wbeem

1 hour ago, SusieQQQ said:

That was lucky, about the quick processing. Same situation for us and my daughter’s application still took over a year to process. Said they were very nice at the interview too though.

Yeah, we definitely got lucky with the quick processing. The reason I thought it may be linked to mine is because with all the delays on mine (apparently my file was 'misplaced' somewhere in early 2020) by the time I took my oath, daughter's early filing window had already opened. I'm not sure what the timing is like on Chayanne's processing, but it doesn't hurt to get it in ASAP if her son's window is almost open.  

Nothing about this process seems to follow any sort of pattern though. 

On 5/12/2021 at 4:17 AM, Savva said:

OMG! Poor girl, what a bad experience....

Sorry to hear that

So they just give her 8 days between the interview notice of scheduling and the interview itself?

Yes, the letter arrived with little time before the interview although she did get the notification online immediately - or more or less right away. 
She seems to be taking it in her stride now. I'll be glad to be done with all the USCIS drama lol 

Just a note for anyone wondering, the Police report came out and the incident at the offices was a domestic issue. USCIS was not a target, neither was anyone inside. Obviously in the moment nobody knew what was going on and that building has no loud speaker system or screens or anything so there were no announcements or anything made. We had her on the phone with us while she was hiding under a table and we could hear people screaming but nobody knew what was going on or where the gunshots were coming from.  

Hi Chayanne 

We've just got through the same situation. I'm guessing your son was a dependent and aged out before you took your oath. That happened to me too - took two years and daughter turned 18 before my oath. Ugh!  

The GOOD news - she applied under the 5 year rule and her application got processed pretty much immediately. My guess is that because she was on my file up to this point, when her application got picked up they  just dealt with it since it was already at the local office. 

The 5 year filing was SO simple and quick compared to the 3 year one I kind of wish I'd just waited and done it that way too! She also said that the people at USCIS were really really nice to her - I think they know when they are dealing with very young adults that it's a daunting process. 

Also, if you file online, the automated system is not super smart. When you answer yes that you are a citizen it will keep prompting you with popups that your son my already be a citizen. Just ignore it and continue with the application. The system didn't seem to make the correlation between the date I took my oath and my daughter's date of birth, even though I put those both in. 

Just an update since I posted somewhere in this thread that my teenage daughter (she turned 18 before my oath ceremony!) filed under the 5 year rule. 

After my almost 2 year wait for my N400 to be complete, we filed under early filing in February for daughter. Her eligible date was May 2nd. On May 2nd she got a notification that her interview was scheduled for May 10th!  She attended and passed her test and was told to wait for her oath which they could do in 30 minutes if she stayed.  Minutes later we got a text from her saying "Active shooter here. I wanna go!" 

Bit of drama at the USCIS office in Orlando yesterday with someone shot and killed so after being told that they couldn't leave the building for about half an hour, they were all sent home and the office is closed for a couple of days. Understandably! 

Presumably she will get a notification of a new date for her oath. Whether she actually wants to go back and do it is another matter entirely. We were not allowed to go with her. She's 18 so obviously was quite shaken by the whole ordeal. 

Nothing about this process has gone to plan for us lol. 

On 4/8/2021 at 11:11 AM, yuna628 said:

We went the K1 route because there was no other alternative that seemed viable. Obtaining a visa from the UK was not an option for us, and it's not an option for many. Marrying in the US was appropriate in our circumstances, but it's certainly not for everyone. It gave us time to wait and plan and save. It wasn't a fast process for us at the time because of the backlog going on.

Similar experience (and about the same timeframe - I know we remember each other from 2014 on lol). 

The travel ban has made things difficult for CR1. Outside of that our only regret is that we didn't do a CR1 instead of a K1. It took almost a year from filing to visa in hand and was much more expensive and frustrating. Outside of special circumstances making it impossible to get married prior to applying, I don't think I would ever recommend a K1 to anyone. We were told it was the 'quicker' and preferred way to go.  Our experience was the opposite. 

I think it really depends on who processes the application and who conducts the interview. It shouldn't make a difference because with the 3 year rule you have to submit so much more documentation. That said, you'd have to satisfy all the criteria if it goes through to the end without changing it. Whether you can change it after filing is another question as the application forms themselves are different.  There's someone who lives locally who has been a LPR and married for over a decade and finally decided to apply for citizenship and she applied under the 3 year rule, thinking because she is married to a USC it was what she had to do. She got to the interview and had to refile. Does your friend have an online USCIS account? You can send a message through the portal there.  They take a few days but they do reply. 

