mdbr

13 minutes ago, Sunnyland said:

So he has been out of status for 15 years from the permitted date stamped on his passport at POE?  If that is the case I would be very careful using the AP.  He might encounter problems to be admitted back not matter if you are with him or not. Since he has an overstay of 15 years make it risky.  I would not do it. Others might feel otherwise. 

In my case while I returned back to US using my AP (while on AOS from K1 visa) I was questioned no end by the young lady CBP in shift that night and almost denied my entry. A pretty close call. She did not like that I spent 2 months away while doing AOS.  

I just wonder if that is how she reacted with my case, me not having overstayed any visa, or any other issue, etc... God knows what they could say in a case like your dad's. Being out of status for like 15 years and travelling on AP. I would wait until he has the GC in hand just to be a little more on the safe side. If the trip is really necessary I guess he will have to use the AP and take the risk>

 

Sunnyland, thanks for sharing your experience. Yes, he has been out of status for all this time, which I know will only hurt if we travel with the AP. I'm not looking forward to this trip at all.

Anybody else can share their experience?

3 minutes ago, Sunnyland said:

AP or GC they can always deny you entry at POE. Only being a USC gives you guaranteed admission. Many people use the AP to travel (while waiting for their GC) and do not have any troubles in returning. It's up to you (or your dad) decide if they want to use the AP or wait until the GC is approved. 

I did use AP when I was doing my AOS from K1 and did not have problems, just was sent to secondary inspection at POE Miami and was questioned about it. Is your dad doing AOS from tourist visa?

Hello Sunnyland, 

Thank you for your response. Yes, my father had entered in the US on a tourist visa, however that has expired over 15 years and he is currently out of status, which I think might hurt even more his reentry even with the AP. In case the AP is granted I will travel with him (for one he doesn't speak English), so as a US Citizen I hope I would be able to assist if there are any problems.

Hello guys, 

I'm a US Citizen preparing the adjustment of status for my father. He is currently in the U.S. and he needs to go to Brazil for some retirement related issues, which are time sensitive. 

I will include with his application the I-131 so he is able to travel before the interview, however I'm a little concerned about this document. 

I recall when I went through the process myself, my attorney advised me not to fill this document because she knew of people who had traveled with the document and had faced problems getting back into the US. 

Any experiences (positive or negative) of people who had travel with this document? 

Thank you!

39 minutes ago, geowrian said:

The length of overstay won't matter as an IR of a USC.

 

The potential challenge is proving that he entered the US with inspection...they had paper I-94s back then and sometimes records do get lost, so hopefully he has his copy already. Otherwise he may need to request a replacement or utilize a FOIA request to obtain whatever records they do have of him that he entered with inspection.

Thankfully he still has his I94 for when he entered the US, so one less thing for us to worry about =)

1 minute ago, missileman said:

How long has he overstayed?

Quite a while. 17 years. 

Hello guys, 

I'm an U.S. Citizen and I'm starting the green card application process for my father. 

My father entered the US legally (although his visa has expired). It seems to me that the process will be fairly simple, since it's blood related and my birth certificate is enough evidence that he is my father. 

I believe I'm able to fill out all the forms on my own since I'm a bit familiar with the process as I went through it myself, and I don't think I will need a lawyer. 

However, my dad insists we should get a lawyer because he believe the process will be faster that way. 

Any thoughts on this? Going with a lawyer actually do speed up the process?

Thanks!

Hey guys, 

Today I had my interview for naturalization in NYC. The interviewer just asked some baking questions in regards to my application, briefly tested my English and very quickly quizzed me on the U.S. History. I was in and out of her office in about 10 minutes. 

She gave a sheet with a checkbox selected where it says "Congratulations, your application is recommended for approval". Does that mean it has not been approved yet? I mean, is there anything that could possibly go wrong with it at this point? 

He said I will receive a final answer within 120 days (Hopefully it will come much quicker). 

For the folks who have received this notification, how long does it normally take to get the "final approval" and from that moment, how long will it take for the Oath? (I know thids might vary by state, but any ballpark idea would be appreciated). 

Thanks!

I actually do not have those documents, which is why I'm a bit concern about it. 

Hello all, 

I will have my interview for citizenship next Friday, and as I go down the list of documents to bring for the interview, there is the following:

If applying for NATURALIZATION AS THE SPOUSE of a United States Citizen:

-Marriage certificate 

-Your spouse birth certificate or naturalization certificate. 

Well, though I did obtain my green card through marriage, however it was OVER 5 years ago, therefore I'm confused if I will need the documents above?

Thank you

Hello guys, 

Today I finally received the txt/ email that I'm now in line to have my interview scheduled and that a letter has been mailed to me. 

I filed in February 28th earlier this year in 2017. It took much longer than the usual recorded timelines, however the USCIS call center was pretty on point in telling each time I called at which month they were working on so I sort of expected it would come end of December. 

Anyway, I was hoping to have some recent information in how long does it take from now until the interview is scheduled? And once I receive a date, how far from the notice will it be the interview?

Thank you!

Great, that would give me plenty of time to fly back once the notice arrives. 

Valeu Rodrigo!!!

Hello all, 

February 2017 N-400 filler here, and the last update on my process was the biometrics, on 03-20-2017.

At the moment, I´m currently waiting in line for the interview, which based on similiar timelines, should be at any moment at this point. 

My question is, from the moment you receive the notice (through email/ text) or the letter, how many days is the interview scheduled from that moment?

The reason for my question is because I´m outside the country, so I need to plan ahead once I receive the notice to be in the U.S. for that day. 

