randomstairs

A terrible idea. 

Prior to my interview I was trying to locate recent interview experiences but couldn't find any, I hope this helps someone  
 
I applied for Naturalization under the 5 year rule in June 2023, a few days after I applied I received receipt of application and a few days/maybe a week following that I received another notification saying they would be reusing the bio info they have on file already.
3 weeks after that, so around July 7th I received an interview notification - I was expecting to see a date in 2024, but to my surprise it was for August 2023!  I had less than a month to prepare, scary but exciting all rolled into one.
 
I had a few tricks up my sleeve to memorize all the 100 civics questions, I purchased flash cards from Amazon, so quite a few I just memorized the look of the card, others I used silly things like Senate > Sen > Cen > Century (100 members) and S (essss) for six - 6 years.  It seems silly but it was so much easier to remember all the facts.  I also made up stories like I have 435 people coming to my house party and Kevin M won't stop speaking.  Anyway, for anyone struggling to remember things... make up a story, include a number of facts in the story... it might help recall some of the questions and answers.
 
Interview Day starts here:
 
My appointment was at 1pm, I arrived near the offices at 12:20pm.
At the door I was greeted by a friendly security lady who asked to see my ID and appointment letter, she also asked if I had any weapons.
Next was heading through the security metal detectors, much like TSA but on a smaller, friendlier scale... the only thing they wouldn't allow as far as I could tell were weapons, but everything else was fine.  I had a few snacks for my nerves like cheese goldfish and a bottle of water, my phone... these were all fine. (There are also vending machines in there too, one with snacks and one with soda's).
 
Next is heading to the check in reception, here the lady checked my appointment letter, ID and Green Card.  She also took my photo and finger prints.
 
The next step is to wait. The one thing I liked about this office was the natural light, there are large sky lights letting natural light in and also large windows in the waiting room that make this place feel much less claustrophobic than some of the other offices I've seen throughout this journey.  And to add to that all the staff seemed to be in good spirits too which was nice.
 
I should add here, when I came in a group of successful applicants were queueing up to go and take their oath, which also gave the room a level upbeat energy seeing them all so excited.
 
Ok but back to waiting, like I said my appointment was at 1pm... they were approx 30 numbers away from mine at 12:55 pm so it was clear they weren't going to get to me or anyone on time.
 
During the wait, the door into the interview rooms would open a number would be called and off that person would go... everyone and I mean everyone in the room was paying attention to the demeanor of each officer that called a number.  I'll put your mind at ease.  Every single one opened the door and met their applicant with a smile and with reassurance... even the ones with a slightly more serious tone smiled, held the door, told the person not to worry... for me this immediately put me at ease.
 
Fast forward 1 hour later, my number was called - my heart fluttered yikes this is it!
 
The officer asked how I was doing, I said great but nervous all rolled into one.  He said there's no need to be, as long as I've got the civics questions down this will be a breeze.
 
We head into his office, it's very relaxed - I was expecting it to feel stiff, thick air nerves but he was very conversational, nothing felt too formal just like chatting with someone at a dinner perhaps.
He confirmed my basic details like name, date of birth, address and then immediately went into the civics questions.. no warning just straight in, which I liked because I was worried I'd have to keep all these memorized cards in my head until the end... so he asked the 6 questions, I passed on the first 6.  He then moved on to ask the form questions, he asked if I'd traveled so I said not since 2019, he asked a few other questions that are on the end of the form, he did not ask me to clarify what they meant.   He then moved on to asking me about my recent holiday destination and any recommendations because he wanted to visit there.
 
Less than 10 minutes, all approved and I was back in the waiting room waiting to take the oath.
 
It was a very pleasant experience, there was absolutely no need to feel stressed.
 
I should also add since some people like to know this info, there are restrooms, they're very clean! 
 
I hope this helps someone!
 
 
 
 

You were probably born in one of the Yugoslavia(s) (the SFRJ or the later one).  It's common to see "Unknown" for those who put "Yugoslavia" or similar as their country of birth. Even though the instructions now specify that the name of the country at the time of birth is the one to put in there, the "Yugoslavia" causes issues. (That's why the DoS has the opposite instruction - use the *current* name of the country. Historical names can be complicated, as you can see.) The "unknown" is not an error as far as I know and probably doesn't need to be corrected. Unless they ask you to, do not send them your GC. You can keep using it unless you have reported it lost or stolen, etc.
 
