fcat

For this post my wife with be Miss Doe and i will be Mr Smith.
 
In 2013, i got married to my US wife in Arlington, VA. I then returned home to the UK and started the CR-1 Visa process.
We filed the I-130 and everything else needed to get the CR1 Visa, early on in the process we decided between the two of us that i would be taking my wife's surname, i would no longer be Mr Smith but become Mr Doe and we filed accordingly, putting my name down as Mr Doe on the DS230. I sent our marriage certificate to the UK passport office, the UK DMV and the UK tax office and received my new passport and drivers license back under the name Mr Doe.
In Feb 2014 i moved to the USA, My visa was under the name Mr Doe in my passport that was in the name of Mr Doe, I've been in the US 7 years, my name is Mr Doe, my state driving license, my passport, my mortgage, my bank accounts, insurance and everything else is as Mr Doe, i AM and have been for the past 7 years Mr Doe after legally changing my name through marriage.
My interview at the DC field office (Fairfax, VA) was yesterday at 12:15pm, at 12:45pm a lady (Who we will call Karen 1) came out to the waiting room and called my name. She was polite, asked how i was and led me to an interview rooms. We sat down, she explained she would be conducting the interview and doing my civics test, she said the process shouldn't be more than 30 minutes. She started with the civics test which i passed by answering the first 6 questions correctly. She then asked me to read a sentence on the iPad screen and then to write a short sentence on the screen, which i did correctly. She then opened what looked like my immigration file, a thick brown folder full of paper documents. She started to go through my N400 application, asking several questions like was my address correct, how long i had lived at that address, confirming my wife's name etc etc She then asked when i got married and i said Jan 2013. She looked at the papers and then looked at me and said " So you returned to England for 12 months after you got married ?" I said " yes, i did the CR-1 visa process, that's the correct process to go through after being married in the US, the petition was then filed from the UK" to which she replied, "mmmm that's unusual, most people come over and get married then apply for their Visa here"  i told her i didn't do a K1 but a CR-1. It was at this time that i realized i maybe knew more than she did about the process! She said she had never heard of the CR1 process!!!
She kept looking through my file and reading out aloud, " ok, your I-130 is here, you marriage certificate, your divorce certificate (from previous marriage in the UK) and as she was doing this I'm thinking, what has this to do with things? all this has been checked out and was part of the Visa application process not my N400.
She then stopped at my birth certificate and flipped backwards and forwards between that and my marriage certificate. She then said to me " why is your name now different to your birth certificate?"  I said because after we married i took my wife's surname.  She immediately said back to me, "oh, you cant just do that, that's not allowed,  where is the official paperwork that you changed your name?"  She then said "you should have filled in a DS30" to which i replied, " i did fill in a DS230 and you should have a copy of that in your file"  after looking through the file for several minutes she said there was no DS230 in my file. I said "well the process is the same for the Husband taking the wife's name as it is vice versa, the marriage certificate is proof enough of my name change".  she then started rambling on how DC, Maryland and VA and all the other states have different rules about surnames!! She said " its fine though, she could fill a few forms in on her computer and all i would have to do was get an appointment at the Arlington courthouse, get the papers signed and stamped and then return them in the mail to USCIS and we'll give you another interview!! i KNEW this wasn't correct and i said " I'm sorry but this is not needed, my name has already been changed legally already" She then said she would go speak to her supervisor.
She returned 15 minutes later and said  "yes, its as i thought you will have to do a name change through the courts" by this time my palms were sweating and  i was becoming frustrated trying to explain that she had it wrong, i was polite but firm. I then asked to speak to her supervisor (whom we'll call Karen 2), she said "certainly, I'll go get her". Karen 1 disappeared for 5 minutes and came back saying Karen 2 would be in in 10 minutes. We both sat there in silence until Karen 2 arrived about 15 minutes later.
 
Karen 2 said she had spoke to one of her colleagues and that no one knew exactly what the situation was and should be, i said " there is one person that knows, me!!" between Karen 1 and 2 they agreed that i had to do a name change. I then started to show Karen 2 a copy of my DS230 from 7 years ago on my cell phone, she would not look at it and snapped back at me " I'm not interested in your DS230, that's a Department of State form, nothing to do with this and they have been known to make mistakes"  I was like #######!!! i told her that Karen 1 had mentioned that there was no DS230 in my file and she had been looking for it but Karen 2 was not having anything to do with it!  I then asked what if my wife had taken my name would she have had to go through the courts? She said "no that's normal when 2 people get married, what you have done is not normal and is not really allowed" At this point i was still very calm but inside i was fuming and i thought F**k it, I'm gonna fight my corner and if i piss them off then so be it. She then said, "you will have to change your name through the court",  i said " so what name am i changing it from? Mr Smith does not exist anymore, he hasn't done for 7 years, my passport, green card, bank accounts, mortgage state ID are all in the name Mr Doe and it was changed to that legally in the UK and on the DS230, so how can i change my name and what do i change it to?" she just stood there looking confused and didn't know how or what to say. I then asked her how my Visa and all the correspondence from USCIS was issued and addressed to Mr Doe, where had they got that name from ? again, she couldn't answer and didn't know how to respond.
My questions to Karen 2 went on for over 15 minutes but what seemed like an hour! she was very arrogant and ignorant and didn't want to talk to me, just to Karen 1. 
Then Karen 1 turned to Karen 2 and said ( and this is verbatim i kid you not) "I've just googled it and it says its OK"  Karen 2 said, "what website does it say that on ? is it the courthouse website?" Karen 1 said " no it just says it on google that a man can take the wife's name"  Karen 2 then said to Karen 1, ' OK put it through" and walked off!!!!
 
I was in there just over 2 hours, LOTS of questions and conversations between me and both Karens that I've forgotten and I cant even remember the amount of times i asked things and they didn't know what to say. I left the office happy but totally frustrated and shaking!
if i had just left it and taken their word for it or not stood up for myself i would have not been approved!!
 
So my Oath is next Tuesday and I'm looking forward to it but the whole things left a real bad taste in my mouth:( My wife says i should write a letter of complaint, im just gonna move on but i wanted to vent through this forum that has been a great wealth of information over the past 7 or 8 years,
 
Thanks
K & S DOE!!!
 

For this post my wife with be Miss Doe and i will be Mr Smith.
 
In 2013, i got married to my US wife in Arlington, VA. I then returned home to the UK and started the CR-1 Visa process.
We filed the I-130 and everything else needed to get the CR1 Visa, early on in the process we decided between the two of us that i would be taking my wife's surname, i would no longer be Mr Smith but become Mr Doe and we filed accordingly, putting my name down as Mr Doe on the DS230. I sent our marriage certificate to the UK passport office, the UK DMV and the UK tax office and received my new passport and drivers license back under the name Mr Doe.
In Feb 2014 i moved to the USA, My visa was under the name Mr Doe in my passport that was in the name of Mr Doe, I've been in the US 7 years, my name is Mr Doe, my state driving license, my passport, my mortgage, my bank accounts, insurance and everything else is as Mr Doe, i AM and have been for the past 7 years Mr Doe after legally changing my name through marriage.
My interview at the DC field office (Fairfax, VA) was yesterday at 12:15pm, at 12:45pm a lady (Who we will call Karen 1) came out to the waiting room and called my name. She was polite, asked how i was and led me to an interview rooms. We sat down, she explained she would be conducting the interview and doing my civics test, she said the process shouldn't be more than 30 minutes. She started with the civics test which i passed by answering the first 6 questions correctly. She then asked me to read a sentence on the iPad screen and then to write a short sentence on the screen, which i did correctly. She then opened what looked like my immigration file, a thick brown folder full of paper documents. She started to go through my N400 application, asking several questions like was my address correct, how long i had lived at that address, confirming my wife's name etc etc She then asked when i got married and i said Jan 2013. She looked at the papers and then looked at me and said " So you returned to England for 12 months after you got married ?" I said " yes, i did the CR-1 visa process, that's the correct process to go through after being married in the US, the petition was then filed from the UK" to which she replied, "mmmm that's unusual, most people come over and get married then apply for their Visa here"  i told her i didn't do a K1 but a CR-1. It was at this time that i realized i maybe knew more than she did about the process! She said she had never heard of the CR1 process!!!
She kept looking through my file and reading out aloud, " ok, your I-130 is here, you marriage certificate, your divorce certificate (from previous marriage in the UK) and as she was doing this I'm thinking, what has this to do with things? all this has been checked out and was part of the Visa application process not my N400.
She then stopped at my birth certificate and flipped backwards and forwards between that and my marriage certificate. She then said to me " why is your name now different to your birth certificate?"  I said because after we married i took my wife's surname.  She immediately said back to me, "oh, you cant just do that, that's not allowed,  where is the official paperwork that you changed your name?"  She then said "you should have filled in a DS30" to which i replied, " i did fill in a DS230 and you should have a copy of that in your file"  after looking through the file for several minutes she said there was no DS230 in my file. I said "well the process is the same for the Husband taking the wife's name as it is vice versa, the marriage certificate is proof enough of my name change".  she then started rambling on how DC, Maryland and VA and all the other states have different rules about surnames!! She said " its fine though, she could fill a few forms in on her computer and all i would have to do was get an appointment at the Arlington courthouse, get the papers signed and stamped and then return them in the mail to USCIS and we'll give you another interview!! i KNEW this wasn't correct and i said " I'm sorry but this is not needed, my name has already been changed legally already" She then said she would go speak to her supervisor.
She returned 15 minutes later and said  "yes, its as i thought you will have to do a name change through the courts" by this time my palms were sweating and  i was becoming frustrated trying to explain that she had it wrong, i was polite but firm. I then asked to speak to her supervisor (whom we'll call Karen 2), she said "certainly, I'll go get her". Karen 1 disappeared for 5 minutes and came back saying Karen 2 would be in in 10 minutes. We both sat there in silence until Karen 2 arrived about 15 minutes later.
 
