A - J

As with our other trip to the federal building, we parked across the street and got into the building about 20 minutes before our appointment. We were allowed up after waiting five minutes.
 
Once in the USCIS office, they checked us in and asked us to take a seat. We waited about ten minutes beyond our appointment time, which was no big deal. 
 
The interviewing officer opened the door, called my name, and showed me back to her office where the interview started immediately - no small talk, very little eye contact, just business. 
 
She swore me to the truth, and began by asking me a couple of questions about me, my parents, and my husband. She then asked me to read a sentence/question: who lives in the White House? I read it. Then she said the answer out loud and asked me to write it: the President lives in the White House.
 
We then moved to the civics questions:
Who is one of your state’s US Senators now? Who is in charge of the Executive branch? There were 13 original states. Name three. Who is the Commander in Chief of the military? Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the federal government. What is one power of the federal government? Name one branch or part of the government.  
Then we moved on to the N-400 application, from which she asked me a few of the yes/no questions. She asked me to sign a couple of things like a correctness check and am I willing to take the Oath of Allegiance. It all happened so fast. Then she printed a paper and said I was recommended for approval but the case would be sent to quality review for final approval. She said I would get a date for the Oath Ceremony in the coming weeks. 
 
All of this happened extremely fast. Really. Super fast. I looked at my watch when I went in and in NINE minutes we were walking to the elevator! Amazing.
 
We studied and read so many interview stories and felt like we knew what to expect. We still stressed, though. It’s normal. 
 
One thing that someone wrote along the way stood out in all of the stories and studying: USCIS is not trying to trick anybody. They want you to succeed. Just tell the truth. Don’t try to change your narrative to fit what you think they want. Seems like that’s when things get complicated.
 
Our visa journey has been long but well worth it. If asked for one general piece of advice, we would just say to follow the guidance on this site. There are good, knowledgeable, and helpful people here. Present your case honestly. Try not to stress (too much) and let USCIS do the rest. 
 
The dream is just getting started. We can’t wait to see what’s next.

As with our other trip to the federal building, we parked across the street and got into the building about 20 minutes before our appointment. We were allowed up after waiting five minutes.
 
Once in the USCIS office, they checked us in and asked us to take a seat. We waited about ten minutes beyond our appointment time, which was no big deal. 
 
The interviewing officer opened the door, called my name, and showed me back to her office where the interview started immediately - no small talk, very little eye contact, just business. 
 
She swore me to the truth, and began by asking me a couple of questions about me, my parents, and my husband. She then asked me to read a sentence/question: who lives in the White House? I read it. Then she said the answer out loud and asked me to write it: the President lives in the White House.
 
We then moved to the civics questions:
Who is one of your state’s US Senators now? Who is in charge of the Executive branch? There were 13 original states. Name three. Who is the Commander in Chief of the military? Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the federal government. What is one power of the federal government? Name one branch or part of the government.  
Then we moved on to the N-400 application, from which she asked me a few of the yes/no questions. She asked me to sign a couple of things like a correctness check and am I willing to take the Oath of Allegiance. It all happened so fast. Then she printed a paper and said I was recommended for approval but the case would be sent to quality review for final approval. She said I would get a date for the Oath Ceremony in the coming weeks. 
 
All of this happened extremely fast. Really. Super fast. I looked at my watch when I went in and in NINE minutes we were walking to the elevator! Amazing.
 
We studied and read so many interview stories and felt like we knew what to expect. We still stressed, though. It’s normal. 
 
One thing that someone wrote along the way stood out in all of the stories and studying: USCIS is not trying to trick anybody. They want you to succeed. Just tell the truth. Don’t try to change your narrative to fit what you think they want. Seems like that’s when things get complicated.
 
Our visa journey has been long but well worth it. If asked for one general piece of advice, we would just say to follow the guidance on this site. There are good, knowledgeable, and helpful people here. Present your case honestly. Try not to stress (too much) and let USCIS do the rest. 
 
The dream is just getting started. We can’t wait to see what’s next.