 

Yea i was born in Serbia and i put Serbia as cob and even sent them updated birth certificate that states Serbia as i totally forgot about Yugoslavia lol. But yeah i was born in the time of Yugoslavia, country changed name to Serbia and Montenegro and then to Serbia (Republic of Serbia). Thanks for replying, i just feel way better now~when i googled about error on gc i found one old post with same issue (he put serbia as cob, but also got gc with unkown, same as me as he was born in Yugoslavia~, so it’s something about that)

None of my green cards were correct, and it never deterred me from traveling.
 
Worst case, CBP will take your GC and give you an I-551 stamp.  Based on your timeline, you have a 2 year GC. 
 
I have never seen I-90 approved with a 2 year GC,. I have seen I-90 denied within 30 days of filing I-751.

You were probably born in one of the Yugoslavia(s) (the SFRJ or the later one).  It's common to see "Unknown" for those who put "Yugoslavia" or similar as their country of birth. Even though the instructions now specify that the name of the country at the time of birth is the one to put in there, the "Yugoslavia" causes issues. (That's why the DoS has the opposite instruction - use the *current* name of the country. Historical names can be complicated, as you can see.) The "unknown" is not an error as far as I know and probably doesn't need to be corrected. Unless they ask you to, do not send them your GC. You can keep using it unless you have reported it lost or stolen, etc.
 
 

You were probably born in one of the Yugoslavia(s) (the SFRJ or the later one).  It's common to see "Unknown" for those who put "Yugoslavia" or similar as their country of birth. Even though the instructions now specify that the name of the country at the time of birth is the one to put in there, the "Yugoslavia" causes issues. (That's why the DoS has the opposite instruction - use the *current* name of the country. Historical names can be complicated, as you can see.) The "unknown" is not an error as far as I know and probably doesn't need to be corrected. Unless they ask you to, do not send them your GC. You can keep using it unless you have reported it lost or stolen, etc.
 
 

You were probably born in one of the Yugoslavia(s) (the SFRJ or the later one).  It's common to see "Unknown" for those who put "Yugoslavia" or similar as their country of birth. Even though the instructions now specify that the name of the country at the time of birth is the one to put in there, the "Yugoslavia" causes issues. (That's why the DoS has the opposite instruction - use the *current* name of the country. Historical names can be complicated, as you can see.) The "unknown" is not an error as far as I know and probably doesn't need to be corrected. Unless they ask you to, do not send them your GC. You can keep using it unless you have reported it lost or stolen, etc.
 
 

You were probably born in one of the Yugoslavia(s) (the SFRJ or the later one).  It's common to see "Unknown" for those who put "Yugoslavia" or similar as their country of birth. Even though the instructions now specify that the name of the country at the time of birth is the one to put in there, the "Yugoslavia" causes issues. (That's why the DoS has the opposite instruction - use the *current* name of the country. Historical names can be complicated, as you can see.) The "unknown" is not an error as far as I know and probably doesn't need to be corrected. Unless they ask you to, do not send them your GC. You can keep using it unless you have reported it lost or stolen, etc.
 
 

You were probably born in one of the Yugoslavia(s) (the SFRJ or the later one).  It's common to see "Unknown" for those who put "Yugoslavia" or similar as their country of birth. Even though the instructions now specify that the name of the country at the time of birth is the one to put in there, the "Yugoslavia" causes issues. (That's why the DoS has the opposite instruction - use the *current* name of the country. Historical names can be complicated, as you can see.) The "unknown" is not an error as far as I know and probably doesn't need to be corrected. Unless they ask you to, do not send them your GC. You can keep using it unless you have reported it lost or stolen, etc.
 
 

You were probably born in one of the Yugoslavia(s) (the SFRJ or the later one).  It's common to see "Unknown" for those who put "Yugoslavia" or similar as their country of birth. Even though the instructions now specify that the name of the country at the time of birth is the one to put in there, the "Yugoslavia" causes issues. (That's why the DoS has the opposite instruction - use the *current* name of the country. Historical names can be complicated, as you can see.) The "unknown" is not an error as far as I know and probably doesn't need to be corrected. Unless they ask you to, do not send them your GC. You can keep using it unless you have reported it lost or stolen, etc.
 