Karen 2 said she had spoke to one of her colleagues and that no one knew exactly what the situation was and should be, i said " there is one person that knows, me!!" between Karen 1 and 2 they agreed that i had to do a name change. I then started to show Karen 2 a copy of my DS230 from 7 years ago on my cell phone, she would not look at it and snapped back at me " I'm not interested in your DS230, that's a Department of State form, nothing to do with this and they have been known to make mistakes"  I was like #######!!! i told her that Karen 1 had mentioned that there was no DS230 in my file and she had been looking for it but Karen 2 was not having anything to do with it!  I then asked what if my wife had taken my name would she have had to go through the courts? She said "no that's normal when 2 people get married, what you have done is not normal and is not really allowed" At this point i was still very calm but inside i was fuming and i thought F**k it, I'm gonna fight my corner and if i piss them off then so be it. She then said, "you will have to change your name through the court",  i said " so what name am i changing it from? Mr Smith does not exist anymore, he hasn't done for 7 years, my passport, green card, bank accounts, mortgage state ID are all in the name Mr Doe and it was changed to that legally in the UK and on the DS230, so how can i change my name and what do i change it to?" she just stood there looking confused and didn't know how or what to say. I then asked her how my Visa and all the correspondence from USCIS was issued and addressed to Mr Doe, where had they got that name from ? again, she couldn't answer and didn't know how to respond.
My questions to Karen 2 went on for over 15 minutes but what seemed like an hour! she was very arrogant and ignorant and didn't want to talk to me, just to Karen 1. 
Then Karen 1 turned to Karen 2 and said ( and this is verbatim i kid you not) "I've just googled it and it says its OK"  Karen 2 said, "what website does it say that on ? is it the courthouse website?" Karen 1 said " no it just says it on google that a man can take the wife's name"  Karen 2 then said to Karen 1, ' OK put it through" and walked off!!!!
 
I was in there just over 2 hours, LOTS of questions and conversations between me and both Karens that I've forgotten and I cant even remember the amount of times i asked things and they didn't know what to say. I left the office happy but totally frustrated and shaking!
if i had just left it and taken their word for it or not stood up for myself i would have not been approved!!
 
So my Oath is next Tuesday and I'm looking forward to it but the whole things left a real bad taste in my mouth:( My wife says i should write a letter of complaint, im just gonna move on but i wanted to vent through this forum that has been a great wealth of information over the past 7 or 8 years,
 
Thanks
K & S DOE!!!
 

For this post my wife with be Miss Doe and i will be Mr Smith.
 
In 2013, i got married to my US wife in Arlington, VA. I then returned home to the UK and started the CR-1 Visa process.
We filed the I-130 and everything else needed to get the CR1 Visa, early on in the process we decided between the two of us that i would be taking my wife's surname, i would no longer be Mr Smith but become Mr Doe and we filed accordingly, putting my name down as Mr Doe on the DS230. I sent our marriage certificate to the UK passport office, the UK DMV and the UK tax office and received my new passport and drivers license back under the name Mr Doe.
In Feb 2014 i moved to the USA, My visa was under the name Mr Doe in my passport that was in the name of Mr Doe, I've been in the US 7 years, my name is Mr Doe, my state driving license, my passport, my mortgage, my bank accounts, insurance and everything else is as Mr Doe, i AM and have been for the past 7 years Mr Doe after legally changing my name through marriage.
My interview at the DC field office (Fairfax, VA) was yesterday at 12:15pm, at 12:45pm a lady (Who we will call Karen 1) came out to the waiting room and called my name. She was polite, asked how i was and led me to an interview rooms. We sat down, she explained she would be conducting the interview and doing my civics test, she said the process shouldn't be more than 30 minutes. She started with the civics test which i passed by answering the first 6 questions correctly. She then asked me to read a sentence on the iPad screen and then to write a short sentence on the screen, which i did correctly. She then opened what looked like my immigration file, a thick brown folder full of paper documents. She started to go through my N400 application, asking several questions like was my address correct, how long i had lived at that address, confirming my wife's name etc etc She then asked when i got married and i said Jan 2013. She looked at the papers and then looked at me and said " So you returned to England for 12 months after you got married ?" I said " yes, i did the CR-1 visa process, that's the correct process to go through after being married in the US, the petition was then filed from the UK" to which she replied, "mmmm that's unusual, most people come over and get married then apply for their Visa here"  i told her i didn't do a K1 but a CR-1. It was at this time that i realized i maybe knew more than she did about the process! She said she had never heard of the CR1 process!!!
She kept looking through my file and reading out aloud, " ok, your I-130 is here, you marriage certificate, your divorce certificate (from previous marriage in the UK) and as she was doing this I'm thinking, what has this to do with things? all this has been checked out and was part of the Visa application process not my N400.
She then stopped at my birth certificate and flipped backwards and forwards between that and my marriage certificate. She then said to me " why is your name now different to your birth certificate?"  I said because after we married i took my wife's surname.  She immediately said back to me, "oh, you cant just do that, that's not allowed,  where is the official paperwork that you changed your name?"  She then said "you should have filled in a DS30" to which i replied, " i did fill in a DS230 and you should have a copy of that in your file"  after looking through the file for several minutes she said there was no DS230 in my file. I said "well the process is the same for the Husband taking the wife's name as it is vice versa, the marriage certificate is proof enough of my name change".  she then started rambling on how DC, Maryland and VA and all the other states have different rules about surnames!! She said " its fine though, she could fill a few forms in on her computer and all i would have to do was get an appointment at the Arlington courthouse, get the papers signed and stamped and then return them in the mail to USCIS and we'll give you another interview!! i KNEW this wasn't correct and i said " I'm sorry but this is not needed, my name has already been changed legally already" She then said she would go speak to her supervisor.
She returned 15 minutes later and said  "yes, its as i thought you will have to do a name change through the courts" by this time my palms were sweating and  i was becoming frustrated trying to explain that she had it wrong, i was polite but firm. I then asked to speak to her supervisor (whom we'll call Karen 2), she said "certainly, I'll go get her". Karen 1 disappeared for 5 minutes and came back saying Karen 2 would be in in 10 minutes. We both sat there in silence until Karen 2 arrived about 15 minutes later.
 
