alejandreska

Hi guys, my husband had his oath ceremony on Friday (after rescheduling it from December). We arrived at 9:30 as stated on the paper, but the oath didn't start until 10. Since we live in a small town, the candidates were only about 25 people, but the room was completely filled with friends and family. Oath started at 10, and was over by 10:45. Nice short and sweet. The best part of the day: My husband originally put in his citizen application that he wanted to change his name (drop his second last name, as a lot of people with hispanic origins have). When he went to the interview, the officers convinced him otherwise. They said it's going to take too long, you can just use one last name anyways, don't worry it doesn't affect anything, etc. They even called another officer over to assure him it would be fine. We when he came out and I found out, I was livid that they pressured him like that and that he allowed them to convince him. We were devastated that his name wasn't going to change. Fast forward to ceremony.... Afterwards the officer said to make sure everything on your certificate is right before you leave the building. We thought, "what the heck, let's try it". So we went up to one of the officers and asked if we could drop the second last name, and he was like "No, it would have had to have been done at the interview. You've already taken your oath, it's too late." We were bummed. But at that moment the presiding officer of the ceremony came up and asked what was going on, and we explained again, and she said "Come with me." Took us to a room, had us wait about 20 minutes, and came back out with a new certificate with his second last name gone. Do not underestimate what they can do for you!!! She had the power as the supervising officer there. She said it took so long because of everything they had to change in the computer. But that was the highlight for us. Something we thought was a lost cause actually got fixed. Wonderful oath ceremony experience because of that!

I am a USC!!!!! It was a beautiful ceremony at the museum. The representative from USCIS is very friendly and humorous. There were magnificent symphony playing. We also got to visit the museum. The museum closes on Monday so it feels like private viewing just for us. There were 37 people from 18 countries. They called each country and every time people stood up, there were lots of round of applause. It's a just a nice feeling to be appreciated. 
 
My family and friends came and they all mentioned how nice the ceremony was. They also commented how strict the oath of allegiance is - bear arm, give up loyalty, etc. They said they will never understand the whole predicament because they were born here. It's an eye opening experience to see what people sacrifice to be here.
 
To everyone here, thank you so much. I would never be here on the finish line, this quickly, without all your help and advice.
 
To those who are still waiting, I wish you good luck!!!! My mother in law gave me this card - see below. The inside card said "Great things come to those who GO for it!" That's so true, at least for me.  
 
And also, Happy Thanksgiving!!! .
 
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DO NOT DELETE THESE INSTRUCTIONS. 2. Please use your VJ name to avoid confusion.  3. Please make sure you are using Rich Text Editor as your message setting. 4. Copy this whole section including instructions and paste it to your typing field. 5. Make changes and Reply. 6. Red Font = "I'm A United States Citizen"!
 
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 / credit card was charged by USCIS.
NOA: Receipt Notice Date Printed on your official I-797 notification.
Fprints:  Date assigned for fingerprinting (Bio-metrics). If you do your biometrics via walk-in prior to your scheduled appointment, please enter the date in bold blue.
In Line: Date you received e-notification about the start of your interview scheduling.
Int Ltr: Date you received the official letter in the mail regarding interview.
Interview: Date of your interview.
Oath: Date Oath taken.
Field Office: Your local USCIS office where you will have the N-400 interview.
 

Hello All,
 
Wanted to update our status and provide some feedback that may be helpful for NJ filers. My wife had her interview yesterday and passed the test. And whats more important is that she was scheduled for the oath ceremony same day (same floor of the same building) and she was given her certificate same day as well.
 
Although it took almost our all day, waiting in the same room from 9 am to 2:30 pm, i think it was worth it and all done in the same day.
 
Good luck to you all.

Finally I'm UNITED STATES CITIZEN. My tedious  journey with USCIS has finally ended. I wanna thank every one in this forum for your support with valuable information. Especially on application timing and advice on submission of supporting documents . Thank you very much. For those who are still on the process, hang on there my friend. It may appear things are moving slower but your day is coming and you will be glad to call it OVER with USCIS.  

I had my interview on 10/19 and my case has been quiet ever since! I feel your frustration. This is the last step and they are just delaying things for God knows what reason. 
 
@mia166, @SamBillz  @Huvvaligen and @rangrut Congrats on the progress on your case! Hope you have a speedy oath ceremony!@alejandreska a big congrats for reaching the finish line so soon! You are one lucky person
 

I got my Oath Date. 11/17!

Congratulations to @alejandreska

congratulations
 

Could someone please update me? I became a US Citizen today 
 
The Oath was long and boring, but the building was very pretty and we got flags and they read all the countries present. There were 361 of us today at Faneuil Hall in Boston . Only one guest allowed, and we had to sit separately. We took pictures together outside .
 
Good luck everyone, almost there!! 

@alejandreska Congratulations on your Citizenship!!!

You're a US citizen now!?     Congrats!  

