Texaco5

2 hours ago, Patrick2195 said:

so how do i scan documents? what format do they want? can i take pictures with a digital camera & upload the picture of the document?

can i pay the fee online with a credit card even if filing a paper form?

I think you can upload JPEG or PNG files however I would recommend converting the files to PDFs. There are several websites that offer JPEG to PDF conversion for free and PDFs are typically smaller files. So once you have your pictures ready, convert them to PDFs and make sure everything on them is legible.

When you apply online, the final stage will be to pay by credit card once you are ready to submit your application. If your wife is able to apply online, I would recommend this over submitting paper forms. The online application removes one of the time consuming tasks of scanning/transcribing the paper documents you provide into an electronic file for distribution around the USCIS.

2 hours ago, David1987 said:

I may have to be out of the country for work for a 1.5 months and that coincides with the initial 90 day window I can apply for N400. I live in the US and just happen to be traveling during that week. Is it saying that I cannot apply online?

The reference you highlighted is for someone who is not a legal permanent resident residing in the US when they make the application (ie they are living in another country outside the USA, not visiting another country like you are).

You should be able to file online. If they schedule anything while you are traveling out of the city where you live or out of the country, you can contact the USCIS and reschedule the appointment.

On 7/3/2018 at 6:34 AM, Chloraflora said:

I did the e-filing, and from the day I filed to the day of my naturalization was just over 3 and a half months. Speedy.

Same here. Applied online on 9th Feb 2017 and my citizenship ceremony was on April 18th 2017 - 68 days start to finish. Congratulations.

This must be a new feature since when I applied online last February, this information was not available. I used the field office processing times as a guide - just go to the USCIS website and search for Processing Times. Then check your local field office - it will show which month they are processing different types of visa applications for.

3 hours ago, fouzimedfouni said:

when did you file your N400, what state are you?

I filed the N400 online in Feb 17 from California.

On 10/24/2017 at 8:55 AM, vilaincoco said:

NY field office is busy too, but online filers seem to get an interview date pretty quickly.

By the way, for question #6, what did you guy reply? A business trip, or vacation doesn't count as leaving the US right?

I think you have to answer the question truthfully, they are trying to establish whether you have left the US for extended periods of time and I think they then ask a further question about the number of days the trip may have lasted for. I believe I answered Yes and the  went on to answer the sub question that may have come up next about how long the trip was for

On 10/8/2017 at 6:37 PM, Ben & Katie said:

Going though the online application and I see nowhere to upload a picture of yourself.  Is this required?  I know for the paper submission you need to include passport style photos

 

They will take a digital photo that conforms to their requirements at the biometrics appointment which will be scheduled a few weeks after they receive your application.

I've read about some people being asked for a photo at the interview, so it is worth having them to hand at that time and if they don't need them then, you can use them for your US passport application, so it isn't money wasted.

13 minutes ago, Going through said:

Did you also get online messages when paper versions were being mailed out?  I've heard people get these too.

Yes, I had signed up for email and text notifications and recall that I got text and email notifications indicating that my case status had changed. I recall that some of these were specific to the type of change - scheduled you for an interview, you file has been passed for quality assurance, you have been placed in line for an oath ceremony, your oath ceremony is scheduled etc. In the case of the interview, I attended my biometrics appointment on Feb 27th and bypassed the 'inline for interview' stage altogether and I got the 'we have scheduled you for an interview' text on March 1st however it too a day or so for the PDF to show up in my online account so I could see what date/time the interview had been scheduled for (April 5th) and the same was true for my oath ceremony invitation where there was a lag of a couple of days between the notification text and the document becoming available to review online. The three texts advising of the QA of the file to being scheduled for an oath ceremony all arrived in the space of about 10-15 mins only a few hours after I had completed my interview.

11 minutes ago, luv2teach77 said:

RE: scenario #2, I wasn't aware that you could request a delay to the oath ceremony.  Do I take it then that the naturalization process is not deemed complete until that is completed ?  I was unsure if I was considered naturalized as soon as my interview was successfully completed ?