Karen 2 said she had spoke to one of her colleagues and that no one knew exactly what the situation was and should be, i said " there is one person that knows, me!!" between Karen 1 and 2 they agreed that i had to do a name change. I then started to show Karen 2 a copy of my DS230 from 7 years ago on my cell phone, she would not look at it and snapped back at me " I'm not interested in your DS230, that's a Department of State form, nothing to do with this and they have been known to make mistakes"  I was like #######!!! i told her that Karen 1 had mentioned that there was no DS230 in my file and she had been looking for it but Karen 2 was not having anything to do with it!  I then asked what if my wife had taken my name would she have had to go through the courts? She said "no that's normal when 2 people get married, what you have done is not normal and is not really allowed" At this point i was still very calm but inside i was fuming and i thought F**k it, I'm gonna fight my corner and if i piss them off then so be it. She then said, "you will have to change your name through the court",  i said " so what name am i changing it from? Mr Smith does not exist anymore, he hasn't done for 7 years, my passport, green card, bank accounts, mortgage state ID are all in the name Mr Doe and it was changed to that legally in the UK and on the DS230, so how can i change my name and what do i change it to?" she just stood there looking confused and didn't know how or what to say. I then asked her how my Visa and all the correspondence from USCIS was issued and addressed to Mr Doe, where had they got that name from ? again, she couldn't answer and didn't know how to respond.
My questions to Karen 2 went on for over 15 minutes but what seemed like an hour! she was very arrogant and ignorant and didn't want to talk to me, just to Karen 1. 
Then Karen 1 turned to Karen 2 and said ( and this is verbatim i kid you not) "I've just googled it and it says its OK"  Karen 2 said, "what website does it say that on ? is it the courthouse website?" Karen 1 said " no it just says it on google that a man can take the wife's name"  Karen 2 then said to Karen 1, ' OK put it through" and walked off!!!!
 
I was in there just over 2 hours, LOTS of questions and conversations between me and both Karens that I've forgotten and I cant even remember the amount of times i asked things and they didn't know what to say. I left the office happy but totally frustrated and shaking!
if i had just left it and taken their word for it or not stood up for myself i would have not been approved!!
 
So my Oath is next Tuesday and I'm looking forward to it but the whole things left a real bad taste in my mouth:( My wife says i should write a letter of complaint, im just gonna move on but i wanted to vent through this forum that has been a great wealth of information over the past 7 or 8 years,
 
Thanks
K & S DOE!!!
 

For this post my wife with be Miss Doe and i will be Mr Smith.
 
In 2013, i got married to my US wife in Arlington, VA. I then returned home to the UK and started the CR-1 Visa process.
We filed the I-130 and everything else needed to get the CR1 Visa, early on in the process we decided between the two of us that i would be taking my wife's surname, i would no longer be Mr Smith but become Mr Doe and we filed accordingly, putting my name down as Mr Doe on the DS230. I sent our marriage certificate to the UK passport office, the UK DMV and the UK tax office and received my new passport and drivers license back under the name Mr Doe.
In Feb 2014 i moved to the USA, My visa was under the name Mr Doe in my passport that was in the name of Mr Doe, I've been in the US 7 years, my name is Mr Doe, my state driving license, my passport, my mortgage, my bank accounts, insurance and everything else is as Mr Doe, i AM and have been for the past 7 years Mr Doe after legally changing my name through marriage.
My interview at the DC field office (Fairfax, VA) was yesterday at 12:15pm, at 12:45pm a lady (Who we will call Karen 1) came out to the waiting room and called my name. She was polite, asked how i was and led me to an interview rooms. We sat down, she explained she would be conducting the interview and doing my civics test, she said the process shouldn't be more than 30 minutes. She started with the civics test which i passed by answering the first 6 questions correctly. She then asked me to read a sentence on the iPad screen and then to write a short sentence on the screen, which i did correctly. She then opened what looked like my immigration file, a thick brown folder full of paper documents. She started to go through my N400 application, asking several questions like was my address correct, how long i had lived at that address, confirming my wife's name etc etc She then asked when i got married and i said Jan 2013. She looked at the papers and then looked at me and said " So you returned to England for 12 months after you got married ?" I said " yes, i did the CR-1 visa process, that's the correct process to go through after being married in the US, the petition was then filed from the UK" to which she replied, "mmmm that's unusual, most people come over and get married then apply for their Visa here"  i told her i didn't do a K1 but a CR-1. It was at this time that i realized i maybe knew more than she did about the process! She said she had never heard of the CR1 process!!!
She kept looking through my file and reading out aloud, " ok, your I-130 is here, you marriage certificate, your divorce certificate (from previous marriage in the UK) and as she was doing this I'm thinking, what has this to do with things? all this has been checked out and was part of the Visa application process not my N400.
She then stopped at my birth certificate and flipped backwards and forwards between that and my marriage certificate. She then said to me " why is your name now different to your birth certificate?"  I said because after we married i took my wife's surname.  She immediately said back to me, "oh, you cant just do that, that's not allowed,  where is the official paperwork that you changed your name?"  She then said "you should have filled in a DS30" to which i replied, " i did fill in a DS230 and you should have a copy of that in your file"  after looking through the file for several minutes she said there was no DS230 in my file. I said "well the process is the same for the Husband taking the wife's name as it is vice versa, the marriage certificate is proof enough of my name change".  she then started rambling on how DC, Maryland and VA and all the other states have different rules about surnames!! She said " its fine though, she could fill a few forms in on her computer and all i would have to do was get an appointment at the Arlington courthouse, get the papers signed and stamped and then return them in the mail to USCIS and we'll give you another interview!! i KNEW this wasn't correct and i said " I'm sorry but this is not needed, my name has already been changed legally already" She then said she would go speak to her supervisor.
She returned 15 minutes later and said  "yes, its as i thought you will have to do a name change through the courts" by this time my palms were sweating and  i was becoming frustrated trying to explain that she had it wrong, i was polite but firm. I then asked to speak to her supervisor (whom we'll call Karen 2), she said "certainly, I'll go get her". Karen 1 disappeared for 5 minutes and came back saying Karen 2 would be in in 10 minutes. We both sat there in silence until Karen 2 arrived about 15 minutes later.
 
Karen 2 said she had spoke to one of her colleagues and that no one knew exactly what the situation was and should be, i said " there is one person that knows, me!!" between Karen 1 and 2 they agreed that i had to do a name change. I then started to show Karen 2 a copy of my DS230 from 7 years ago on my cell phone, she would not look at it and snapped back at me " I'm not interested in your DS230, that's a Department of State form, nothing to do with this and they have been known to make mistakes"  I was like #######!!! i told her that Karen 1 had mentioned that there was no DS230 in my file and she had been looking for it but Karen 2 was not having anything to do with it!  I then asked what if my wife had taken my name would she have had to go through the courts? She said "no that's normal when 2 people get married, what you have done is not normal and is not really allowed" At this point i was still very calm but inside i was fuming and i thought F**k it, I'm gonna fight my corner and if i piss them off then so be it. She then said, "you will have to change your name through the court",  i said " so what name am i changing it from? Mr Smith does not exist anymore, he hasn't done for 7 years, my passport, green card, bank accounts, mortgage state ID are all in the name Mr Doe and it was changed to that legally in the UK and on the DS230, so how can i change my name and what do i change it to?" she just stood there looking confused and didn't know how or what to say. I then asked her how my Visa and all the correspondence from USCIS was issued and addressed to Mr Doe, where had they got that name from ? again, she couldn't answer and didn't know how to respond.
My questions to Karen 2 went on for over 15 minutes but what seemed like an hour! she was very arrogant and ignorant and didn't want to talk to me, just to Karen 1. 
Then Karen 1 turned to Karen 2 and said ( and this is verbatim i kid you not) "I've just googled it and it says its OK"  Karen 2 said, "what website does it say that on ? is it the courthouse website?" Karen 1 said " no it just says it on google that a man can take the wife's name"  Karen 2 then said to Karen 1, ' OK put it through" and walked off!!!!
 
I was in there just over 2 hours, LOTS of questions and conversations between me and both Karens that I've forgotten and I cant even remember the amount of times i asked things and they didn't know what to say. I left the office happy but totally frustrated and shaking!
if i had just left it and taken their word for it or not stood up for myself i would have not been approved!!
 