As with our other trip to the federal building, we parked across the street and got into the building about 20 minutes before our appointment. We were allowed up after waiting five minutes.
 
Once in the USCIS office, they checked us in and asked us to take a seat. We waited about ten minutes beyond our appointment time, which was no big deal. 
 
The interviewing officer opened the door, called my name, and showed me back to her office where the interview started immediately - no small talk, very little eye contact, just business. 
 
She swore me to the truth, and began by asking me a couple of questions about me, my parents, and my husband. She then asked me to read a sentence/question: who lives in the White House? I read it. Then she said the answer out loud and asked me to write it: the President lives in the White House.
 
We then moved to the civics questions:
Who is one of your state’s US Senators now? Who is in charge of the Executive branch? There were 13 original states. Name three. Who is the Commander in Chief of the military? Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the federal government. What is one power of the federal government? Name one branch or part of the government.  
Then we moved on to the N-400 application, from which she asked me a few of the yes/no questions. She asked me to sign a couple of things like a correctness check and am I willing to take the Oath of Allegiance. It all happened so fast. Then she printed a paper and said I was recommended for approval but the case would be sent to quality review for final approval. She said I would get a date for the Oath Ceremony in the coming weeks. 
 
All of this happened extremely fast. Really. Super fast. I looked at my watch when I went in and in NINE minutes we were walking to the elevator! Amazing.
 
We studied and read so many interview stories and felt like we knew what to expect. We still stressed, though. It’s normal. 
 
One thing that someone wrote along the way stood out in all of the stories and studying: USCIS is not trying to trick anybody. They want you to succeed. Just tell the truth. Don’t try to change your narrative to fit what you think they want. Seems like that’s when things get complicated.
 
Our visa journey has been long but well worth it. If asked for one general piece of advice, we would just say to follow the guidance on this site. There are good, knowledgeable, and helpful people here. Present your case honestly. Try not to stress (too much) and let USCIS do the rest. 
 
The dream is just getting started. We can’t wait to see what’s next.

That is exactly what my wife's USCIS officer said during our combo interview.  Congratulations!!!!   You will soon be free of USCIS if you choose.

Plot twist: it was the same officer? 😃
 
Jokes aside, @A - J thank you for your experience. A lot of the times, online community only reports negative experience at USCIS, giving readers skewed perception of how immigration is. Surely, there's many bad experiences, but there's also a lot of positive stories like yours which don't get reported.
 
Congratulations!

*** Moved from US Citizenship General Discussion to Progress Reports ***
 
 
Congratulations and thanks for sharing your experience!
 

Congratulations!

As with our other trip to the federal building, we parked across the street and got into the building about 20 minutes before our appointment. We were allowed up after waiting five minutes.
 
Once in the USCIS office, they checked us in and asked us to take a seat. We waited about ten minutes beyond our appointment time, which was no big deal. 
 
The interviewing officer opened the door, called my name, and showed me back to her office where the interview started immediately - no small talk, very little eye contact, just business. 
 
She swore me to the truth, and began by asking me a couple of questions about me, my parents, and my husband. She then asked me to read a sentence/question: who lives in the White House? I read it. Then she said the answer out loud and asked me to write it: the President lives in the White House.
 
We then moved to the civics questions:
Who is one of your state’s US Senators now? Who is in charge of the Executive branch? There were 13 original states. Name three. Who is the Commander in Chief of the military? Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the federal government. What is one power of the federal government? Name one branch or part of the government.  
Then we moved on to the N-400 application, from which she asked me a few of the yes/no questions. She asked me to sign a couple of things like a correctness check and am I willing to take the Oath of Allegiance. It all happened so fast. Then she printed a paper and said I was recommended for approval but the case would be sent to quality review for final approval. She said I would get a date for the Oath Ceremony in the coming weeks. 
 
All of this happened extremely fast. Really. Super fast. I looked at my watch when I went in and in NINE minutes we were walking to the elevator! Amazing.
 