Anytime before your oath ceremony, you can enter and exit the US with your UK passport and green card. Even if you pass the interview you're not technically a US citizen until you have completed the oath ceremony at which point you hand in your green card in exchange for the naturalization certificate.

In the case of a UK citizen, you'll end up with dual citizenship since the UK doesn't recognize the citizenship oath as a formal renunciation of UK citizenship. So even after you become a US citizen, your UK passport will be valid for entering other countries and returning to the UK. It only becomes an issue if you try to gain entry to the US, since your GC is nullified and I'm not sure that you could get the visa waiver given that you're technically a US citizen at the point at which you'd be applying for the ESTA visa.

Once you become a US citizen, you can apply for a passport and there is an expedited service which costs and extra $60 with which your new US passport is sent around a week after you apply. In most cases, applicants have their passport photos and the passport application ready to go as soon as they become a citizen (I applied on the 20th April after I took the oath on the 18th April). The passport application forms can be downloaded from the US Dept of State website which also explains where you can apply for a passport locally (post office etc.).

So if you have taken the oath before the trip to Mexico, you will need a US passport. You can use an expedited service for this or the regular turnaround is about 3-4 weeks (mine took 3 weeks back in May this year using the non expedited approach). You may be able to use the flight tickets you have booked for the trip to Mexico as evidence of why you need an expedited application as I think they do ask for proof of imminent travel. I think one of the questions on the passport app is 'when do you plan to travel?'.

The other option is to delay the oath until after the trip and travel in and out on your UK passport and GC. You can request a delay to the oath ceremony during the interview, and even if they ignore that request, once you get the oath ceremony appointment letter, you can schedule an Infopass appointment at the local field office where you did the interview, take the oath letter along and ask them to reschedule.

12 minutes ago, Going through said:

Question for you---when checking online, what kind of lag did you see in terms of viewing notices sent/being able to download letters?  Trying to figure out the time difference between letters being posted online and actual letters mailed out.

Based on my experience, the PDF version of the biometric/interview/oath ceremony letters are posted online about 4-5 days before the paper versions show up in the mail.

22 hours ago, cali3978 said:

Excellent post.  What is the security procedure like?  Do they make you take off your shoes and/or pat you down?  Thanks.

The security is similar to airport security however I don't recall that they made us take out shoes off. They split the new citizens and their families into two different security lines. They want your oath invitation letter out and visible and you put keys, cameras, phones etc. on the x-ray conveyor and walk through a metal detector. it is pretty quick and painless.

5 hours ago, Zonux said:

 

1- Advise me what to do in this case ?

2- in case they denied my visa, can I apply again but as a single living in the united states for 5 years ? 

3- any extra tips will be appreciated 

 

 

Make an Infopass appointment and if you have resolved your differences with your wife, take her along to the appointment so she can answer any questions they have and confirm that you're both still together.

10 hours ago, Going through said:

I'm waiting until I have all my documents scanned before uploading them (I saw in an old thread a tip that said to upload all documents during the same login ---- that is, don't do it in steps throughout a day or two, but rather sit down and do them all on the same day to avoid uploading issues, then immediately do the payment after.)  

 

You'd think, in this day and age (now I feel old just saying that line), they would welcome the ease of dealing with applications online

I saved my application and then went back the next day and added the PDFs. Even after you apply, you can add more evidence files if you need to. For instance, I applied in early Feb and then added my 2016 tax transcripts in March once they were filed with the IRS.

The ELIS computer system is new (ish) for USCIS and quite buggy, so they're keeping it on the down low while they iron out the glitches. I don't know what criteria they use to determine if you're in the 'small group' of applicants who are allowed to use it, but I found the whole process pretty straightforward. I suspect they want to iron out the bugs before everyone can use it as it does mean they don't need to scan your paper application and enter the data into their computer system if you do it yourself.

On 3/27/2017 at 6:18 PM, rlam57 said:

Hi,

I wonder if we could file N-400 online @my.uscis.gov ?