So my Oath is next Tuesday and I'm looking forward to it but the whole things left a real bad taste in my mouth:( My wife says i should write a letter of complaint, im just gonna move on but i wanted to vent through this forum that has been a great wealth of information over the past 7 or 8 years,
 
Thanks
K & S DOE!!!
 

For this post my wife with be Miss Doe and i will be Mr Smith.
 
In 2013, i got married to my US wife in Arlington, VA. I then returned home to the UK and started the CR-1 Visa process.
We filed the I-130 and everything else needed to get the CR1 Visa, early on in the process we decided between the two of us that i would be taking my wife's surname, i would no longer be Mr Smith but become Mr Doe and we filed accordingly, putting my name down as Mr Doe on the DS230. I sent our marriage certificate to the UK passport office, the UK DMV and the UK tax office and received my new passport and drivers license back under the name Mr Doe.
In Feb 2014 i moved to the USA, My visa was under the name Mr Doe in my passport that was in the name of Mr Doe, I've been in the US 7 years, my name is Mr Doe, my state driving license, my passport, my mortgage, my bank accounts, insurance and everything else is as Mr Doe, i AM and have been for the past 7 years Mr Doe after legally changing my name through marriage.
My interview at the DC field office (Fairfax, VA) was yesterday at 12:15pm, at 12:45pm a lady (Who we will call Karen 1) came out to the waiting room and called my name. She was polite, asked how i was and led me to an interview rooms. We sat down, she explained she would be conducting the interview and doing my civics test, she said the process shouldn't be more than 30 minutes. She started with the civics test which i passed by answering the first 6 questions correctly. She then asked me to read a sentence on the iPad screen and then to write a short sentence on the screen, which i did correctly. She then opened what looked like my immigration file, a thick brown folder full of paper documents. She started to go through my N400 application, asking several questions like was my address correct, how long i had lived at that address, confirming my wife's name etc etc She then asked when i got married and i said Jan 2013. She looked at the papers and then looked at me and said " So you returned to England for 12 months after you got married ?" I said " yes, i did the CR-1 visa process, that's the correct process to go through after being married in the US, the petition was then filed from the UK" to which she replied, "mmmm that's unusual, most people come over and get married then apply for their Visa here"  i told her i didn't do a K1 but a CR-1. It was at this time that i realized i maybe knew more than she did about the process! She said she had never heard of the CR1 process!!!
She kept looking through my file and reading out aloud, " ok, your I-130 is here, you marriage certificate, your divorce certificate (from previous marriage in the UK) and as she was doing this I'm thinking, what has this to do with things? all this has been checked out and was part of the Visa application process not my N400.
She then stopped at my birth certificate and flipped backwards and forwards between that and my marriage certificate. She then said to me " why is your name now different to your birth certificate?"  I said because after we married i took my wife's surname.  She immediately said back to me, "oh, you cant just do that, that's not allowed,  where is the official paperwork that you changed your name?"  She then said "you should have filled in a DS30" to which i replied, " i did fill in a DS230 and you should have a copy of that in your file"  after looking through the file for several minutes she said there was no DS230 in my file. I said "well the process is the same for the Husband taking the wife's name as it is vice versa, the marriage certificate is proof enough of my name change".  she then started rambling on how DC, Maryland and VA and all the other states have different rules about surnames!! She said " its fine though, she could fill a few forms in on her computer and all i would have to do was get an appointment at the Arlington courthouse, get the papers signed and stamped and then return them in the mail to USCIS and we'll give you another interview!! i KNEW this wasn't correct and i said " I'm sorry but this is not needed, my name has already been changed legally already" She then said she would go speak to her supervisor.
She returned 15 minutes later and said  "yes, its as i thought you will have to do a name change through the courts" by this time my palms were sweating and  i was becoming frustrated trying to explain that she had it wrong, i was polite but firm. I then asked to speak to her supervisor (whom we'll call Karen 2), she said "certainly, I'll go get her". Karen 1 disappeared for 5 minutes and came back saying Karen 2 would be in in 10 minutes. We both sat there in silence until Karen 2 arrived about 15 minutes later.
 
Karen 2 said she had spoke to one of her colleagues and that no one knew exactly what the situation was and should be, i said " there is one person that knows, me!!" between Karen 1 and 2 they agreed that i had to do a name change. I then started to show Karen 2 a copy of my DS230 from 7 years ago on my cell phone, she would not look at it and snapped back at me " I'm not interested in your DS230, that's a Department of State form, nothing to do with this and they have been known to make mistakes"  I was like #######!!! i told her that Karen 1 had mentioned that there was no DS230 in my file and she had been looking for it but Karen 2 was not having anything to do with it!  I then asked what if my wife had taken my name would she have had to go through the courts? She said "no that's normal when 2 people get married, what you have done is not normal and is not really allowed" At this point i was still very calm but inside i was fuming and i thought F**k it, I'm gonna fight my corner and if i piss them off then so be it. She then said, "you will have to change your name through the court",  i said " so what name am i changing it from? Mr Smith does not exist anymore, he hasn't done for 7 years, my passport, green card, bank accounts, mortgage state ID are all in the name Mr Doe and it was changed to that legally in the UK and on the DS230, so how can i change my name and what do i change it to?" she just stood there looking confused and didn't know how or what to say. I then asked her how my Visa and all the correspondence from USCIS was issued and addressed to Mr Doe, where had they got that name from ? again, she couldn't answer and didn't know how to respond.
My questions to Karen 2 went on for over 15 minutes but what seemed like an hour! she was very arrogant and ignorant and didn't want to talk to me, just to Karen 1. 
Then Karen 1 turned to Karen 2 and said ( and this is verbatim i kid you not) "I've just googled it and it says its OK"  Karen 2 said, "what website does it say that on ? is it the courthouse website?" Karen 1 said " no it just says it on google that a man can take the wife's name"  Karen 2 then said to Karen 1, ' OK put it through" and walked off!!!!
 
I was in there just over 2 hours, LOTS of questions and conversations between me and both Karens that I've forgotten and I cant even remember the amount of times i asked things and they didn't know what to say. I left the office happy but totally frustrated and shaking!
if i had just left it and taken their word for it or not stood up for myself i would have not been approved!!
 
So my Oath is next Tuesday and I'm looking forward to it but the whole things left a real bad taste in my mouth:( My wife says i should write a letter of complaint, im just gonna move on but i wanted to vent through this forum that has been a great wealth of information over the past 7 or 8 years,
 
Thanks
K & S DOE!!!
 

For this post my wife with be Miss Doe and i will be Mr Smith.
 
