L1 & L2

2 hours ago, vickykgp said:

For applying OCI Do we need to send our US passport?

Yes but VFS sends it back in about a week after verification. They do not hold back US passport until actual OCI is approved which is good.

2 hours ago, RickyMIndia said:

I went through the OCI process last year. My marriage certificate also has the date of marriage and date of registration as two different dates. I put the date of registration as asked in the marriage registration date.  They accepted it and I got everything done. 

I think since OCI application is not on basis of spouse, it matters less in general. But if someone is getting OCI on basis of spouse being Indian origin then these fields will matter

1 hour ago, RickyMIndia said:

Agree. Hope you have completed the first step of 'Renunciation' and got the certificate.  You will need to send copies of the Renunciation certificate and cancelled passport. 

Thanks. Yes, I have completed my renunciation step . I also called VFS helpline and they confirmed that original Indian Passport is not required. Copies are sufficient.

On 12/15/2020 at 8:23 PM, Jot18 said:

This is a guide for OCI application process.

Step 1: Complete the basic questionnaire on this Link for OCI. After completing the questionnaire, it will show you the fees and click proceed. Then it will ask you to make an account for VFS website. After creating the account, check your email and activate the account. After activating the account, you are done with VFS.

Step 2: Go ahead and fill out the application on this Link. After you are done with application, review it then click submit. After that, it will ask you to upload a digital photo and signature. Click “Yes I am ready with the image.” The passport size photo that you will be sending with application must be uploaded here at this step. Also sign your name on a blank piece of paper and scan that as well and upload it at this step. Make sure to crop the signature so its fits in the box. Then, click “I have uploaded successfully” and proceed to complete the questionnaire by clicking “Proceed to Part-B”.

Step 3: After completing the questionnaire, click “Submit” and it will take you to a page where you must upload the mandatory documents in a pdf format. After you are done uploading click “Final Submit” and click “Generate Registration” and save that pdf.
 

Step 4: Go back to VFS website and Login. After logging in, Click “Create New Application” and fill out the form. I strongly recommend using online payment as its instant but it does come with a 3.5% charge. Then click “Add Customer” and fill out the form and submit. OCI Govt Reference Number was given at the end of the OCI application. Then Select the shipping method. I recommend VFS offered courier service as you’ll get the labels right away. Go ahead and put your address on the next page and pay the fees.

Step 5: After paying the fees, you will be given a checklist and receipt number. Make sure you print out the whole document which should be around 7 pages. Read through the checklist thoroughly and sign it then mail your application.

You must apply for renunciation of Indian Citizenship prior to filling out your OCI application.

Note: Do not affix any photos on the application. Just send 2 passport size photos with the application. Do not forget to include a prepaid label or $15 money order/cashier check for the return of your US Passport.

I hope I cleared all the confusions. If there is anything else that someone would like to add please post below

Sorry to bother you again but this whole OCI process is a mess triggering more questions 😞 Did you submit your canceled Indian passport (original) along with copy of renunciation certificate ? Instructions on checklist are contradicting each other. At one place as Proof of Indian origin, it says "Copy of first three and last two pages of the last-held Indian passport of the applicant. - DON’T SEND ORIGINAL INDIAN PASSPORTS."  And on other hand for "Proof of Renunciation" it says Surrendered Passport along with the copy of the Surrender/Renunciation Certificate must be submitted for Indian passports surrendered after May 2010

So what did you do exactly? And if you indeed submitted original canceled passport then when did you receive it back?

On 3/6/2021 at 11:11 AM, Shivoham said:

For the citizenship interview, can anyone  confirm if the USCIS seattle allows having a child with you during interview?

Yes they allow that. My daughter accompanied my wife during her interview

On 3/3/2021 at 12:24 PM, Love_Victoria said:

Does anybody know realistic passport processing timelines? 

 

We applied for expedited passport but the time line reads 4-6 weeks. Just want to know if others have a better experience. 

It took 3.5 weeks for me to get passport in hand from the date of application. I had also applied for expedited service . I applied on 01/04 and got it in fourth week of Jan

On 12/15/2020 at 8:23 PM, Jot18 said:

This is a guide for OCI application process.

Step 1: Complete the basic questionnaire on this Link for OCI. After completing the questionnaire, it will show you the fees and click proceed. Then it will ask you to make an account for VFS website. After creating the account, check your email and activate the account. After activating the account, you are done with VFS.

Step 2: Go ahead and fill out the application on this Link. After you are done with application, review it then click submit. After that, it will ask you to upload a digital photo and signature. Click “Yes I am ready with the image.” The passport size photo that you will be sending with application must be uploaded here at this step. Also sign your name on a blank piece of paper and scan that as well and upload it at this step. Make sure to crop the signature so its fits in the box. Then, click “I have uploaded successfully” and proceed to complete the questionnaire by clicking “Proceed to Part-B”.