 

Yes, use this link on the USCIS website (scroll up and hit the green 'Apply' button).

It will ask a series of questions to figure out whether you are eligible to apply online and then allow you to use the online application process if you qualify.

https://my.uscis.gov/exploremyoptions/us_citizen_through_naturalization#benefit-related-content-2

4 hours ago, Going through said:

Heard/read so many old threads where there were plenty of bugs with the online system but surely most of them have been worked out by now?

If you filed online, did you encounter any problems/issues?  Is it true that online cases are in line for an interview faster than mailing in your application?

I e-filed back in early February without knowing anything about the bugs in the new ELIS computerized system - I was just researching the citizenship process and came across the page on the USCIS website where they have the link to see if you are eligible to file online. Like several other people have noted, the online application software can be glitchy (doesn't let you delete files/answers and sometimes throws out 500 HTML errors when pressing the 'submit' button when you have filled in a page of replies) but it does seem to record things properly. It also has a feature that allows you to create a PDF of the N-400 using the data you have entered, and I did this, highlighted any areas where I thought it may have got things wrong and took this along to my interview where any small issues were fixed.

Even the interview officer had some issues correcting the online information back in April when I attended my interview, so their computer system is still having issues worked out. He made an amendment which was incorrect and when he went to edit/delete it, he found he couldn't so he had to enter a duplicate entry!

I found the online notifications and copies of the correspondence to be very helpful. In my own case, I found that the process was very efficient and was a citizen within 68 days of applying online at one of the busier field offices here in Los Angeles.

22 minutes ago, jon29 said:

I have been photographed at my biometric appointment so I don't know what she wanted the photos...

While my interview officer didn't ask for the passport photos, he noticed I had the small folder from CVS marked 'passport photos' and asked for them 'just in case the photos taken at the biometric appointment cannot be used'.

Congrats on passing the interview. Your oath ceremony should be in August. If you go tot he USCIS website and use their field office locator, the information they provide about the field office should explain how they arrange oath ceremonies (some are once per month and some are 'on the spot'.)

On 6/30/2017 at 11:50 AM, jon29 said:

Here are the documents I am taking with me for the interview as support of bonafide marriage:

• 3 years of joint bank statements

• Joint health insurance (and life insurance) - and a copy of our insurance card with our names on it

• 3 years of tax returns (married filling jointly) - I also have tax transcripts 

• Screenshot of joint credit cards

• Screenshot of mobile phones family plan

• 3 years of apartment leases

• A few plane trips we took together (unfortunately I can't find all of them)

• Copy of our State ID with our apartment address on it

• Marriage Certificate

• I don't know if I should print photos (what do you think?)

 

Let me know if you guys think about anything else (we don't have cars, we are living in NYC) 

Hi Jon, the naturalization interview is a lot different to the green card interview, so you can leave a lot of that stuff at home (credit cards, mobile plans, photos). Focus on what they ask you to bring in your interview invitation letter as well as the original versions of the supporting evidence you sent with your application. I took bank statements from our joint account for the most recent month and December 31st for the previous 3 years, the tax transcript printouts, a copy of our recent mortgage statement, the marriage certificate and my wife's birth certificate (this was asked for in the interview letter). In the end the officer asked me for none of this and I had to remind him they had asked for her birth certificate which he then scanned.

This recent thread also has some useful information related to applying online

20 hours ago, PhilLuv said:

I noticed that some OPs in this forum state that they filed their n-400 online. Can one do that? If so can someone send me the link?

https://my.uscis.gov/exploremyoptions/us_citizen_through_naturalization#benefit-related-content-2

Scroll up to the top, hit the green Apply Now button and it will guide you through a series of questions to determine if you are eligible to apply online. Setting up the USCIS account is free and you don't have to apply immediately. You can log back in at your leisure after you have established if you're eligible to file online and provide the application info they ask for with the online N-400 (basically a series of web page based questions that mirror the questions asked in the paper form). You will also need to scan the supporting evidence docs (marriage cert, tax return transcripts etc.) as PDFs to attach to the online application.