We studied and read so many interview stories and felt like we knew what to expect. We still stressed, though. It’s normal. 
 
One thing that someone wrote along the way stood out in all of the stories and studying: USCIS is not trying to trick anybody. They want you to succeed. Just tell the truth. Don’t try to change your narrative to fit what you think they want. Seems like that’s when things get complicated.
 
Our visa journey has been long but well worth it. If asked for one general piece of advice, we would just say to follow the guidance on this site. There are good, knowledgeable, and helpful people here. Present your case honestly. Try not to stress (too much) and let USCIS do the rest. 
 
The dream is just getting started. We can’t wait to see what’s next.

As with our other trip to the federal building, we parked across the street and got into the building about 20 minutes before our appointment. We were allowed up after waiting five minutes.
 
Once in the USCIS office, they checked us in and asked us to take a seat. We waited about ten minutes beyond our appointment time, which was no big deal. 
 
The interviewing officer opened the door, called my name, and showed me back to her office where the interview started immediately - no small talk, very little eye contact, just business. 
 
She swore me to the truth, and began by asking me a couple of questions about me, my parents, and my husband. She then asked me to read a sentence/question: who lives in the White House? I read it. Then she said the answer out loud and asked me to write it: the President lives in the White House.
 
We then moved to the civics questions:
Who is one of your state’s US Senators now? Who is in charge of the Executive branch? There were 13 original states. Name three. Who is the Commander in Chief of the military? Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the federal government. What is one power of the federal government? Name one branch or part of the government.  
Then we moved on to the N-400 application, from which she asked me a few of the yes/no questions. She asked me to sign a couple of things like a correctness check and am I willing to take the Oath of Allegiance. It all happened so fast. Then she printed a paper and said I was recommended for approval but the case would be sent to quality review for final approval. She said I would get a date for the Oath Ceremony in the coming weeks. 
 
All of this happened extremely fast. Really. Super fast. I looked at my watch when I went in and in NINE minutes we were walking to the elevator! Amazing.
 
We studied and read so many interview stories and felt like we knew what to expect. We still stressed, though. It’s normal. 
 
One thing that someone wrote along the way stood out in all of the stories and studying: USCIS is not trying to trick anybody. They want you to succeed. Just tell the truth. Don’t try to change your narrative to fit what you think they want. Seems like that’s when things get complicated.
 
Our visa journey has been long but well worth it. If asked for one general piece of advice, we would just say to follow the guidance on this site. There are good, knowledgeable, and helpful people here. Present your case honestly. Try not to stress (too much) and let USCIS do the rest. 
 
The dream is just getting started. We can’t wait to see what’s next.

As with our other trip to the federal building, we parked across the street and got into the building about 20 minutes before our appointment. We were allowed up after waiting five minutes.
 
Once in the USCIS office, they checked us in and asked us to take a seat. We waited about ten minutes beyond our appointment time, which was no big deal. 
 
The interviewing officer opened the door, called my name, and showed me back to her office where the interview started immediately - no small talk, very little eye contact, just business. 
 
She swore me to the truth, and began by asking me a couple of questions about me, my parents, and my husband. She then asked me to read a sentence/question: who lives in the White House? I read it. Then she said the answer out loud and asked me to write it: the President lives in the White House.
 
We then moved to the civics questions:
Who is one of your state’s US Senators now? Who is in charge of the Executive branch? There were 13 original states. Name three. Who is the Commander in Chief of the military? Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the federal government. What is one power of the federal government? Name one branch or part of the government.  
Then we moved on to the N-400 application, from which she asked me a few of the yes/no questions. She asked me to sign a couple of things like a correctness check and am I willing to take the Oath of Allegiance. It all happened so fast. Then she printed a paper and said I was recommended for approval but the case would be sent to quality review for final approval. She said I would get a date for the Oath Ceremony in the coming weeks. 
 
All of this happened extremely fast. Really. Super fast. I looked at my watch when I went in and in NINE minutes we were walking to the elevator! Amazing.
 
