nhutchings

Now an American citizen!
Oath ceremony was short - arrived, they took our Green Cards, sat us down in the hall (about 175 oathers, and 150 guests). No speakers other than the local USCIS director, then the video of Obama and the 'inspirational film,' then the oath, and that was it. It was the first of three oath ceremonies at the same place today, and so the USCIS director even told us to please quickly exit once it was over so they could get going on the next one. All very fast and smooth, and with plenty of time to catch our flight back to Alaska.
Tried to get a passport, but the line at the main post office in Manhattan wasn't moving at all, so we'll apply in Alaska on Monday.
Thanks so much for everything, guys - you've been a priceless source of knowledge and support over the past four years that we couldn't have done without. Congrats to those who've completed the process, best of luck to those still waiting, and Godspeed to those yet to begin.
We're out - hajoghutyun bolorin!

Now an American citizen!
Oath ceremony was short - arrived, they took our Green Cards, sat us down in the hall (about 175 oathers, and 150 guests). No speakers other than the local USCIS director, then the video of Obama and the 'inspirational film,' then the oath, and that was it. It was the first of three oath ceremonies at the same place today, and so the USCIS director even told us to please quickly exit once it was over so they could get going on the next one. All very fast and smooth, and with plenty of time to catch our flight back to Alaska.
Tried to get a passport, but the line at the main post office in Manhattan wasn't moving at all, so we'll apply in Alaska on Monday.
Thanks so much for everything, guys - you've been a priceless source of knowledge and support over the past four years that we couldn't have done without. Congrats to those who've completed the process, best of luck to those still waiting, and Godspeed to those yet to begin.
We're out - hajoghutyun bolorin!

Our experience at the New York City Javits Federal Building
Interview was a 09.45, we walked in the building at about 09.15. Passed through security and checked in at a couple other stops before arriving at a small waiting room - got there about 09.25 or so. Two numbers were called before us, so after waiting about 20 minutes they called ours and we both went up, but of course they didn't let us both in for the interview! The IO was a wonderful Dominican lady who, in the middle of the interview, actually answered a call from a friend on her personal cell phone and chatted for a couple minutes! Anyway, she had a huge file on us (probably everything from the I-125 until now), and all she asked for was a passport, Green Card, and New York driver's permit. We had brought taxes, marriage certificate, birth certificates, and all that jazz, but she said 'no, I got it all here!'
Questions were:
1. How many justices (eight now, but should be nine!)
2. What did the Declaration of Independence do?
3. Who becomes President if the President and Vice President can no longer serve? ('the Speaker of the House, who is now Paul Ryan and...' 'No, no, too much! I just need the answer to the question!')
4. What does the Cabinet do?
5. For how many years to we elect a Senator?
6. Name one branch of goverment.
The sentence (to answer and write) was 'When is Columbus Day?' - 'Columbus Day is in October.'
There was a little confusion about the place of birth: technically it was the Soviet Union - or, rather, the Soviet Socialist Republic of Armenia, a constituent republic of the USSR, which is what we put on the N-400 application to be most correct - but Armenia became an independent country shortly thereafter. The IO said 'so, you were born in Russia?' 'No, Armenia!' 'But the Soviet Union is Russia...' Anyway, the rest of the conversation was just chatting ('you don't make very much as a teacher!') and confirming no past criminal history or child soldiery. Then she said congrats, you passed, and that was that!
When asked about the oath ceremony (we're leaving New York for an extended trip at the end of May), she said 'four to six weeks - you'll received a letter in the mail.' 'Can we get it sooner?' 'Four to six weeks.' Harumph. Looks like we're going to have to fly back to New York for that, and we've already got a subletter lined up for our apartment!
We were out of the building by 10.30. Status online still hasn't changed. Now we're just waiting for the oath scheduling.