On 1/25/2021 at 10:21 AM, dpd said:

I only surrendered my current 10 year green card. I brought the rest but they never need them. 

They took ALL my stuff lol. I doubt they know specifically what and how many documents you have though. I just took my old employment authorization card and both Green Cards. But they were happy to take everything.  

 

To those of you who have already been naturalized, did you skip out the SSA visit while most of them are not doing in person right now? I wanted to update my DL with DMV as my understanding is that they want us to do so once we are citizens. My local office is doing online only and want you to print and sign the form and mail in all your original documents. The reviews on their site for people actually getting them back or managing to contact anyone by phone to find out where their certificate and license is ... well let's just say I'm not willing to go that route.  I see there are some offices a few hours away that will do in person by appointment only, which would be fine with me. Do you have to go to the office nearest you, or can you go to any office? I know people do name changes and things too so I assume someone here has some info.  Thanks

4 hours ago, Hpp said:

Hi 

i had my interview for N-400 on nov 19th 2020 at orlando,fl.i passed interview but office told me because my fingerprint expired . Decision can not be made yet about your application.And also online status still , show “interview was schedule “

dose anyone have same situation

thanks 

Me! Also at Orlando. Everything went fine and was told my fingerprints were about to expire so a decision cannot be made. I’ve had my fingerprints all my life. Had no idea they expire lol. 
 

he said they may schedule biometrics again. Which is annoying because with the I 751 it took so long I had to go back and redo biometrics and then two weeks later I had to do them again for the N400. I think this is just 2020 messing with us. 

5 hours ago, sophiatracy said:

I would still naturalize? I thought I already got a derivative citizenship from my dad?

If you were under 18 when your dad took his citizenship oath then you are a citizen now. That means you cannot apply for a green card. Green cards are for permanent residents, not for citizens. Applying for the N600 would get you your own certificate, since your dad doesn't have his in hand at this time to serve as your proof of citizenship. My guess is that if he has already applied for a replacement it would be quicker to wait for his certificate, rather than start a new application (and expense) for your own. 

Hoping some of you are actually in the US or have experience with this. It's been years since I mailed packages to the UK and with travel restrictions and nobody going back and forth, that option is out this year. 

My main concern is I recall a customs duty that gets charged to the recipient.  I really don't want them to be liable to pay for receiving their gift and I don't know if I can pay the duty upfront from here. Do you know what the max value is without being charged? Should I send several small packets? Value the contents at cost, not replacement cost? I'm not sending anything expensive or valuable but my family had a trip for daughter's graduation booked for May, which obviously got canceled and their two rescheduled trips have been canceled. I'm really not hanging onto hope that travel will open up by mid November for their fourth option! So I want to get some small gifts and cards over to them just so they have something for Christmas and hopefully they will be able to come over early next year and get the rest. 

Is it possible to order online from a UK company, pay with a US card and my billing address here and have it delivered to their address in the UK?  Open to any options as it's been several years and I have no idea what the rules are now.  

Thanks, guys. 

5 hours ago, Gijo12 said:

Congrats @art1976.

 

Meanwhile I am still waiting for any updates after my biometric completed in AUG 2019. 
 

Not sure how many more months of waiting. Though estimated completion July 2020 but I haven't received any interview notification or any update yet. Hope for the best. Thank you !

You’re not the only one. I had my biometrics early July (filed around the end of June). No estimated completion date, no interview. Nothing. Which office are you at? 

On 3/30/2020 at 1:00 AM, geowrian said:

This. She may get $1200...which is better than $500 as a child last time I checked.

Thanks and yeah we filed early this year and claimed her a a dependent for 2019 because she was 16 and turned 17 last year. So when we helped her file her tax return we made sure she checked the box that we claimed her. 
 

usually we are lazy and only get filing in early April. Of course the one time we come early, before we knew about any of this ... Such is life. 
 

it’s just frustrating because I know that most people with 17/18 year olds are in the same situation. 

On 3/28/2020 at 11:59 AM, LizaJane said:

Yes and this leaving an entire age out of recieving the stimulus check is BS. My poor daughter is 17 and has lost her job and will not get a stimulus check since she was obviously claimed as a dependent on my taxes, but since she's not under 17 I also don't get the $500 for her on my stimulus check. At least she gets unemployment. 

Yup. Same situation here. Ours turned 18 last month. Filed her own tax return as an adult, work hours cut by 70% 
 

anyone with a 17 or 18 year old gets skipped over. 

We had exactly the same thing happen with our K1 (although I panicked more than you appear to show lol) 

I recall it took about two days. Daughters was approved and mine sat in AP for a couple more business days plus a weekend. Plenty of people here reassured me it was normal and they were right. 