 

You can travel on that Green Card and your passport.  Have a good trip. 

Gender matters.
 
IMO from posts on visa journey, all other things being equal, a female U.S. citizen petitioner who is 31 years older than a male beneficiary, from a non OECD country is more likely to have difficultly than a male U.S. citizen petitioner who is 31 years older than a female beneficiary, from a non OECD country.
 

You would have to file the AR-11 form to inform USCIS about the change of address. You should also call them afterwards to confirm they have the correct new address. Generally, changing of the mailing address is risky as USCIS or USPS often doesn't properly register it and the mail keeps coming to the old one. 

You would have to file the AR-11 form to inform USCIS about the change of address. You should also call them afterwards to confirm they have the correct new address. Generally, changing of the mailing address is risky as USCIS or USPS often doesn't properly register it and the mail keeps coming to the old one. 

I have seen many people successfully put together a Waiver Package without a Lawyer, however none that have had a friend ask for them if they can do it themselves.
 
So I am going to assume they need a lawyer.
 
What happened to his first marriage? Did they divorce?
 

You would have to file the AR-11 form to inform USCIS about the change of address. You should also call them afterwards to confirm they have the correct new address. Generally, changing of the mailing address is risky as USCIS or USPS often doesn't properly register it and the mail keeps coming to the old one. 

You would have to file the AR-11 form to inform USCIS about the change of address. You should also call them afterwards to confirm they have the correct new address. Generally, changing of the mailing address is risky as USCIS or USPS often doesn't properly register it and the mail keeps coming to the old one. 

You were gone less than a year. You paid rent on your U.S. apartment. You paid your taxes. You had a good reason for the absence.
 
File N-400 once you have 3 years less 90 days of LPR status. This assumes you meet the other requirements:
* physical presence
* living with a U.S. citizen spouse for 3 continuous years.
 
If your spouse was  not living with you while you were gone for more than 180 days, you might have interrupted continuous marital union. If so, file under the 5 year rule if eligible.  
I neither think that, nor did I write that. I wrote:
 

Get your U.S. citizenship.

Just wanna thank VJ for all the help with my journey. I joined when I filed the AOS but the journey had been a lot longer. F1 (many years) --> OPT --> H1B (many years) --> EB2-NIW --> the Oath
 
VJ has played a big role in the journey.
 
Even with the coveted GC in hand, I always fantasized about celebrating the Fourth properly. Now I can. I wish happy Fourth to everyone who can share my pleasure now, and to everyone who is still waiting! 

What a bummer, but it reinforces the reality of inefficiency in Ecu.
 
You (yourself) might call the U.S. Citizen's line at the GYQ consulate to learn what they recommend -- this affects you as much as the wife, after all.  If it's more a matter for the IV unit, they can transfer your call after determining (at your request) whether a real person will pick up the phone line.

If you have other qualifications, on top of the absolute minimal formal education, theoretically you can get it approved.
 
So, let's see, do you have any citations in peer-reviewed journals? If so, do the citations reflect significant advancements in your field? Any patents to your name? Have you designed any methods that were used productively by others in your field? Have you judged the work of others in your field (including reviewing research papers)? Have you been invited to serve in high positions in organizations or societies in your field?
 
These are potential credentials that you may present if you choose to reapply.

Technically you failed to meet the prong 2, but from the look of it, all three are weakly challenged by your attorney. 
 
The NIW is a long shot if your highest degree is below the PhD, MD, or similar level. You don't even seem to have a masters degree, so that's that.
 
You need to demonstrate that your work has been used to advance your field. Just being good at what you do won't cut it.
 
Your current area of concentration doesn't seem to be consistent with your experience, which is a big issue with the NIW applications.
 
The best lawyer in town is Victoria Chen. She won't take your case though, but do try!
 

You need to be more specific if you want a useful advice. Were you denied based on all three prongs? Did you apply with a lawyer or by yourself? What are your qualifications? I had had an RFE on my NIW but got approved when I responded.

The DoS recommends using your US passport even in the country(s) where you also have a citizenship if the latter allows it. This way the US government can offer you a much better protection than if you enter such a country with its passport. Because I only had my US passport, I traveled to the country of my other citizenship on it. I had previously inquired about the option at their embassy and they confirmed that it was okay to do so.