In 2013, i got married to my US wife in Arlington, VA. I then returned home to the UK and started the CR-1 Visa process.
We filed the I-130 and everything else needed to get the CR1 Visa, early on in the process we decided between the two of us that i would be taking my wife's surname, i would no longer be Mr Smith but become Mr Doe and we filed accordingly, putting my name down as Mr Doe on the DS230. I sent our marriage certificate to the UK passport office, the UK DMV and the UK tax office and received my new passport and drivers license back under the name Mr Doe.
In Feb 2014 i moved to the USA, My visa was under the name Mr Doe in my passport that was in the name of Mr Doe, I've been in the US 7 years, my name is Mr Doe, my state driving license, my passport, my mortgage, my bank accounts, insurance and everything else is as Mr Doe, i AM and have been for the past 7 years Mr Doe after legally changing my name through marriage.
My interview at the DC field office (Fairfax, VA) was yesterday at 12:15pm, at 12:45pm a lady (Who we will call Karen 1) came out to the waiting room and called my name. She was polite, asked how i was and led me to an interview rooms. We sat down, she explained she would be conducting the interview and doing my civics test, she said the process shouldn't be more than 30 minutes. She started with the civics test which i passed by answering the first 6 questions correctly. She then asked me to read a sentence on the iPad screen and then to write a short sentence on the screen, which i did correctly. She then opened what looked like my immigration file, a thick brown folder full of paper documents. She started to go through my N400 application, asking several questions like was my address correct, how long i had lived at that address, confirming my wife's name etc etc She then asked when i got married and i said Jan 2013. She looked at the papers and then looked at me and said " So you returned to England for 12 months after you got married ?" I said " yes, i did the CR-1 visa process, that's the correct process to go through after being married in the US, the petition was then filed from the UK" to which she replied, "mmmm that's unusual, most people come over and get married then apply for their Visa here"  i told her i didn't do a K1 but a CR-1. It was at this time that i realized i maybe knew more than she did about the process! She said she had never heard of the CR1 process!!!
She kept looking through my file and reading out aloud, " ok, your I-130 is here, you marriage certificate, your divorce certificate (from previous marriage in the UK) and as she was doing this I'm thinking, what has this to do with things? all this has been checked out and was part of the Visa application process not my N400.
She then stopped at my birth certificate and flipped backwards and forwards between that and my marriage certificate. She then said to me " why is your name now different to your birth certificate?"  I said because after we married i took my wife's surname.  She immediately said back to me, "oh, you cant just do that, that's not allowed,  where is the official paperwork that you changed your name?"  She then said "you should have filled in a DS30" to which i replied, " i did fill in a DS230 and you should have a copy of that in your file"  after looking through the file for several minutes she said there was no DS230 in my file. I said "well the process is the same for the Husband taking the wife's name as it is vice versa, the marriage certificate is proof enough of my name change".  she then started rambling on how DC, Maryland and VA and all the other states have different rules about surnames!! She said " its fine though, she could fill a few forms in on her computer and all i would have to do was get an appointment at the Arlington courthouse, get the papers signed and stamped and then return them in the mail to USCIS and we'll give you another interview!! i KNEW this wasn't correct and i said " I'm sorry but this is not needed, my name has already been changed legally already" She then said she would go speak to her supervisor.
She returned 15 minutes later and said  "yes, its as i thought you will have to do a name change through the courts" by this time my palms were sweating and  i was becoming frustrated trying to explain that she had it wrong, i was polite but firm. I then asked to speak to her supervisor (whom we'll call Karen 2), she said "certainly, I'll go get her". Karen 1 disappeared for 5 minutes and came back saying Karen 2 would be in in 10 minutes. We both sat there in silence until Karen 2 arrived about 15 minutes later.
 
Karen 2 said she had spoke to one of her colleagues and that no one knew exactly what the situation was and should be, i said " there is one person that knows, me!!" between Karen 1 and 2 they agreed that i had to do a name change. I then started to show Karen 2 a copy of my DS230 from 7 years ago on my cell phone, she would not look at it and snapped back at me " I'm not interested in your DS230, that's a Department of State form, nothing to do with this and they have been known to make mistakes"  I was like #######!!! i told her that Karen 1 had mentioned that there was no DS230 in my file and she had been looking for it but Karen 2 was not having anything to do with it!  I then asked what if my wife had taken my name would she have had to go through the courts? She said "no that's normal when 2 people get married, what you have done is not normal and is not really allowed" At this point i was still very calm but inside i was fuming and i thought F**k it, I'm gonna fight my corner and if i piss them off then so be it. She then said, "you will have to change your name through the court",  i said " so what name am i changing it from? Mr Smith does not exist anymore, he hasn't done for 7 years, my passport, green card, bank accounts, mortgage state ID are all in the name Mr Doe and it was changed to that legally in the UK and on the DS230, so how can i change my name and what do i change it to?" she just stood there looking confused and didn't know how or what to say. I then asked her how my Visa and all the correspondence from USCIS was issued and addressed to Mr Doe, where had they got that name from ? again, she couldn't answer and didn't know how to respond.
My questions to Karen 2 went on for over 15 minutes but what seemed like an hour! she was very arrogant and ignorant and didn't want to talk to me, just to Karen 1. 
Then Karen 1 turned to Karen 2 and said ( and this is verbatim i kid you not) "I've just googled it and it says its OK"  Karen 2 said, "what website does it say that on ? is it the courthouse website?" Karen 1 said " no it just says it on google that a man can take the wife's name"  Karen 2 then said to Karen 1, ' OK put it through" and walked off!!!!
 
I was in there just over 2 hours, LOTS of questions and conversations between me and both Karens that I've forgotten and I cant even remember the amount of times i asked things and they didn't know what to say. I left the office happy but totally frustrated and shaking!
if i had just left it and taken their word for it or not stood up for myself i would have not been approved!!
 
So my Oath is next Tuesday and I'm looking forward to it but the whole things left a real bad taste in my mouth:( My wife says i should write a letter of complaint, im just gonna move on but i wanted to vent through this forum that has been a great wealth of information over the past 7 or 8 years,
 
Thanks
K & S DOE!!!
 

It is amazing how ignorant people can be when something is a little out of the norm.  Sure the man changing their surname based on marriage is not very common, but it is certainly allowed.  
 
Congrats on finally passing your N400 interview, and I am glad you stood your ground.
 
Good Luck!

For this post my wife with be Miss Doe and i will be Mr Smith.
 
In 2013, i got married to my US wife in Arlington, VA. I then returned home to the UK and started the CR-1 Visa process.
We filed the I-130 and everything else needed to get the CR1 Visa, early on in the process we decided between the two of us that i would be taking my wife's surname, i would no longer be Mr Smith but become Mr Doe and we filed accordingly, putting my name down as Mr Doe on the DS230. I sent our marriage certificate to the UK passport office, the UK DMV and the UK tax office and received my new passport and drivers license back under the name Mr Doe.
In Feb 2014 i moved to the USA, My visa was under the name Mr Doe in my passport that was in the name of Mr Doe, I've been in the US 7 years, my name is Mr Doe, my state driving license, my passport, my mortgage, my bank accounts, insurance and everything else is as Mr Doe, i AM and have been for the past 7 years Mr Doe after legally changing my name through marriage.
My interview at the DC field office (Fairfax, VA) was yesterday at 12:15pm, at 12:45pm a lady (Who we will call Karen 1) came out to the waiting room and called my name. She was polite, asked how i was and led me to an interview rooms. We sat down, she explained she would be conducting the interview and doing my civics test, she said the process shouldn't be more than 30 minutes. She started with the civics test which i passed by answering the first 6 questions correctly. She then asked me to read a sentence on the iPad screen and then to write a short sentence on the screen, which i did correctly. She then opened what looked like my immigration file, a thick brown folder full of paper documents. She started to go through my N400 application, asking several questions like was my address correct, how long i had lived at that address, confirming my wife's name etc etc She then asked when i got married and i said Jan 2013. She looked at the papers and then looked at me and said " So you returned to England for 12 months after you got married ?" I said " yes, i did the CR-1 visa process, that's the correct process to go through after being married in the US, the petition was then filed from the UK" to which she replied, "mmmm that's unusual, most people come over and get married then apply for their Visa here"  i told her i didn't do a K1 but a CR-1. It was at this time that i realized i maybe knew more than she did about the process! She said she had never heard of the CR1 process!!!
She kept looking through my file and reading out aloud, " ok, your I-130 is here, you marriage certificate, your divorce certificate (from previous marriage in the UK) and as she was doing this I'm thinking, what has this to do with things? all this has been checked out and was part of the Visa application process not my N400.
She then stopped at my birth certificate and flipped backwards and forwards between that and my marriage certificate. She then said to me " why is your name now different to your birth certificate?"  I said because after we married i took my wife's surname.  She immediately said back to me, "oh, you cant just do that, that's not allowed,  where is the official paperwork that you changed your name?"  She then said "you should have filled in a DS30" to which i replied, " i did fill in a DS230 and you should have a copy of that in your file"  after looking through the file for several minutes she said there was no DS230 in my file. I said "well the process is the same for the Husband taking the wife's name as it is vice versa, the marriage certificate is proof enough of my name change".  she then started rambling on how DC, Maryland and VA and all the other states have different rules about surnames!! She said " its fine though, she could fill a few forms in on her computer and all i would have to do was get an appointment at the Arlington courthouse, get the papers signed and stamped and then return them in the mail to USCIS and we'll give you another interview!! i KNEW this wasn't correct and i said " I'm sorry but this is not needed, my name has already been changed legally already" She then said she would go speak to her supervisor.
She returned 15 minutes later and said  "yes, its as i thought you will have to do a name change through the courts" by this time my palms were sweating and  i was becoming frustrated trying to explain that she had it wrong, i was polite but firm. I then asked to speak to her supervisor (whom we'll call Karen 2), she said "certainly, I'll go get her". Karen 1 disappeared for 5 minutes and came back saying Karen 2 would be in in 10 minutes. We both sat there in silence until Karen 2 arrived about 15 minutes later.
 