I don't understand why it's showing zero taxable income and you owe money.  

As far as owing money if your employer is not withholding deductions, I don't believe you are exempt from any taxes if you earn a taxable level income for the financial year.  If I am incorrect in this statement, please would someone set me straight. 

We fell into this trap when I got my first job after we got married as I've always worked as an employee and I took a job as a contractor for a couple of businesses. There were no deductions withheld. Now, we had no excuse for ignorance because we knew we needed to set money aside and we started doing that but we had no idea how much and somehow we got slack and stopped doing this.  Last year we owed several thousand dollars in tax. Fortunately we were just able to settle it.  I am not sure if IRS allows you to pay over a period of time if you cannot put out the whole lump sum in one go.  I would definitely start working on putting money aside to pay off that debt though, assuming it's correct.  We also use TurboTax and it's always matched up with what IRS has asked for or refunded so we found it to be very accurate as long as the information you enter when you file is complete and accurate.  

Edit to add:  Just wondered, are you filing jointly? And what is your spouse's earning level like?  In our case the debt was made bigger because my husband had taken a new job which paid more than what we had previously so instead of getting a tax refund, our household earnings were substantially more and then adding my job .... 

Just now, Orangesapples said:

I hope that USCIS will give an extension to K1s in this situation, the same way tax season got an extension. 

I hope so too. I really do.  

is this your spouse's US entry on his CR1 visa?  Congrats and best wishes!  

Yes, he will have to clear customs at his first port of entry in the US, so he needs to clear customs in Atlanta.  As far as i know the immigrant visa check is not done electronically so it really depends how busy the line is for other people waiting to be processed or see someone in secondary. 

36 minutes ago, emixkid said:

Right, overstay is something I want to avoid 100%. And I am trying to be hopeful that this shut down doesn’t last that long. I was considering trying to get married at other states, but we’re currently under the shelter in place order, which prohibits travel for non-essential reasons. 
 

Thanks for the reassurance, though. We initially panicked for a few days, but came to the realization that currently, things are out of our control.

Over the next few weeks we will likely see more and more K1's in a similar position posting on here. It wouldn't surprise me if there is a pinned thread dedicated to this dilemma, given the awkward situation so keep watching the forum. It's no consolation to each individual or couple, but you are not alone and this is a great place for sharing information and experiences.  

1 hour ago, Mattallie said:

 

He has a contract with his currently employer that requires him to give 30 days notice. If he breaks his contract he could possibly be banned from UAE and considered absence without leave. They are not holding his physical passport but his current UAE visa will be terminated once he leaves the company. 

 

 

Does he want to go back to UAE? More than he wants to secure his future with you? 

14 minutes ago, Dulce M. said:

We schedule our courthouse appointment a few weeks ago for April 6th so far we have only received a email stating that due the outbreak only 2 witnesses are allowed in the room with us, I just arrived yesterday to the USA, one week earlier than expected. We are in San Diego btw

Fingers crossed that with the restrictions on who can go in, they are still going ahead with it. Keep us posted.  

Welcome to the USA!  Wishing you many happy years here with your spouse to be. 

On 3/18/2020 at 5:34 PM, vic2016 said:

NYC office is closed till April 1st so far. I wonder if they will reschedule the interviews that are postponed in March for the first available time once the offices are open again,  and basically move all scheduled interviews 2-3 weeks later ( or whatever time-frame is, that the offices will remain closed...)

I really hope they do accommodate those who had  canceled interviews. Ours will be significantly delayed due to this, but the right thing to do is make good on those who were already scheduled.  

Perhaps we will start to see shorter interview sessions and oath ceremonies for a good while to come. Not just on the virus front, but in light of the backlog impact on an already overloaded system. Hoping the very best for you and all who had cancellations on ceremonies and interviews.  

12 hours ago, payxibka said:

Huh?  Do you just make this stuff up?

Your response was a lot more polite than the one I refrained from posting.  

I thought that was just plain rude and heartless (referred to the comment you replied to, not yours - I'm with you on this one!) 

1 hour ago, Mar and Mur said:

 

You are legally protected

Where did you find this official legal statement?

We had the exact same thing happen to us with our AOS.  We had to reprint the form (which, when we checked the copy we retained and the one they returned was the SAME updated form).  We also knew that even though we were right and someone messed up, it was quicker to return the dang thing and let them get on with it than waste time trying to argue with them.  

22 hours ago, Iamornext said:

 It would be a smart move to reduce the spread if the oaths are done same day. 

That would make SO much sense.  Sadly, way too much sense for a government body to do it though.  🤣