Step 3: After completing the questionnaire, click “Submit” and it will take you to a page where you must upload the mandatory documents in a pdf format. After you are done uploading click “Final Submit” and click “Generate Registration” and save that pdf.
 

Step 4: Go back to VFS website and Login. After logging in, Click “Create New Application” and fill out the form. I strongly recommend using online payment as its instant but it does come with a 3.5% charge. Then click “Add Customer” and fill out the form and submit. OCI Govt Reference Number was given at the end of the OCI application. Then Select the shipping method. I recommend VFS offered courier service as you’ll get the labels right away. Go ahead and put your address on the next page and pay the fees.

Step 5: After paying the fees, you will be given a checklist and receipt number. Make sure you print out the whole document which should be around 7 pages. Read through the checklist thoroughly and sign it then mail your application.

You must apply for renunciation of Indian Citizenship prior to filling out your OCI application.

Note: Do not affix any photos on the application. Just send 2 passport size photos with the application. Do not forget to include a prepaid label or $15 money order/cashier check for the return of your US Passport.

I hope I cleared all the confusions. If there is anything else that someone would like to add please post below

Hi Jot18 - Not sure on your marriage status but if you are married and filed OCI with that status then perhaps you can help with my query here:  For new OCI application, it asks for "Marriage Registration Date". So I am assuming this the date when marriage is registered (as per stated on my marriage certificate) rather than actual marriage date itself. Is that right? I could not find any guidance on VFS website hence checking with this forum. Also it is bit unusual to use this Marriage Registration date on form (never saw it before in any of my visa processes before).

For new OCI application, it asks for "Marriage Registration Date". So I am assuming this the date when marriage is registered (as per stated on my marriage certificate) rather than actual marriage date itself. Is that right? I could not find any guidance on VFS website hence checking with this forum

2 hours ago, JFH said:

Ha ha! I was the same with my I-130 wait too. Thank you for the birthday wishes.

 

Update: Interview has been scheduled for March 22.

Cool - BIG congratulations ! Long wait is finally coming to an end

4 hours ago, Love_Victoria said:

Happy to update this group that our interviews are done and we are citizens now.

 

The process was simple and very organized. We reached there early but were allowed to enter 15 mins before. 

The officer conducted the interview, took our GC and read out our oath. We got the documentation right away. The whole process took about 2 hours including the wait.

 

Passports are going to be another different story. Close-by post offices are booked till March 11 with no available slots  

 

Good luck to all of you

Great - Hearty Congratulations !  How did that "name change' request go? I guess you had that question before.

1 hour ago, Shivoham said:

Just saw the interview letter posted on my account. the Interview date is March 02, as I had expected

Cool. Congratulations and All the best !

48 minutes ago, Love_Victoria said:

Does anybody know if the oath ceremonies are happening the same day? We have our interview next week. In the application, we had asked for name change but if the process is going to get delayed, the we will just stick with our current names  

They are surely taking place on the same day. As mentioned earlier in one of my posts, same interview officer after finishing interview will administer the oath and then you will be asked to wait outside to pick up the certificate. Not sure how the process works with name change request etc. Not familiar with that

On 1/20/2021 at 12:33 PM, Numii said:

Do we have to enter US passport information at the top or Indian passport?

 

 

I entered latest Indian passport details at both because US passport anyway does not print your Father's name and that is one of the questions in that form. I do not think putting Indian passport in both places will harm anything. This VFS form is mainly to clear payment process. Nothing else.

On 12/25/2020 at 3:32 PM, Jot18 said:

This is a guide on surrendering your Indian Passport after becoming naturalized US Citizen.

 

Step 1: Click this Link and click register. After signing up check your email and activate your account and proceed to login.

 

Step 2: After you have logged in click on the link where it says “Apply for Surrender of Indian Passport - Application for Passport Surrender Certificate After Acquiring Foreign Nationality/Renunciation of Indian Citizenship”, and fill the form. After completing and form, check for corrections and click validate. Then click home and the form will appear on the home page. Print that form.

 

Step 3: Create an account on VFS website or Login in here. After you have logged in click “Create a new application” and fill out the form. After click proceed, you will have to fill out another form. ARN # is the number you should have got after completing the surrender passport application on govt of India website. I can’t go beyond this step, but I think after paying the fees you are given a checklist to mail with your application and a receipt for your payment. All the different type of checklists required can be found Link under documents required tab.

