Filing N-400 with pending I-751

[jg121783 3,916]

I have read that you can file the N-400 with a pending I-751 if you meet the qualifications of the N400. My wife and I have been considering doing this for a while but it has been difficult coming up with the filing fee. My wife filed her I-751 in February of last year and since then there has been little change in status so I haven't checked for a couple months. I checked today and saw the following message:

 

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Case is Ready to Be Scheduled for An Interview

As of August 4, 2020, we are ready to schedule your Form I-751, Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence, Receipt Number MSC**********, for an interview. We will schedule your interview and send you a notice. Please follow any instructions in the notice. If you move, go to www.uscis.gov/addresschange to give us your new mailing address.

With an interview apparently pending on the I-751 is it a good idea to file my wife's N-400 right now or will that just complicate things? Why has it been over two months since they were ready to schedule an interview and an interview hasn't been scheduled yet? I should add that my step son has a pending I-751A and will be included on my wife's N-400. Here is what my step son's status says:

 

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Duplicate Notice Was Mailed

On August 10, 2020, we sent you a duplicate notice about a decision on your Form I-751A, Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence – Dependent, Receipt Number MSC**********, or describing how we will process the case if it is still pending. Your case is located at our National Benefits Center location. Please follow any instructions in the notice. If you do not receive your duplicate notice by September 9, 2020, please go to www.uscis.gov/e-request to request a copy of the notice. If you move, go to www.uscis.gov/addresschange to give us your new mailing address.

The only thing we received in the mail for my step son was his I-797 that he never received back when my wife got hers. I should add my wife and step son both had their biometrics appointments soon after filing the I-751. Anyways any advice is appreciated.

[Free Man 119]

I stand to be corrected but I understand anyone who did AOS in the US after Dec 10, 2018, The interview for I-751 may be waived if the officer deem that the supporting documents are enough. 

Did u do the consular processing or u got your green card while u were in the US.?

 

The officer that interview me and my wife recommended filing N400 as soon as the window is open.  He said the I-751 has alot of backlog so the N400 may trigger an action because they cannot approve your N400 unless your I-751 is approved. These were his exact words.

[Liam2021 583]

Again, filling N400 can get the process faster, but it will totally depend on your local field office. Some local office on took few months for N400, some will took more than a year. So, check the processing time of your local field office, then you can go from there.

[jg121783 3,916]

17 hours ago, Ras Ous said:

I stand to be corrected but I understand anyone who did AOS in the US after Dec 10, 2018, The interview for I-751 may be waived if the officer deem that the supporting documents are enough. 

Did u do the consular processing or u got your green card while u were in the US.?

 

The officer that interview me and my wife recommended filing N400 as soon as the window is open.  He said the I-751 has alot of backlog so the N400 may trigger an action because they cannot approve your N400 unless your I-751 is approved. These were his exact words.

My wife came here on a CR1 visa in 2017 and received her green card after arriving in the US.

 

17 hours ago, Liam2021 said:

Again, filling N400 can get the process faster, but it will totally depend on your local field office. Some local office on took few months for N400, some will took more than a year. So, check the processing time of your local field office, then you can go from there.

My wife's I-751 is currently at the National Benefits Center in Missouri I believe. The USCIS website has no information for estimated wait times at that location. I would assume since her status says an interview is being scheduled it shouldn't take too much longer but I could be wrong. I just don't want to file the N400 now and cause delays that we might not have had otherwise.

[Liam2021 583]

1 hour ago, jg121783 said:

My wife came here on a CR1 visa in 2017 and received her green card after arriving in the US.

 

My wife's I-751 is currently at the National Benefits Center in Missouri I believe. The USCIS website has no information for estimated wait times at that location. I would assume since her status says an interview is being scheduled it shouldn't take too much longer but I could be wrong. I just don't want to file the N400 now and cause delays that we might not have had otherwise.

NBC just hold your I-751 in line until local field office has open slot and they will schedule the interview. After interview has been scheduled, your I-751 will be send to local field office. For example: my I-751 is with NBC and it has been ready to scheduled for an interview since February, but my local field office is Dallas.

[eckoin 211]

On 10/18/2020 at 8:58 PM, Ras Ous said:

I stand to be corrected but I understand anyone who did AOS in the US after Dec 10, 2018, The interview for I-751 may be waived if the officer deem that the supporting documents are enough. 

First time I'm hearing Dec 10, 2018.  Do you have any more info on that?  I thought it's in general at the discretion of the officer, if the applicant had a USCIS interview in the US.  Either way, I guess I'd be in the clear by a day, but I've definitely seen plenty of people with waived ROC interviews who applied before they would've had an AOS interview in Dec 2018.

[Free Man 119]

25 minutes ago, eckoin said:

First time I'm hearing Dec 10, 2018.  Do you have any more info on that?  I thought it's in general at the discretion of the officer, if the applicant had a USCIS interview in the US.  Either way, I guess I'd be in the clear by a day, but I've definitely seen plenty of people with waived ROC interviews who applied before they would've had an AOS interview in Dec 2018.

https://www.uscis.gov/news/alerts/uscis-revises-interview-waiver-guidance-for-form-i-751

[Fr8dog 312]

Your file is sitting in a pile at the NBC waiting for the local office to have space. As long as you have not received the "interview scgeduled" or "transferred to another office" notice, it will remain there. You can file the N400 and force the file from the bottom of the pile to be reviewed for the N400. Those petions have priority over other petitions.

If you file after you get either of those notices, it will most likely delay your ROC a few weeks as the file needs to be transferred back to the NBC. The N400.

I would file the N400 if I were you (as a matter of fact I did file with the intend of getting my file unstuck during my ROC and it did appear to help).

[jg121783 3,916]

4 hours ago, Fr8dog said:

Your file is sitting in a pile at the NBC waiting for the local office to have space. As long as you have not received the "interview scgeduled" or "transferred to another office" notice, it will remain there. You can file the N400 and force the file from the bottom of the pile to be reviewed for the N400. Those petions have priority over other petitions.

If you file after you get either of those notices, it will most likely delay your ROC a few weeks as the file needs to be transferred back to the NBC. The N400.

I would file the N400 if I were you (as a matter of fact I did file with the intend of getting my file unstuck during my ROC and it did appear to help).

We are short on money for the next month or so but we will probably go ahead and file as soon as we have the money. Guess I'll start gathering the paperwork now.