We studied and read so many interview stories and felt like we knew what to expect. We still stressed, though. It’s normal. 
 
One thing that someone wrote along the way stood out in all of the stories and studying: USCIS is not trying to trick anybody. They want you to succeed. Just tell the truth. Don’t try to change your narrative to fit what you think they want. Seems like that’s when things get complicated.
 
Our visa journey has been long but well worth it. If asked for one general piece of advice, we would just say to follow the guidance on this site. There are good, knowledgeable, and helpful people here. Present your case honestly. Try not to stress (too much) and let USCIS do the rest. 
 
The dream is just getting started. We can’t wait to see what’s next.

As with our other trip to the federal building, we parked across the street and got into the building about 20 minutes before our appointment. We were allowed up after waiting five minutes.
 
Once in the USCIS office, they checked us in and asked us to take a seat. We waited about ten minutes beyond our appointment time, which was no big deal. 
 
The interviewing officer opened the door, called my name, and showed me back to her office where the interview started immediately - no small talk, very little eye contact, just business. 
 
She swore me to the truth, and began by asking me a couple of questions about me, my parents, and my husband. She then asked me to read a sentence/question: who lives in the White House? I read it. Then she said the answer out loud and asked me to write it: the President lives in the White House.
 
We then moved to the civics questions:
Who is one of your state’s US Senators now? Who is in charge of the Executive branch? There were 13 original states. Name three. Who is the Commander in Chief of the military? Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the federal government. What is one power of the federal government? Name one branch or part of the government.  
Then we moved on to the N-400 application, from which she asked me a few of the yes/no questions. She asked me to sign a couple of things like a correctness check and am I willing to take the Oath of Allegiance. It all happened so fast. Then she printed a paper and said I was recommended for approval but the case would be sent to quality review for final approval. She said I would get a date for the Oath Ceremony in the coming weeks. 
 
All of this happened extremely fast. Really. Super fast. I looked at my watch when I went in and in NINE minutes we were walking to the elevator! Amazing.
 
We studied and read so many interview stories and felt like we knew what to expect. We still stressed, though. It’s normal. 
 
One thing that someone wrote along the way stood out in all of the stories and studying: USCIS is not trying to trick anybody. They want you to succeed. Just tell the truth. Don’t try to change your narrative to fit what you think they want. Seems like that’s when things get complicated.
 
Our visa journey has been long but well worth it. If asked for one general piece of advice, we would just say to follow the guidance on this site. There are good, knowledgeable, and helpful people here. Present your case honestly. Try not to stress (too much) and let USCIS do the rest. 
 
The dream is just getting started. We can’t wait to see what’s next.

As with our other trip to the federal building, we parked across the street and got into the building about 20 minutes before our appointment. We were allowed up after waiting five minutes.
 
Once in the USCIS office, they checked us in and asked us to take a seat. We waited about ten minutes beyond our appointment time, which was no big deal. 
 
The interviewing officer opened the door, called my name, and showed me back to her office where the interview started immediately - no small talk, very little eye contact, just business. 
 
She swore me to the truth, and began by asking me a couple of questions about me, my parents, and my husband. She then asked me to read a sentence/question: who lives in the White House? I read it. Then she said the answer out loud and asked me to write it: the President lives in the White House.
 
We then moved to the civics questions:
Who is one of your state’s US Senators now? Who is in charge of the Executive branch? There were 13 original states. Name three. Who is the Commander in Chief of the military? Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the federal government. What is one power of the federal government? Name one branch or part of the government.  
Then we moved on to the N-400 application, from which she asked me a few of the yes/no questions. She asked me to sign a couple of things like a correctness check and am I willing to take the Oath of Allegiance. It all happened so fast. Then she printed a paper and said I was recommended for approval but the case would be sent to quality review for final approval. She said I would get a date for the Oath Ceremony in the coming weeks. 
 
All of this happened extremely fast. Really. Super fast. I looked at my watch when I went in and in NINE minutes we were walking to the elevator! Amazing.
 