Our experience at the New York City Javits Federal Building
Interview was a 09.45, we walked in the building at about 09.15. Passed through security and checked in at a couple other stops before arriving at a small waiting room - got there about 09.25 or so. Two numbers were called before us, so after waiting about 20 minutes they called ours and we both went up, but of course they didn't let us both in for the interview! The IO was a wonderful Dominican lady who, in the middle of the interview, actually answered a call from a friend on her personal cell phone and chatted for a couple minutes! Anyway, she had a huge file on us (probably everything from the I-125 until now), and all she asked for was a passport, Green Card, and New York driver's permit. We had brought taxes, marriage certificate, birth certificates, and all that jazz, but she said 'no, I got it all here!'
Questions were:
1. How many justices (eight now, but should be nine!)
2. What did the Declaration of Independence do?
3. Who becomes President if the President and Vice President can no longer serve? ('the Speaker of the House, who is now Paul Ryan and...' 'No, no, too much! I just need the answer to the question!')
4. What does the Cabinet do?
5. For how many years to we elect a Senator?
6. Name one branch of goverment.
The sentence (to answer and write) was 'When is Columbus Day?' - 'Columbus Day is in October.'
There was a little confusion about the place of birth: technically it was the Soviet Union - or, rather, the Soviet Socialist Republic of Armenia, a constituent republic of the USSR, which is what we put on the N-400 application to be most correct - but Armenia became an independent country shortly thereafter. The IO said 'so, you were born in Russia?' 'No, Armenia!' 'But the Soviet Union is Russia...' Anyway, the rest of the conversation was just chatting ('you don't make very much as a teacher!') and confirming no past criminal history or child soldiery. Then she said congrats, you passed, and that was that!
When asked about the oath ceremony (we're leaving New York for an extended trip at the end of May), she said 'four to six weeks - you'll received a letter in the mail.' 'Can we get it sooner?' 'Four to six weeks.' Harumph. Looks like we're going to have to fly back to New York for that, and we've already got a subletter lined up for our apartment!
We were out of the building by 10.30. Status online still hasn't changed. Now we're just waiting for the oath scheduling.

Passed! Also on our way to work, will also update later.

Passed! Also on our way to work, will also update later.

Passed! Also on our way to work, will also update later.

Interview letter today - mid-morning of Monday, 16 May. Better revisit those flashcards!

I don't think the names matter, so long as the agent at the departing airport puts in your name as it matches the document you'll use to enter the States. That is, purchase the ticket with either maiden or married name, but then when you check in to the flight back to the States, make sure that the agent puts in the name exactly as it appears on the Green Card when they review your travel documents. That way, it'll show up on the manifest as the Green Card name, thus in the CBP system as the Green Card name, and so when you use the Green Card at the immigration ATM-like machine, it should let you go right through without an X. Unless, of course, you get an X for another reason.
Easier still might just be to purchase the plane ticket with your Green Card name (ie married name), and then at check-in, just present the airline agents with a copy of your marriage certificate as proof of why the name on the ticket (and on the Green Card) is different from the name on the passport.
We've done both ways and had success both ways!

At JFK, you don't have a choice to not use them - everybody going through the Citizen / LPR line has to use them.
We've gotten the X sometimes too, but found out that it was because we board the plane leaving Armenia with our Armenian passports (because the plane ticket is with our Armenian names, and entered Armenia on our Armenian passports, as is required), and then enter the States with our US passport and Green Card. Thus, the manifest info sent from Aeroflot in Armenia to the CPB at JFK has our Armenian passport info, not our US passport and Green Card. So when we used our US passport and Green Card to enter at JFK, because it didn't match Aeroflot's manifest, we got the X.
So, now, when we check in with Aeroflot in Armenia, we show the agent only our US passport and Green Card, so the agent updates their records and that info goes into the system. Then, when we arrive in JFK and use the machine, everything matches, and we don't get the X. Took a while to figure out why we kept getting the X, but glad to have figured it out!

You have to have a passport to travel to any country, not just to your country of origin, regardless if you have a Green Card or not. You can enter the US with only a Green Card, but you can't enter any other country with only an American Green Card. If all goes well, you'll get your American passport soon. If things don't well for whatever reason (background checks, lost paperwork, RFEs, USCIS lollygagging, IO who's a ####### and fails you the interview), and you don't renew your Indian passport, you'll be unable to leave the country. So, with a mind to unexpected delays with USCIS and unexpected events overseas (births, funerals, weddings, et cetera), I'd advise you renew your foreign passport until you have your American one in hand.

Hey krbxtigerz, my wife did a walk-in this morning at the ACS on Varick and didn't have any trouble. She got there right when it opened at eight and was out just after nine - it wasn't too busy and nobody even checked the date on her receipt.

Yes, absolutely! VisaJourney bases their statistics and processing times on our timelines, so for the sake of all of us waiting on USCIS for one thing or another, please keep your timelines updated!

Yes, absolutely! VisaJourney bases their statistics and processing times on our timelines, so for the sake of all of us waiting on USCIS for one thing or another, please keep your timelines updated!