Karen 2 said she had spoke to one of her colleagues and that no one knew exactly what the situation was and should be, i said " there is one person that knows, me!!" between Karen 1 and 2 they agreed that i had to do a name change. I then started to show Karen 2 a copy of my DS230 from 7 years ago on my cell phone, she would not look at it and snapped back at me " I'm not interested in your DS230, that's a Department of State form, nothing to do with this and they have been known to make mistakes"  I was like #######!!! i told her that Karen 1 had mentioned that there was no DS230 in my file and she had been looking for it but Karen 2 was not having anything to do with it!  I then asked what if my wife had taken my name would she have had to go through the courts? She said "no that's normal when 2 people get married, what you have done is not normal and is not really allowed" At this point i was still very calm but inside i was fuming and i thought F**k it, I'm gonna fight my corner and if i piss them off then so be it. She then said, "you will have to change your name through the court",  i said " so what name am i changing it from? Mr Smith does not exist anymore, he hasn't done for 7 years, my passport, green card, bank accounts, mortgage state ID are all in the name Mr Doe and it was changed to that legally in the UK and on the DS230, so how can i change my name and what do i change it to?" she just stood there looking confused and didn't know how or what to say. I then asked her how my Visa and all the correspondence from USCIS was issued and addressed to Mr Doe, where had they got that name from ? again, she couldn't answer and didn't know how to respond.
My questions to Karen 2 went on for over 15 minutes but what seemed like an hour! she was very arrogant and ignorant and didn't want to talk to me, just to Karen 1. 
Then Karen 1 turned to Karen 2 and said ( and this is verbatim i kid you not) "I've just googled it and it says its OK"  Karen 2 said, "what website does it say that on ? is it the courthouse website?" Karen 1 said " no it just says it on google that a man can take the wife's name"  Karen 2 then said to Karen 1, ' OK put it through" and walked off!!!!
 
I was in there just over 2 hours, LOTS of questions and conversations between me and both Karens that I've forgotten and I cant even remember the amount of times i asked things and they didn't know what to say. I left the office happy but totally frustrated and shaking!
if i had just left it and taken their word for it or not stood up for myself i would have not been approved!!
 
So my Oath is next Tuesday and I'm looking forward to it but the whole things left a real bad taste in my mouth:( My wife says i should write a letter of complaint, im just gonna move on but i wanted to vent through this forum that has been a great wealth of information over the past 7 or 8 years,
 
Thanks
K & S DOE!!!
 

For this post my wife with be Miss Doe and i will be Mr Smith.
 
In 2013, i got married to my US wife in Arlington, VA. I then returned home to the UK and started the CR-1 Visa process.
We filed the I-130 and everything else needed to get the CR1 Visa, early on in the process we decided between the two of us that i would be taking my wife's surname, i would no longer be Mr Smith but become Mr Doe and we filed accordingly, putting my name down as Mr Doe on the DS230. I sent our marriage certificate to the UK passport office, the UK DMV and the UK tax office and received my new passport and drivers license back under the name Mr Doe.
In Feb 2014 i moved to the USA, My visa was under the name Mr Doe in my passport that was in the name of Mr Doe, I've been in the US 7 years, my name is Mr Doe, my state driving license, my passport, my mortgage, my bank accounts, insurance and everything else is as Mr Doe, i AM and have been for the past 7 years Mr Doe after legally changing my name through marriage.
My interview at the DC field office (Fairfax, VA) was yesterday at 12:15pm, at 12:45pm a lady (Who we will call Karen 1) came out to the waiting room and called my name. She was polite, asked how i was and led me to an interview rooms. We sat down, she explained she would be conducting the interview and doing my civics test, she said the process shouldn't be more than 30 minutes. She started with the civics test which i passed by answering the first 6 questions correctly. She then asked me to read a sentence on the iPad screen and then to write a short sentence on the screen, which i did correctly. She then opened what looked like my immigration file, a thick brown folder full of paper documents. She started to go through my N400 application, asking several questions like was my address correct, how long i had lived at that address, confirming my wife's name etc etc She then asked when i got married and i said Jan 2013. She looked at the papers and then looked at me and said " So you returned to England for 12 months after you got married ?" I said " yes, i did the CR-1 visa process, that's the correct process to go through after being married in the US, the petition was then filed from the UK" to which she replied, "mmmm that's unusual, most people come over and get married then apply for their Visa here"  i told her i didn't do a K1 but a CR-1. It was at this time that i realized i maybe knew more than she did about the process! She said she had never heard of the CR1 process!!!
She kept looking through my file and reading out aloud, " ok, your I-130 is here, you marriage certificate, your divorce certificate (from previous marriage in the UK) and as she was doing this I'm thinking, what has this to do with things? all this has been checked out and was part of the Visa application process not my N400.
She then stopped at my birth certificate and flipped backwards and forwards between that and my marriage certificate. She then said to me " why is your name now different to your birth certificate?"  I said because after we married i took my wife's surname.  She immediately said back to me, "oh, you cant just do that, that's not allowed,  where is the official paperwork that you changed your name?"  She then said "you should have filled in a DS30" to which i replied, " i did fill in a DS230 and you should have a copy of that in your file"  after looking through the file for several minutes she said there was no DS230 in my file. I said "well the process is the same for the Husband taking the wife's name as it is vice versa, the marriage certificate is proof enough of my name change".  she then started rambling on how DC, Maryland and VA and all the other states have different rules about surnames!! She said " its fine though, she could fill a few forms in on her computer and all i would have to do was get an appointment at the Arlington courthouse, get the papers signed and stamped and then return them in the mail to USCIS and we'll give you another interview!! i KNEW this wasn't correct and i said " I'm sorry but this is not needed, my name has already been changed legally already" She then said she would go speak to her supervisor.
She returned 15 minutes later and said  "yes, its as i thought you will have to do a name change through the courts" by this time my palms were sweating and  i was becoming frustrated trying to explain that she had it wrong, i was polite but firm. I then asked to speak to her supervisor (whom we'll call Karen 2), she said "certainly, I'll go get her". Karen 1 disappeared for 5 minutes and came back saying Karen 2 would be in in 10 minutes. We both sat there in silence until Karen 2 arrived about 15 minutes later.
 
Karen 2 said she had spoke to one of her colleagues and that no one knew exactly what the situation was and should be, i said " there is one person that knows, me!!" between Karen 1 and 2 they agreed that i had to do a name change. I then started to show Karen 2 a copy of my DS230 from 7 years ago on my cell phone, she would not look at it and snapped back at me " I'm not interested in your DS230, that's a Department of State form, nothing to do with this and they have been known to make mistakes"  I was like #######!!! i told her that Karen 1 had mentioned that there was no DS230 in my file and she had been looking for it but Karen 2 was not having anything to do with it!  I then asked what if my wife had taken my name would she have had to go through the courts? She said "no that's normal when 2 people get married, what you have done is not normal and is not really allowed" At this point i was still very calm but inside i was fuming and i thought F**k it, I'm gonna fight my corner and if i piss them off then so be it. She then said, "you will have to change your name through the court",  i said " so what name am i changing it from? Mr Smith does not exist anymore, he hasn't done for 7 years, my passport, green card, bank accounts, mortgage state ID are all in the name Mr Doe and it was changed to that legally in the UK and on the DS230, so how can i change my name and what do i change it to?" she just stood there looking confused and didn't know how or what to say. I then asked her how my Visa and all the correspondence from USCIS was issued and addressed to Mr Doe, where had they got that name from ? again, she couldn't answer and didn't know how to respond.
My questions to Karen 2 went on for over 15 minutes but what seemed like an hour! she was very arrogant and ignorant and didn't want to talk to me, just to Karen 1. 
Then Karen 1 turned to Karen 2 and said ( and this is verbatim i kid you not) "I've just googled it and it says its OK"  Karen 2 said, "what website does it say that on ? is it the courthouse website?" Karen 1 said " no it just says it on google that a man can take the wife's name"  Karen 2 then said to Karen 1, ' OK put it through" and walked off!!!!
 