We studied and read so many interview stories and felt like we knew what to expect. We still stressed, though. It’s normal. 
 
One thing that someone wrote along the way stood out in all of the stories and studying: USCIS is not trying to trick anybody. They want you to succeed. Just tell the truth. Don’t try to change your narrative to fit what you think they want. Seems like that’s when things get complicated.
 
Our visa journey has been long but well worth it. If asked for one general piece of advice, we would just say to follow the guidance on this site. There are good, knowledgeable, and helpful people here. Present your case honestly. Try not to stress (too much) and let USCIS do the rest. 
 
The dream is just getting started. We can’t wait to see what’s next.

Had our interview on the 15th! We got to the area 40 minutes early. So much for rush hour traffic going to Cleveland, oops. Anyway, it went well and was pretty smooth. The gentleman didn't want any of our co-mingling evidence we printed out. I asked if he was sure, "I have more than enough here". (I was surprised how large the file was lol..) He only took our wedding photos in the end. 
 
Still waiting on a decision though. No approval or denial yet. Making me paranoid and obsessively checking the case status throughout the day. 

Yep. We’re fortunate to live closest to the most efficient USCIS office in the nation. Also the shortest average processing time. COVID slowed things down a bit but yes, we were lucky to get done as quickly as we did. We did nothing special. Filed everything ourselves using the guidance provided on this website. 
 
Good luck to you for a speedy completion of your AOS! 

Yep. We’re fortunate to live closest to the most efficient USCIS office in the nation. Also the shortest average processing time. COVID slowed things down a bit but yes, we were lucky to get done as quickly as we did. We did nothing special. Filed everything ourselves using the guidance provided on this website. 
 
Good luck to you for a speedy completion of your AOS! 

Yep. We’re fortunate to live closest to the most efficient USCIS office in the nation. Also the shortest average processing time. COVID slowed things down a bit but yes, we were lucky to get done as quickly as we did. We did nothing special. Filed everything ourselves using the guidance provided on this website. 
 
Good luck to you for a speedy completion of your AOS! 

Just wanted to drop in and say thank you for all of your encouragement as well as being here in times when this process was more than a little frustrating.
 
We had our AOS interview today in CLE, which we passed. 
 
Here’s a link to our review of the process: https://www.visajourney.com/reviews/view-dos-cis-reviews.php?entry=28771
 
Have a great day!

What a day! It took a minute but we made it! Green Card is finally in hand! 
 
Best of luck to everybody here!
 
Keep the faith. 

What a day! It took a minute but we made it! Green Card is finally in hand! 
 
Best of luck to everybody here!
 
Keep the faith. 

What a day! It took a minute but we made it! Green Card is finally in hand! 
 
Best of luck to everybody here!
 
Keep the faith. 

Update: EAD approved 11/5 as well as card being produced. 11/6, it was sent out in the mail. 485 is now sitting at "ready to be scheduled an interview" in Cleveland. 

Just wanted to drop in and say thank you for all of your encouragement as well as being here in times when this process was more than a little frustrating.
 
We had our AOS interview today in CLE, which we passed. 
 
Here’s a link to our review of the process: https://www.visajourney.com/reviews/view-dos-cis-reviews.php?entry=28771
 
Have a great day!

Just wanted to drop in and say thank you for all of your encouragement as well as being here in times when this process was more than a little frustrating.
 
We had our AOS interview today in CLE, which we passed. 
 
Here’s a link to our review of the process: https://www.visajourney.com/reviews/view-dos-cis-reviews.php?entry=28771
 
Have a great day!

Just wanted to drop in and say thank you for all of your encouragement as well as being here in times when this process was more than a little frustrating.
 
We had our AOS interview today in CLE, which we passed. 
 
Here’s a link to our review of the process: https://www.visajourney.com/reviews/view-dos-cis-reviews.php?entry=28771
 
Have a great day!

Our EAD status was updated to “card was mailed to me”. Not sure how long that takes but I guess a week to ten days? 
 
Oh, also our AOS status was changed to “interview was scheduled”.