Congratulations! You deserved the citizenship 

Could someone please update me? I became a US Citizen today 
 
The Oath was long and boring, but the building was very pretty and we got flags and they read all the countries present. There were 361 of us today at Faneuil Hall in Boston . Only one guest allowed, and we had to sit separately. We took pictures together outside .
 
Good luck everyone, almost there!! 

Could someone please update me? I became a US Citizen today 
 
The Oath was long and boring, but the building was very pretty and we got flags and they read all the countries present. There were 361 of us today at Faneuil Hall in Boston . Only one guest allowed, and we had to sit separately. We took pictures together outside .
 
Good luck everyone, almost there!! 

Just got a Case Update Notification, and logged in to see " USCIS has scheduled your oath ceremony and will mail you the appointment notice."  Since the name change fell through (so irritating), the process is going alot faster than we expected. I'm hoping in another day or two I'll be able to view the notice online.

Hello Everyone- My interview is complete today & just got back home.. the interview by itself didn't take more than 15-20 mins but we reached there an hour earlier of my appt & I wasn't called in until 15 mins after my appt time anyways no complaints.. I took so much of documents expecting them to ask a lot since I did a marriage based filing.. but he only asked for Green Card, then took a picture & finger print of index finger alone. He asked my name, current address, my employer name how many trips I did in last 5 years & a bunch of the No questions.. at one point he started asking the Yes question & I didn't realize and answered No for the very first yes question , the remaining I answered he smiled & asked me the first question again so that I could correct my answer..I smiled & said sorry lip got confused.. he smiled & said that's why he went back to the1st question. Then he gave me a paper which had 3 questions & asked me to read the first one. The sentence was ' Who can vote?'. He then gave me another paper and asked me to write ' Citizens can vote'.Then we moved into civics questions
who is the Vice President?
how many amendments does the constitution have?
who were brought to America as slaves?
why did the colonists come to America?
what is the highest court of U.S?
who makes federal laws?
5 mins later he gave me a paper and it had the tick mark against approval.. he said I could expect oath letter in 30 days & said Congratulations and walked me out of the door.. Now I wait for the oath letter.
 

Hello, for those CSC filers wondering if you get a combo interview for i-751 and N-400, I recently saw a post by someone who did get a combo application and was a CSC September filer. This is the post in case you want to ask any questions ... Good luck to those still waiting!
 
 
 

Hello, for those CSC filers wondering if you get a combo interview for i-751 and N-400, I recently saw a post by someone who did get a combo application and was a CSC September filer. This is the post in case you want to ask any questions ... Good luck to those still waiting!
 
 
 

Some observations on our N-400 experience:
 
 - It went far faster and easier than the K-1 Visa, 3-year and 10-year Green Cards.
 - The officer in Albany (Latham) NY was friendly, polite and professional.
 - We have been studying for the exam for over a year and correctly answered 6 of 6 questions.
 - There were no surprises.
 - We made extensive use of blogs like this one and YouTube videos with tips and exam questions.
 - We took our completed N-400 into the examination room and followed along as the officer asked the questions. This was to ensure we were consistent.
 - Between the submission and interview we had another child and were sure to bring his birth certificate so the officer could make a copy.
 - We dressed appropriately! Dress, blouse and sweater. Some people in there looked like they just fell off a garbage truck!
 - In addition to the N-400 we submitted, we included it in a binder with a table of contents and supporting documents. Arriving prepared and organized had to have been a plus.
 - We carried a separate envelope with originals of supporting documents should they have been needed.  
 - This is just speculation but I believe it helps that:
    - We had four years of joint tax transcripts showing we PAID taxes. (As opposed to sucking off welfare from the get-go.)
    - We married promptly and had two children. This is important in demonstrating a valid relationship.
    - We have no criminal history. (I'm amazed at what I see on some of the blogs!)
    - We were married to EACH OTHER since the K-1 Visa, as opposed to hopping around. (Seen that also - sheesh...)
    - After entering the interview room stand and wait to be invited to sit down. Don't just plop your can in the chair and throw your feet up on the desk.

Weird and kinda humorous....
 
I received an email from USCIS this morning saying We are still reviewing your case and there are no updates at this time. We will notify you when your case status changes. We last took action on your case on September 27, 2017.  (the date of my interview)   

I had my interview today. The process was pretty same with everyone here, so I won't bore you guy with details. Except the officer who interview me is quite serious type. I mistake the year of one trip out site the US. But she asked for my pp and it went alright anyway.
However, I pass. She told me to go home and wait for 3-5 day until the letter comes, then follow it instruction. so yayyy, I pass!
 

@vkhutchings it's good that you will have a little party later on to celebrate!  
 
You put the experience we had in good words....the atmosphere *was* somewhat like a funeral.

Thank you all for the warm wishes, and congratulations to everyone in return who is nearing the end of this process!!  I still can't believe how short it's been for so many of us - I had come to expect anything involving USCIS should take a year.
 
Also, apologies for being so late in posting my experiences. We literally had the citizenship ceremony from 8.30-10.30 last Thursday and then came home, got our bags and went to the airport (it was a pretty stressful day!) to go visit family in Colorado. 
 
