lilsweetie

Just wanted to say, same thing happening over here.
Receipt date 6/23/22
One parent started being reviewed in July, the other in September!

If your passport has your maiden name, your visa will also, to match the passport. First hand experience on this. I applied for everything with married name but passport had maiden, so visa and greencard came with maiden.

me too. I was from BC and visited my husband in WA every weekend, no issues at the border with CR1 pending.

I know this is an old thread but wanted to bump it to see if anyone is currently going through the n600 process.
There seem to be hardly any N600 applicants on here so anyone else in the same boat I would love to connect with you and keep each other updated!

I sent:
My son's Birth Certificate copy My Naturalization Certificate copy My birth certificate copy (I was told this is required even if you are not born in the USA, so I sent it to avoid RFE) Son's Green Card photocopy Certified Copy of custody order The USCIS processing timeline said approximately 5 months, but it actually only took 3.5 months. Never had to show originals or go to the office in person. However, case status never updated to completed. It still shows "in line for oath" even though we have already received the certificate!
I am happy to answer any questions you have. Also, here is another good discussion... http://forums.immigration.com/threads/my-n600-update-information.330191/

Just wanted to update this in case it might help anyone in the future:
After I received the "in line for oath" status update (4/23), I called USCIS to ask why my son had to go to an oath ceremony when he is only 9.
They opened a SERVICE REQUEST to the field office directly (4/26) and then I got a letter in the mail from the field office (4/30) to say that he does NOT have to attend the ceremony and they will just send the certificate by registered mail!
I received the Certificate of Citizenship today (5/11).
Note - they never updated my case status or told me the certificate was in production or that my case had completed processing. It still shows "in line for oath ceremony" even today and I have the certificate in hand!

If I'm not mistaken, VJ is a place for people to share their experiences, and what worked and did not work for them. 
So based on my experience, it was beneficial to include the affidavits. I don't see the harm in including them, as I don't think they would be detrimental, so that is what I based my advice on. Is your advice NOT to include affidavits?

Yes I am aware of this, but for those who DO want the Certificate, the cost is doubling and that is absurd.
I was in this situation and I chose to get the Certificate of Citizenship AND passport. Even though it is not mandatory, I would definitely apply for the N-600 as a permanent record of their USC. A passport has an expiry date, certificate does not. I want to save my son the potential hassle down the line if he wants to petition a future wife to the US and has to prove his citizenship or needs it for circumstances. I just remember times when my husband was asked for BOTH Passport and Birth Certificate and he was born in the US. I would rather my child have both documents - especially with how many changes there have been to the rules on derived citizenship. Before a certain date the rules were X, after a certain date they changed to Y, who knows what they will change in the future. I just wanted to be done with USCIS forever and in my mind, the N600 was that last piece for full closure on our immigration. Now he has his own certificate that is not dependant on my certificate, for the rest of his life.
I also wonder if the USCIS maintains a database for those that were naturalized and have passports. My faith in USCIS and DoS to not screw up is somewhat weak after all I have seen and gone through. Passports is through DoS and I wonder how much they really communicate with USCIS when they issue a passport and keep the green card. Does the case ever get closed at USCIS or would they possibly think that person still has a green card that needs to be renewed in 10 yrs? I just wanted to avoid future messy situations where stuff like this might come back to haunt you because the rules have changed or the agencies haven't communicated between each other.

The N600 is almost doubling from $600 to approx $1200. That one seems like a money grab to me. That one blows my mind since it should be one of the easiest ones to obtain - kids who qualify for derivative citizenship should just get their certificates at the same time as the parent's N400 is approved since technically the permanent resident child becomes a citizen when the parent does.

me too. I was from BC and visited my husband in WA every weekend, no issues at the border with CR1 pending.

You are going through the exact process I did for my minor age 9 son last year. Yes the N600 is the right form because your son is getting citizenship from you (derived from US Citizen parent). He is actually already a citizen, but the N600 is a certificate that proves it. Just like getting a US passport is also proof (I did both).
I filed the N600 and then a month later, I applied for his passport. I got the passport before I got the Certificate of Citizenship, and I am more than happy to answer any questions because I have been through it recently and I wished I had someone to help me before I applied. 

Just wanted to update this in case it might help anyone in the future:
After I received the "in line for oath" status update (4/23), I called USCIS to ask why my son had to go to an oath ceremony when he is only 9.
They opened a SERVICE REQUEST to the field office directly (4/26) and then I got a letter in the mail from the field office (4/30) to say that he does NOT have to attend the ceremony and they will just send the certificate by registered mail!
I received the Certificate of Citizenship today (5/11).
Note - they never updated my case status or told me the certificate was in production or that my case had completed processing. It still shows "in line for oath ceremony" even today and I have the certificate in hand!

Just the last 3. Everywhere it says "5 years" if you are using the 3 year rule, you just submit info for the last 3.
This is probably over kill but everywhere it said 5, i crossed out and put 3, to avoid confusion.