1 minute ago, mcdull said:

I downloaded it, printed it and walked in.

 

 

So my guess is that they will schedule your interview a few days after the biometric appointment was scheduled and that the walk in to do the biometric appointment sooner won't speed up the processing. Keep us posted. My guess is that if you applied 8-9 days ago, your biometric appointment would have been scheduled for mid July and that by the third week of July, they will schedule your interview for mid August.

On 6/21/2017 at 6:28 AM, mcdull said:

Filed mine 8 days ago, already submitted my fingerprints.

Did they mail you a biometric appointment letter or did you download and print out the appointment letter from your ELIS account and do a 'walk in' at the local USCIS fingerprinting office? A week to turnaround a fingerprint appointment is pretty impressive!

53 minutes ago, AK_2014 said:

Thanks -- when I do that, it asks me to make an account, and I don't want to do that yet. :-( Is there any way to find out some of the questions without having to make an account?

OK, I just logged into my account and here are the questions that it asks to establish eligibility:

1. Are one or both of your parents a US Citizen (Yes/No)

2. How Old are you? (18 or older/Under 18)

3. Are you a member of the US armed forces (Yes/No) - includes US Army, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and certain components of the National Guard and the Selected Reserve of the Ready Reserve.

4. Are you a lawful permanent resident? (Yes/No) - someone who has been granted legal permanent resident status in the United State laws under US immigration laws and normally has a Permanent Resident Card (formerly known as an Alien Registration Card or referred to as a Green Card)

5. When did you become a Permanent Resident? (Before September 17, 2012/Between September 17 2012 and September 17 2014/Neither of these apply to me) - The date may be located on the front or back of your Permanent Resident Card depending on when the card was issued.

6. Have you left the US in the past 5 years (Yes/No) - (I think that this doesn't include business travel or vacation travel but it looking for long periods of absence from the US)

7. Have you moved in the past 3 months (Yes/No)

After I answered these questions, if indicated I may be eligible to apply for naturalization since I have been a lawful permanent resident for more than 5 years however your own circumstances and answers to these questions will determine whether you are eligible.

Hope this is helpful.

Just now, AK_2014 said:

Thanks -- when I do that, it asks me to make an account, and I don't want to do that yet. :-( Is there any way to find out some of the questions without having to make an account?

I'd set up the account as you can make the account with no obligation to submit the N-400. Setting up the account is free. After you make the account and answer the questions, if you are eligible, the online N-400 application form will be added to your online account and you can return later to the account and complete the application online. Or you can send one in by paper. Whichever you prefer.

15 minutes ago, AK_2014 said:

What sort of questions are on the questionnaire to determine eligibility to file online?

If you click on the link below and then scroll to the top of the page and hit the 'Apply Now' button, it will take you through the questions to confirm whether you are eligible or not

https://my.uscis.gov/exploremyoptions/us_citizen_through_naturalization#benefit-related-content-2

There is no commitment, so you can answer the questions without any obligation to continue with the application

24 minutes ago, zoom123 said:

Thank you very much for the info. I was really scared when the attorney told I need to resubmit again as it will not move.

Appericiate your time & effort. 

No problem. Also, if you log into your myuscis.dhs.gov account that you set up to submit the online N-400 application (this is not the Case Status on uscis.gov), you should already have a PDF of the I-797C receipt notice sitting in there. This is a copy of the letter that they have mailed to you.

One of the great advantages of the online account is that you can set it up to text and email you each time your case status changes and you can see the documents they are sending (biometric appointment, interview appointment, oath ceremony invitation) several days before they arrive in the mail.

If you don't already have your account set up to send these status notifications, I recommend that you log in and set up the notifications. You should also be able to see the PDFs when you log back into your account.

Finally, with the account security code notifications (the two stage process where you log in and they email/text you a security code), set it up so that it emails you AND texts to your mobile phone as sometimes the USCIS notification system doesn't send through the six digit account access codes properly via text and the security code emails always worked.