I was in there just over 2 hours, LOTS of questions and conversations between me and both Karens that I've forgotten and I cant even remember the amount of times i asked things and they didn't know what to say. I left the office happy but totally frustrated and shaking!
if i had just left it and taken their word for it or not stood up for myself i would have not been approved!!
 
So my Oath is next Tuesday and I'm looking forward to it but the whole things left a real bad taste in my mouth:( My wife says i should write a letter of complaint, im just gonna move on but i wanted to vent through this forum that has been a great wealth of information over the past 7 or 8 years,
 
Thanks
K & S DOE!!!
 

For this post my wife with be Miss Doe and i will be Mr Smith.
 
In 2013, i got married to my US wife in Arlington, VA. I then returned home to the UK and started the CR-1 Visa process.
We filed the I-130 and everything else needed to get the CR1 Visa, early on in the process we decided between the two of us that i would be taking my wife's surname, i would no longer be Mr Smith but become Mr Doe and we filed accordingly, putting my name down as Mr Doe on the DS230. I sent our marriage certificate to the UK passport office, the UK DMV and the UK tax office and received my new passport and drivers license back under the name Mr Doe.
In Feb 2014 i moved to the USA, My visa was under the name Mr Doe in my passport that was in the name of Mr Doe, I've been in the US 7 years, my name is Mr Doe, my state driving license, my passport, my mortgage, my bank accounts, insurance and everything else is as Mr Doe, i AM and have been for the past 7 years Mr Doe after legally changing my name through marriage.
My interview at the DC field office (Fairfax, VA) was yesterday at 12:15pm, at 12:45pm a lady (Who we will call Karen 1) came out to the waiting room and called my name. She was polite, asked how i was and led me to an interview rooms. We sat down, she explained she would be conducting the interview and doing my civics test, she said the process shouldn't be more than 30 minutes. She started with the civics test which i passed by answering the first 6 questions correctly. She then asked me to read a sentence on the iPad screen and then to write a short sentence on the screen, which i did correctly. She then opened what looked like my immigration file, a thick brown folder full of paper documents. She started to go through my N400 application, asking several questions like was my address correct, how long i had lived at that address, confirming my wife's name etc etc She then asked when i got married and i said Jan 2013. She looked at the papers and then looked at me and said " So you returned to England for 12 months after you got married ?" I said " yes, i did the CR-1 visa process, that's the correct process to go through after being married in the US, the petition was then filed from the UK" to which she replied, "mmmm that's unusual, most people come over and get married then apply for their Visa here"  i told her i didn't do a K1 but a CR-1. It was at this time that i realized i maybe knew more than she did about the process! She said she had never heard of the CR1 process!!!
She kept looking through my file and reading out aloud, " ok, your I-130 is here, you marriage certificate, your divorce certificate (from previous marriage in the UK) and as she was doing this I'm thinking, what has this to do with things? all this has been checked out and was part of the Visa application process not my N400.
She then stopped at my birth certificate and flipped backwards and forwards between that and my marriage certificate. She then said to me " why is your name now different to your birth certificate?"  I said because after we married i took my wife's surname.  She immediately said back to me, "oh, you cant just do that, that's not allowed,  where is the official paperwork that you changed your name?"  She then said "you should have filled in a DS30" to which i replied, " i did fill in a DS230 and you should have a copy of that in your file"  after looking through the file for several minutes she said there was no DS230 in my file. I said "well the process is the same for the Husband taking the wife's name as it is vice versa, the marriage certificate is proof enough of my name change".  she then started rambling on how DC, Maryland and VA and all the other states have different rules about surnames!! She said " its fine though, she could fill a few forms in on her computer and all i would have to do was get an appointment at the Arlington courthouse, get the papers signed and stamped and then return them in the mail to USCIS and we'll give you another interview!! i KNEW this wasn't correct and i said " I'm sorry but this is not needed, my name has already been changed legally already" She then said she would go speak to her supervisor.
She returned 15 minutes later and said  "yes, its as i thought you will have to do a name change through the courts" by this time my palms were sweating and  i was becoming frustrated trying to explain that she had it wrong, i was polite but firm. I then asked to speak to her supervisor (whom we'll call Karen 2), she said "certainly, I'll go get her". Karen 1 disappeared for 5 minutes and came back saying Karen 2 would be in in 10 minutes. We both sat there in silence until Karen 2 arrived about 15 minutes later.
 
Karen 2 said she had spoke to one of her colleagues and that no one knew exactly what the situation was and should be, i said " there is one person that knows, me!!" between Karen 1 and 2 they agreed that i had to do a name change. I then started to show Karen 2 a copy of my DS230 from 7 years ago on my cell phone, she would not look at it and snapped back at me " I'm not interested in your DS230, that's a Department of State form, nothing to do with this and they have been known to make mistakes"  I was like #######!!! i told her that Karen 1 had mentioned that there was no DS230 in my file and she had been looking for it but Karen 2 was not having anything to do with it!  I then asked what if my wife had taken my name would she have had to go through the courts? She said "no that's normal when 2 people get married, what you have done is not normal and is not really allowed" At this point i was still very calm but inside i was fuming and i thought F**k it, I'm gonna fight my corner and if i piss them off then so be it. She then said, "you will have to change your name through the court",  i said " so what name am i changing it from? Mr Smith does not exist anymore, he hasn't done for 7 years, my passport, green card, bank accounts, mortgage state ID are all in the name Mr Doe and it was changed to that legally in the UK and on the DS230, so how can i change my name and what do i change it to?" she just stood there looking confused and didn't know how or what to say. I then asked her how my Visa and all the correspondence from USCIS was issued and addressed to Mr Doe, where had they got that name from ? again, she couldn't answer and didn't know how to respond.
My questions to Karen 2 went on for over 15 minutes but what seemed like an hour! she was very arrogant and ignorant and didn't want to talk to me, just to Karen 1. 
Then Karen 1 turned to Karen 2 and said ( and this is verbatim i kid you not) "I've just googled it and it says its OK"  Karen 2 said, "what website does it say that on ? is it the courthouse website?" Karen 1 said " no it just says it on google that a man can take the wife's name"  Karen 2 then said to Karen 1, ' OK put it through" and walked off!!!!
 
I was in there just over 2 hours, LOTS of questions and conversations between me and both Karens that I've forgotten and I cant even remember the amount of times i asked things and they didn't know what to say. I left the office happy but totally frustrated and shaking!
if i had just left it and taken their word for it or not stood up for myself i would have not been approved!!
 
So my Oath is next Tuesday and I'm looking forward to it but the whole things left a real bad taste in my mouth:( My wife says i should write a letter of complaint, im just gonna move on but i wanted to vent through this forum that has been a great wealth of information over the past 7 or 8 years,
 
Thanks
K & S DOE!!!
 

For this post my wife with be Miss Doe and i will be Mr Smith.
 