I fully agree with your experience @Going through, I was so incredibly disappointed by the oath ceremony in Brooklyn. I'm glad my husband and baby were at least allowed in the room towards the end (and didn't have to stay in the cafeteria the whole time, as we were expecting), so I could share the occasion with them. I won't go over everything that happened as @Going through gave a great account of our ceremony. All I'll add is that I couldn't believe how silent it was in the room. The atmosphere was like that of a funeral, or like we were going to be punished for something?!! I felt like a tentative schoolgirl even asking a staff member if I could go to the bathroom because it seemed like we couldn't leave the room - and actually, at one point towards the end of the ceremony we were basically told, "Yes, you can leave the room but if you're not here when the judge arrives, you won't get your citizenship, and we don't know when the judge will come." It honesty felt like we had been rounded up to be reprimanded for something.
 
I understand that the Queens/Brooklyn center does A LOT of these ceremonies - more than one a day I think - but that's no excuse for not even welcoming us at the beginning and explaining what will happen. And I had really been looking forward to hearing everyone's countries read out, but as @Going throughmentioned, it seems they forgot the list that day. The staff basically couldn't wait to get the ceremony over with, and didn't try to add any symbolism, joy, or acknowledgement of our journeys to the event. I was pretty surprised actually, as I feel like the US normally loves to go over the top with any patriotic occasion. How weird that there's more USA pride at sporting events than at some of the naturalization ceremonies! Heck, even when I went to Sea World and saw the orca show we all sang the national anthem and stood up to salute veterans!! So would it have been so difficult for the Brooklyn courthouse to have put on a CD with some patriotic tunes? Or for one person there to have something significant prepared to say? The judge literally said "I found out I was doing this this morning, so I Googled if anything important happened in history today." 
 
Anyway, rant over. I'm happy I'm done with USCIS. I was excited to see @Going through and congratulate her. And I'm going to have a little party with friends in a couple of weeks, because at least it's important to them that I'm a citizen, even if the Brooklyn courthouse doesn't care. I'm also really thankful for this forum community - not just for the invaluable info, but because we all understand how hard this process is, and the support from everyone here over the last few years from K1 visa to Naturalization has kept me going when it's been tough. 

Hi everyone!!!! I passed the test and my status is now placed in  line for oath ceremony!!!!
 
Below is my interview experience. Please note that my I 751 is still pending.
 
My husband arrived early at the Dallas FO. Within 5 mins, an officer called my name. I asked her if it will be just me and she responded both of us. She mentioned that she is glad we came early because she came early hoping we would be there! In her office, I can see lots of stacks with labels N400 and I751. She explained that I will have 2 interview. She will do the I751 interview and then another officer will conduct the N400. She asked for both our IDs.
 
Questions for my I751 : how long we have been married, how did we meet, where do we work, have we lived separately longer than 2 weeks. That's it. I asked if she will need anything else. She said "I don't". Then she said I will not receive my 10 years GC given if I pass the N400 test. So during the oath ceremony, I just have to hand over the 2 years GC.
 
We were back on the waiting room. I was replying work email when an officer called my name. In her office, She asked for my ID, GC, and passport. She proceeded to do the test first.
 
Reading Test: When is Columbus Day?
Writing Test: Columbus Day is in October (After I wrote it down, I double checked what she said by repeating it and she said yes)
History Question: 
 
1. What does the Cabinet do?
2.We elect US senator for how many year?
3. If president and VP can no longer serve, who becomes the president?
4.What did the Declaration of Independence do?
5. How many justices are on the Supreme Court
6. Name on branch of government
 
She wrote down the answers while I answered the questions.
 
She then went through my application. I had to correct some dates and she did. Then she told me to sign on the IPAD for the Oath of Allegiance and the change of information.
 
After that I recalled there are some redacted info on my application so I told her about it while showing my application papers ( I filed online but I printed the completed form ). She was happy I brought my application because she did not have the papers in her folder. I am so glad I brought the application papers. She asked if I needed a copy. I said no, I have the soft copy in my computer. She then took my application papers and put them in her folder. So just a tip here, make sure you bring your N400 filled up form.
 
She  printed the paper stated my application has been recommended for approval. I asked her what the next step is. She said another department will review and take care of the oath scheduling. She said she was not supposed to say how long it will take. But she heard from others that it usually takes about 2-3 weeks. THAT'S ALLL!!!!
 
As I was walking to the parking lot, I got 7 text messages and 5 emails from USCIS stated my oath ceremony will be scheduled...We placed you in line for your oath ceremony..etc etc...
 
Overall it has been a great experience!!!!!! I am so glad! Good luck to everyone!

Thank you!! @LRP @JT4/25 @Going through
@reneesuarez There is a list in the interview notice (I attached it to this msg in case you lost it). I brought that and other documents I submitted with my N400 to be safe. The officer only wanted to see my new lease to prove that I was still living with my husband. And I brought his original birth certificate just in case, as well as my own.
 
Doc Oct 24, 2017, 17_00.compressed.pdf