Ah, I see - as far as I understand it, the sentence portion consists of you writing a sentence that the IO dictates; it's more a test that you can understand spoken English and are able to write it down in a proper sentence. They seem to be more statements (like 'Columbus Day is in October'), not questions that you have to answer in sentence form. There are a couple practice sites like http://passcitizenshipexam.com/writingTest1/index.html and http://www.citizenshipstudyguide.com/member/citizenship-test-civics-writing-exercises.php. There is some discussion with sample sentences here http://forums.immigration.com/threads/new-naturalization-test-sample-sentences-lets-collect.277299 (a few years old, but gives a general sense of what to expect). Judging by your writing in this forum, I think you'll be more than fine!

Just added us too! We actually waited until the 90-day date itself to mail the package - I read horror stories about folks who had mailed it a day or two before so that the package arrived at USCIS after the 90-day limit, but then during the interview, the IO gave them flak for having signed and dated it before the 90-day limit - ie before they were technically eligible to apply. And then there was the person who had signed and dated it with the 90-day date, but actually mailed it a couple days ealier so it arrived to the lockbox on time - the IO realized that they couldn't have possibly signed it on that date since it was in the mail that day, and so rejected the application for them recording false information. Didn't want to chance it, and given how long this all seems to take, what's another day or two?
Good luck to us all!
N-400: February 2016 Applicants
======================================
USCIS Dallas/Lewisville, Texas Lockbox
======================================
UserName.........|GC-Date.|Sent.|Cashd|NOA..|Fprints.|In Line.|Int ltr.|Intrview|Oath....|Field Office
Helpme123........|05/03/13|02/02|02/11|02/08|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Merrifield,VA
Yanndny..........|01/31/11|02/05|--/--|--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|New York City, NY
miraculous.......|05/05/11|02/08|--/--|--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|El Paso, TX
Team Katman......|09/13/12|02/08|--/--|--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|San Antonio, TX
nhutchings.......|05/08/13|02/08|02/16|--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|New York City, NY
Yuyu.............|12/20/11|02/09|02/11|--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Jacksonville,FL Sal and Jay......|07/24/09|02/12|--/--|--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Atlanta,GA
Ryna.............|11/30/11|02/12|--/--|--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Orlando, FL


================================
USCIS Phoenix, Arizona Lockbox
================================
UserName.........|GC-Date.|Sent.|Cashd|NOA..|Fprints.|In Line.|Int ltr.|Intrview|Oath....|Field Office
akihon...........|10/10/12|02/01|02/08|--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Chicago, IL
Iwo-Jima.........|02/01/10|02/01|--/--|--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|San Jose, CA
Tim & Cai........|10/01/08|02/03|--/--|--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Boise, ID
ThaiJason........|05/09/11|02/06|02/09|--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Phoenix, AZ Renovatio_007....|05/08/13|02/08|--/--|--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|San Bernardino, CA
AlexHamilton.....|05/12/11|02/10|--/--|--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|San Francisco, CA Martinda.........|05/04/12|02/12|--/--|--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|San Francisco, CA ===========================================================================
USCIS Lincoln, Nebraska Lockbox (Filing Under 319b, 328, or 329 of the INA)
===========================================================================
UserName.........|GC-Date.|Sent.|Cashd|NOA..|Fprints.|In Line..|Int Ltr..|Intview..|Oath.....|Field Office
Name.............|--/--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|??, ??
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Legend:
GC-Date: The 'Resident Since' Date located on your first green card
Sent: Date N-400 was mailed to USCIS
Cashd: Date your check was cashed by USCIS
NOA: Receipt Notice Date Printed on your official I-797 notification
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Field Office: Your local USCIS office where you will have the N-400 interview

Good afternoon, sailorgal -
I agree with most of the posts here: we applied for the fianceé visa with my wife's maiden name, and when she came here, she got a Social Security card in her maiden name, and I put her on all our bank accounts with her maiden name.
Then, we got married at the courthouse - marriage certificate just lists my name and her maiden name.
Then, we went back to Social Security with the marriage certificate in hand and got a new SSN card with her married name, and went back to all the banks with the marriage certificate in hand and changed her name on the accounts.
When we applied for EAD, AP, and AOS, we simply put her married name, but in the section with it mentions 'any other names,' we put her maiden name. She received her EAD+AP card in her married name, and later her Green Card in her married name.
Of note, her foreign passport is still in her maiden name. Thus, she has to bring a copy of our marriage certificate whenever she travels out of the country because she has to present at the airport to explain 1) the name on the plane ticket doesn't exactly match the name on the passport and 2) why the name on the Green Card doesn't match the name on the passport. So as soon as possible, you should order two or three copies of your marriage certificate and keep one with your passport for travelling.
Congratulations again and good luck with the rest of the process!