In 2013, i got married to my US wife in Arlington, VA. I then returned home to the UK and started the CR-1 Visa process.
We filed the I-130 and everything else needed to get the CR1 Visa, early on in the process we decided between the two of us that i would be taking my wife's surname, i would no longer be Mr Smith but become Mr Doe and we filed accordingly, putting my name down as Mr Doe on the DS230. I sent our marriage certificate to the UK passport office, the UK DMV and the UK tax office and received my new passport and drivers license back under the name Mr Doe.
In Feb 2014 i moved to the USA, My visa was under the name Mr Doe in my passport that was in the name of Mr Doe, I've been in the US 7 years, my name is Mr Doe, my state driving license, my passport, my mortgage, my bank accounts, insurance and everything else is as Mr Doe, i AM and have been for the past 7 years Mr Doe after legally changing my name through marriage.
My interview at the DC field office (Fairfax, VA) was yesterday at 12:15pm, at 12:45pm a lady (Who we will call Karen 1) came out to the waiting room and called my name. She was polite, asked how i was and led me to an interview rooms. We sat down, she explained she would be conducting the interview and doing my civics test, she said the process shouldn't be more than 30 minutes. She started with the civics test which i passed by answering the first 6 questions correctly. She then asked me to read a sentence on the iPad screen and then to write a short sentence on the screen, which i did correctly. She then opened what looked like my immigration file, a thick brown folder full of paper documents. She started to go through my N400 application, asking several questions like was my address correct, how long i had lived at that address, confirming my wife's name etc etc She then asked when i got married and i said Jan 2013. She looked at the papers and then looked at me and said " So you returned to England for 12 months after you got married ?" I said " yes, i did the CR-1 visa process, that's the correct process to go through after being married in the US, the petition was then filed from the UK" to which she replied, "mmmm that's unusual, most people come over and get married then apply for their Visa here"  i told her i didn't do a K1 but a CR-1. It was at this time that i realized i maybe knew more than she did about the process! She said she had never heard of the CR1 process!!!
She kept looking through my file and reading out aloud, " ok, your I-130 is here, you marriage certificate, your divorce certificate (from previous marriage in the UK) and as she was doing this I'm thinking, what has this to do with things? all this has been checked out and was part of the Visa application process not my N400.
She then stopped at my birth certificate and flipped backwards and forwards between that and my marriage certificate. She then said to me " why is your name now different to your birth certificate?"  I said because after we married i took my wife's surname.  She immediately said back to me, "oh, you cant just do that, that's not allowed,  where is the official paperwork that you changed your name?"  She then said "you should have filled in a DS30" to which i replied, " i did fill in a DS230 and you should have a copy of that in your file"  after looking through the file for several minutes she said there was no DS230 in my file. I said "well the process is the same for the Husband taking the wife's name as it is vice versa, the marriage certificate is proof enough of my name change".  she then started rambling on how DC, Maryland and VA and all the other states have different rules about surnames!! She said " its fine though, she could fill a few forms in on her computer and all i would have to do was get an appointment at the Arlington courthouse, get the papers signed and stamped and then return them in the mail to USCIS and we'll give you another interview!! i KNEW this wasn't correct and i said " I'm sorry but this is not needed, my name has already been changed legally already" She then said she would go speak to her supervisor.
She returned 15 minutes later and said  "yes, its as i thought you will have to do a name change through the courts" by this time my palms were sweating and  i was becoming frustrated trying to explain that she had it wrong, i was polite but firm. I then asked to speak to her supervisor (whom we'll call Karen 2), she said "certainly, I'll go get her". Karen 1 disappeared for 5 minutes and came back saying Karen 2 would be in in 10 minutes. We both sat there in silence until Karen 2 arrived about 15 minutes later.
 
Karen 2 said she had spoke to one of her colleagues and that no one knew exactly what the situation was and should be, i said " there is one person that knows, me!!" between Karen 1 and 2 they agreed that i had to do a name change. I then started to show Karen 2 a copy of my DS230 from 7 years ago on my cell phone, she would not look at it and snapped back at me " I'm not interested in your DS230, that's a Department of State form, nothing to do with this and they have been known to make mistakes"  I was like #######!!! i told her that Karen 1 had mentioned that there was no DS230 in my file and she had been looking for it but Karen 2 was not having anything to do with it!  I then asked what if my wife had taken my name would she have had to go through the courts? She said "no that's normal when 2 people get married, what you have done is not normal and is not really allowed" At this point i was still very calm but inside i was fuming and i thought F**k it, I'm gonna fight my corner and if i piss them off then so be it. She then said, "you will have to change your name through the court",  i said " so what name am i changing it from? Mr Smith does not exist anymore, he hasn't done for 7 years, my passport, green card, bank accounts, mortgage state ID are all in the name Mr Doe and it was changed to that legally in the UK and on the DS230, so how can i change my name and what do i change it to?" she just stood there looking confused and didn't know how or what to say. I then asked her how my Visa and all the correspondence from USCIS was issued and addressed to Mr Doe, where had they got that name from ? again, she couldn't answer and didn't know how to respond.
My questions to Karen 2 went on for over 15 minutes but what seemed like an hour! she was very arrogant and ignorant and didn't want to talk to me, just to Karen 1. 
Then Karen 1 turned to Karen 2 and said ( and this is verbatim i kid you not) "I've just googled it and it says its OK"  Karen 2 said, "what website does it say that on ? is it the courthouse website?" Karen 1 said " no it just says it on google that a man can take the wife's name"  Karen 2 then said to Karen 1, ' OK put it through" and walked off!!!!
 
I was in there just over 2 hours, LOTS of questions and conversations between me and both Karens that I've forgotten and I cant even remember the amount of times i asked things and they didn't know what to say. I left the office happy but totally frustrated and shaking!
if i had just left it and taken their word for it or not stood up for myself i would have not been approved!!
 
So my Oath is next Tuesday and I'm looking forward to it but the whole things left a real bad taste in my mouth:( My wife says i should write a letter of complaint, im just gonna move on but i wanted to vent through this forum that has been a great wealth of information over the past 7 or 8 years,
 
Thanks
K & S DOE!!!
 

I'm sorry you had such incompetent people but thats great you passed and stood up for yourself. It's your choice if you write the letter but I would wait until after your ceremony lol. At husbands biometric appt there was a survey box and he made sure he completed the survey because they were very rude there. 

Said they would send letter with new date as soon as they had one.

Awesome news. Good luck with the interview and let us know how it goes.

And smile for the camera. That will be your picture on your naturalization certificate.

I got this too yesterday, its a glitch, click the back button and then go back into it, or let it save , click out and log back in, worked fine for me.

DONT do the pre interview sign up, its $30 to have it delivered to your house.At your interview they give you a form to sign up for the courier and its only £8.99 delivered to your house.

I had my medical at 3:30 yesterday, got my flu shot at the Boots on Oxford Street 30 mins before! £12.99, job done.

Here's what you have to send:
Original or certified copy of:
Marriage Certificate
Birth Certificate
Divorce Certificate (if applicable)
Police certificate
You also need to send Photocopies (not certified) of each of the above.

They can only legally charge you the maximum of £50, google it
http://www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/2635.aspx?CategoryID=68&SubCategoryID=160

Jenmatt, NVC told me they had received my paperwork on a Friday, i called back the following Tuesday and she gave me my NVC case number and my invoice ID number. I then logged in here for a couple of days: https://ceac.state.gov/IV/Login.aspx until i saw i was able to fill out the DS 261. After that a couple of days i received two e mails from NVC one asking me to log in the above again, i did and saw i was able to pay my AOS bill which i did. I then logged in a couple of days later, saw it said "paid" and was able to print out the cover sheet to send off my AOS paperwork.
I'm now at a stop and think then next thing to come through is an e mail to say my earlier DS 261 form has been accepted and then i log in again above and make the payment of the IV bill, and then fill in the DS 260, then keep an eye out till it says paid and print the cover sheet and send the supporting documents to NVC
Hope that helps, just keep logging in at the above site and looking for what you can click on to fill in and pay:)

I've called the NVC everyday since i got my NOA2 on the 16th September, They ust told me this morning that they have received my paperwork from the Washington DC local office and to call back Monday and it should be on their system.
Have to say that every time Ive called them (with the exception of once) they have been very polite, friendly and I've always been put through to an operator within 30 minutes. One guy was very stern and little arrogant when he told me i had to wait 8 weeks before calling, apart from that they've been excellent.

No worries, i was just checking to make sure myself:)

Wow, an aweful lot of people who are advocating lying in here! I just hope your other halfs are reading your posts, it would certainly make me think twice about if i did the right thing marrying you!

The senator you need to write to is Senator Mark Warner, just fill out the webform on his site here:
http://www.warner.senate.gov/public//index.cfm?p=HelpwithFederalAgencies
You will get an automated reply asking you to send a letter and sign a couple of forms they will send which gives them permission to look at your case and act for you, this HAS to be done and they wont do anything until you sign and return the letters.
Just put your case number details, your filing date, express your concern and wait.