule an info pass to find out.

Customer service people cannot look into personal case details, so they wouldn't have been able to tell you anything.  They are there to just answer general questions about forms, etc.

Your best bet is to phone back and request to speak with an L2 immigration officer who can view personal details about your application and give you a bit more insight maybe as to why those calls were placed.

[Htp901 0]

Thank you. I will definitely call again on Monday and ask to talk to L2 officer. I had bad experience talking to L2 officers in the past. You have to leave you number and they call you back after hours, so it's easy to miss. I called around 9 in the morning last time, and they called back around 8 pm.

[Villanelle 4,121]

I dont think the l2 person can help you. It was a direct call from the local office (if you are sure of the caller ID), so there would be nothing in the USCIS's system. Your best bet it to go to infopass or wait for them to contact you again by phone or email. See if you can get an appt through infopass. If you cant try to do an emergency walk in. Explain you when you were there and how you missed the phone call. They will probably let you in. The person at the desk in infopass can speak to the Officer who called you and either relay a message or let you talk to the Officer while there. If the Officer is not there they can ask the supervisor to look  through your file and let you know what the call was about.

 

Phone reps can not do this. A level 2 might be able to call the local office but I doubt they will. They are going to tell you to just wait for another call or letter.

 

Obviously the interviewing officer needs more info to make a decision. They dont just call to let you know you are approved.

[Htp901 0]

Thank you Damara.

 

I agree with you regarding L2. Last time he wasn't able to explain to me what's going on and told me to schedule an infopass.

 

Yes I am sure of the caller ID. Should I go for infopass now or wait a bit, it's only been  a few days? Problem is I am like 3 hours away from the local office. I thought the phone call was about telling me congratulations you have been approved. LOL

[Holt 73]

3 hours ago, Htp901 said:

Thank you Damara.

 

I agree with you regarding L2. Last time he wasn't able to explain to me what's going on and told me to schedule an infopass.

 

Yes I am sure of the caller ID. Should I go for infopass now or wait a bit, it's only been  a few days? Problem is I am like 3 hours away from the local office. I thought the phone call was about telling me congratulations you have been approved. LOL

Maybe write a letter to your IO (who interviewed you) ? Since the result letter says we can do that if we have questions