I sent my N-400 package to TX, and my local USCIS is NYC. 

Thank you!

Hello, I had a similar issue. It took me 7 days to receive the e-mail/ text since the date FedEx delivered my package. 

Hi guys, 

I have compiled all my documents, however I'm uncertain as to whether or not these should be submitted: 

2 photos: The instructions indicate that you should only send if you live overseas, I'm outside the country, but I technically live in the U.S. Should I send it?

Marriage certificate and wife's naturalization certificate: I'm applying for the 5 year rule, do these matter at all at this point? 

Selective service letter and signed explanation: I'm 31 years old, do these still matter? Should I send it? 

I was planning in sending all mentioned above together just in case, because I don't think these could hurt (or it could?).

Thank you!

Mark

So I received today the letter from the selective service stating that I did not register, and it also says:

"The purpose of this provision is to clarify that a non-registrant is not to be denied any Federal benefit if he can demostrate that his failure to register was not knowing or willfull".

But how do I prove that I did not know something? I will send a letter with it that I did not know about this requirement, had I known so I would have registered. I will also mention that my wife is in the military and that I plan on joining the Air Force as well. Not sure what else to say. Hope it works...

After five years (or three, if filing based on marriage to a US citizen) the failure to register for SS now falls outside the "good conduct" period, and so ceases to be a basis for your denial. It's up to you whether you want to try and file during the period where the SS registration failure could be held against you.

Thanks for the info. I'm applying based on marriage to a US Citizen (3 year rule), and it's been 3 years since I was 26, (I'm 29 and a half now) so does that mean the period where I could be denied has ceased? Also, does the fact that my wife is in active duty in the military could help me anyhow?

It will depend upon what status you were in between the ages of 18 and 26 as to whether you were required to register or not. If you maintained a lawful nonimmigrant status until you were at least 26 then you were not obligated to register. If you went out of status at any time before the age of 26 then yes, you were required to register.

I was out of status throughout that whole period, so all the odds are agaisnt me.

If you were living here, during those periods of age, how did you not know, you might be required to register for Selective Service??

You seem like a good person, and I wish you well, and hope you do not have to wait until you are 31 to petition.

Though I knew what selective service was (I did mine with my birth country Brazil when I turned 18), I had no idea that even though I was undocummented I was required to register. Frankly, I still don't see how could that even be possible if I had no social security at the time.

Anyway, I would like to hear from people were not registered, how your experience was at the interview, thanks.

Fingers crossed for you !!

Also try this link -- it is not 100% accurate in that we have seen many folks showing up online as not found when they were actually registered, but it is worth a try.

https://www.sss.gov/RegVer/wfVerification.aspx

Thanks for sending this link, unfortunately it didn't come up anything under my info. I will give them a call tomorrow to confirm, but I have already filled out the form to request for a letter and have it in an envelope ready to mail it to SSS tomorrow.

The instructions ask you to submit a status letter, but this letter will just state that your name was not found in the registry. You will still have to explain why you didn't register. If the interviewer is convinced you'll be approved. If not you will need to reapply when you are 31.

Call SSS and make sure that you were never registered; you may have been automatically registered at some point.

Someone who has asked for a status letter will hopefully answer your question about how to request one.

I will call tomorrow, hopefully that has been the case.

The "irony" of me fixing my selective service status, is that one of the reasons I'm applying for US citizenship is so I can join the Air Force reserve.

I could enlist now as permanent resident, and have a much easier naturalization process, however I will only be elegible for one job, and not the one I'd like to apply to. My wife is currently on active duty with the USAF. Hopefully by having spouse in the military, and since I'm planning on enlisting will help my chances at the interview.

Hi,

The answer is "yes." Does not matter that you did not get your green card until 26 1/2. You lived in the US from 18 to 26. You were required to file for Selective Service. It doesn't matter if you were here illegally.

This might help. http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/naturalization-eligibility-men-who-failed-register-with-the-selective-service.html

Thank you for sending the link. From the information I've gathered from it, looks like I will need to request a status information letter to explain why I have not filed for selective service during those years.

Has anyone gone through this process, how long will it take to get this letter from them?

Hello, I'm currently 29 years old, born in 10/1985. Came to the US at age 15, in 08/2001, became resident in 05/2012, when I was 26 years old and a half. I have never filed anything related to selected service, I was not aware of any of this during that time when I was undocumented.

For the question 46-A "Are you a male who have lived in the US during any time between the ages of 18 and 26? (This does not include living the US as a lawful immigrant)"

How should I respond to this? If Yes, how do I go about fixing this problem?

Thanks in advance

Thank you both for your responses. I undertand this will cause us trouble with the IRS, however will this keep me from getting my US Citizenship? As novedsac pointed out, mine were filled correctly, so I hope this won't keep the USCIS from accepting my application.

Yes. She has a daughter from a previous relationship, and decided to keep filling as "head of household" after married. However we do live together in the same apartment.

Hello all,

I have recently received my unconditional GC, and I am already elegible to file under the 3 year rule.

However upon going through the requirements for the N 400, I see that I will need to provide my tax returns of previous 3 years.

I have filed as married filling separately, but my wife filed "head of household".

The question is, do I need to provide her tax returns for my naturalization application? If yes, will this be an issue?

Thanks in advance for any advise.

Hey MDBR, did you ever get approval letter or just the text messaging say case update and card was ordered?

So far I just got the text message, then saw the USCIS for more information. They might've mailed a letter as well, but I didn't receive it yet.