1.) Japanese law is weird - I can't legally adopt my son because of "domestic law reason redacted." Do I have any other way to skip N400 for my wife or file a N400 for my son after some period of time? Your step son can apply after 5 years of Permanent Residence on his own without deriving from your wife. Then he would file a N400 instead of N600.
2.) Does the citizenship clock for my wife start with the Feb date or the July date? Citizenship clock starts from the point of entry date when you actually become a permant resident and move to US (July in your case it sounds like)
3.) As long as she keeps the Green Card, and we return in six months for one week duration in the US for no less than 18-months, that's ok? answered by others
4.) I've read on this website that we can submit the N400 no earlier than 90-days from the 3-years required for marriage. The USCIS website shows most field offices are only processing applications from ~8 months prior (as of this posting). Does this mean it will take a year to get the N400? Probably a little less than a year, close to what the USCIS site says. Mine took around 6 months.
5.) Are we required to be in the US while the N400 is being processed? Make sure you do not exceed the max time allowed outiside US as a GC holder, and that it does not exceed limits for the N400 application.
6.) Can we file the N600 from overseas, assuming my wife passes the citizenship test/takes the oath? Yes I think, but you have to make sure residency requirement is still met as in #5.
7.) If my wife later renounces her citizenship - any effect on my stepson's derived status? No, once he is a citizen, he is a citizen in his own right. 

I sent 3 affidavits for the I130 and 3 for the I-751 and none of them were notarized. No RFE's - entire process was super smooth!

Yes I am aware of this, but for those who DO want the Certificate, the cost is doubling and that is absurd.
I was in this situation and I chose to get the Certificate of Citizenship AND passport. Even though it is not mandatory, I would definitely apply for the N-600 as a permanent record of their USC. A passport has an expiry date, certificate does not. I want to save my son the potential hassle down the line if he wants to petition a future wife to the US and has to prove his citizenship or needs it for circumstances. I just remember times when my husband was asked for BOTH Passport and Birth Certificate and he was born in the US. I would rather my child have both documents - especially with how many changes there have been to the rules on derived citizenship. Before a certain date the rules were X, after a certain date they changed to Y, who knows what they will change in the future. I just wanted to be done with USCIS forever and in my mind, the N600 was that last piece for full closure on our immigration. Now he has his own certificate that is not dependant on my certificate, for the rest of his life.
I also wonder if the USCIS maintains a database for those that were naturalized and have passports. My faith in USCIS and DoS to not screw up is somewhat weak after all I have seen and gone through. Passports is through DoS and I wonder how much they really communicate with USCIS when they issue a passport and keep the green card. Does the case ever get closed at USCIS or would they possibly think that person still has a green card that needs to be renewed in 10 yrs? I just wanted to avoid future messy situations where stuff like this might come back to haunt you because the rules have changed or the agencies haven't communicated between each other.

i would divorce him and make him wait out the 2 more years to become a citizen!

Their father can apply for US passports for them with their GC and birth cert and any custody documents (may need mother's signature or alternative if she cannot be reached).

Just the last 3. Everywhere it says "5 years" if you are using the 3 year rule, you just submit info for the last 3.
This is probably over kill but everywhere it said 5, i crossed out and put 3, to avoid confusion.

This exactly.
You are only eligible for 3 yr naturalization because of marriage to a US Citizen, otherwise it is 5 years, so I think it would be safer to wait for 5 years and reapply. I guess since you have paid the N400 fee and are already down that road, might as well go for interview and explain - worst case is they deny you and you have to reapply at 5 years.

Why should illegal immigrants have rights to stay here when people who do it the right way can't get here??? Where is the fairness in rewarding illegal behavior? If a child is born on US soil and their parents are not already citizens or naturalized than that child should not have citizenship in the US. There are no other countries where you get citizenship for birthing on their land. Not to mention many illegal immigrants cost the hardworking tax payers money. A lot of money! Sorry but I don't believe illegal immigrants should be afforded the same rights as citizens. If a criminal does something and gets caught they have consequences....if you come to the US illegally you get more rights than a citizen and there is no punishment. It's BS.

Just wanted to update this in case it might help anyone in the future:
After I received the "in line for oath" status update (4/23), I called USCIS to ask why my son had to go to an oath ceremony when he is only 9.
They opened a SERVICE REQUEST to the field office directly (4/26) and then I got a letter in the mail from the field office (4/30) to say that he does NOT have to attend the ceremony and they will just send the certificate by registered mail!
I received the Certificate of Citizenship today (5/11).
Note - they never updated my case status or told me the certificate was in production or that my case had completed processing. It still shows "in line for oath ceremony" even today and I have the certificate in hand!

I just applied last week for my son's passport and just submitted:
-my Naturalization Certificate
-his birth certificate
-my ID (photocopy)
-turned in the green card
-other parent's consent
-custody order - certified copy - showing I have custody and he resides with me
You should try a different passport office or see if you can go to the agency directly. There are so many who have got passports without the Cert of Citizenship for their child

Here is a really good chart that summarizes the laws over the years for derivative citizenship
http://www.ilrc.org/files/documents/nats_chart_c_10.pdf

Tmobile pricing is amazing especially if you have a few people on your plan.
We have 6 ppl on our plan and pay $120 per month TOTAL. Including data / talk / text in Canada and Mexico for free. So for 20 bucks a month each ....
EACH line has
10gb data unlimited talk and text unused data can roll over for 12 months ability to tether other devices to your phone - so useful to have a hotspot anywhere you go! You can get a good phone on ebay inexpensively and use it on Tmobile as long as it is GSM unlocked or a Tmobile phone. Couldn't be happier.