 

Note: There is one more additional form that you must fill out based on your checklist. Do not forget to include that. The form can found on the same page as the checklist. Read the checklist thoroughly before mailing.

 

I hope I cleared all the confusions. If there is anything else that someone would like to add please post below.

 

In renunciation certificate fillable form which they have included in the checklist, did you enter your name in the bottom section of "Surrender Certificate"? or you left it completely blank since this section is ideally for consulate officer to fill up? Attaching that form for reference

renunciation-certificate-fillable-form-updated.pdf

22 hours ago, swadesi said:

New quarterly reports are out, and the numbers are still as pathetic as ever. 

 

	Received	Approved	Pending	Denied
Jan-March 31 2019	4075	1640	22831	446
April 1 - June 30, 2019	4315	4385	4385	226
July 1 - September 30, 2019	4628	2621	18805	273
October 1 - December 31, 2019	5043	3192	18203	158
January 1 - March 31, 2020	4983	4197	19333	219
April 1 - June 30, 2020	3499	1369	21688	125
July 1 - September 30, 2020	6593	1797	27326	279

 

 

 

Yikes so re-opening of offices in June did not really speed up anything 😞 27K backlog with 2K processing speed/quarter 😞  Yes - of course things will improve with vaccine rollout in this year but it will not come to normal levels at least until Q4 this year it seems

22 hours ago, mbalih said:

Wow - please forgive my ignorance....but why such a high rate of denials? Any insight?

They don't provide insights into the reasons for denial but usually failure of background checks on basis of false data submission, some serious criminal charges, as well some Test failures are common. Overall USA for that last reported quarter was about 11% denials and Seattle is around 13% + denials.

On 1/23/2021 at 2:31 PM, MGMA said:

 

	Received	Approved	Pending	Denied
Jan-March 31 2019	4075	1640	22,831	446
April 1 - June 30, 2019	4,315	4,385	4,385	226
July 1 - September 30, 2019	4,628	2,621	18,805	273
October 1 - December 31, 2019	5,043	3,192	18,203	158
January 1 - March 31, 2020	4,983	4,197	19,333	219
April 1 - June 30, 2020	3,499	1,369	21,688	125

 

 

Here is some stats guys, it's not very promising. These stats are for Seattle office. 

 

Backlog is getting higher 21,688. More applications were received overtime, which explain why it's slowing more and more with the fact that they are processing way less cases at about 25% capacity April - June 2020 compared to January - March 2020. 

 

I applied jan-march 2020, which have increased volume of applications 5k in the quarter before mine, compared to 4628 the one before and 4315 the one before. 

 

We have way long to wait. All what I can say is stay patient. We have nothing to do in our hands. 

April to June 2020 is not a great quarter to predict processing speed for future because for the majority of period, USCIS offices were closed due to COVID. USCIS started again in early June so it will be important to see processing speed for July to Sept 2020 quarter. That will tell some better story.

Completion date on USCIS account has absolutely no meaning (at least right now). They do not update that to project accurately. Keep following trend from other applicants. That is more relevant and useful for getting some sense on timelines. Once you cross-over completion timeline it will keep saying that there is nothing pending for you but we are taking longer time than usual for processing. That's about it

29 minutes ago, Decent80 said:

That’s great. Did you apply in 2020? If yes, it gives me hopes that we will hear from USCIS soon. We filled in April 2020.

Follow this tracker for better projections - https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1FcItCasVItCDsUNEbDu15IRQ-AbDMRJWsiljwtz5WRI/edit#gid=1497976778&fvid=1704592725

Applicants of 2020 are far down in the queue unfortunately. Right now they are processing mainly Aug - 2019 applicants

11 hours ago, Love_Victoria said:

Interview scheduled as of yesterday. Both my husband and I applied together but only I received the interview update while my husband's is still pending. Anybody seen this before?

 

I dont have the dates yet. Just got an update via an email.

Congrats and all the best. In my case, I and my wife had applied N400 on same day (literally 5-10 min apart) and we got interview scheduled exactly in the same time slot. But I know few cases in my friend's circle where husband and wife had their interviews on different days. That should not be a big concern.

13 hours ago, Shivoham said:

Congratulations to you and your family. Big day today. 

Also, thank you for sharing your experience and the answer to my question. 

Thanks and hope you will get your turn soon 

Better date judgement can be estimated using this forum rather than actual USCIS estimation. Their estimate does not hold good and they do not change it either. It is just one initial number. 

Happy to share that I am a citizen of the USA now 🙂 . My citizenship application was approved today. It has been close to 9 years in this country and I am excited & thrilled with this milestone. I will try to provide some details of my experience today which can perhaps answer some of your queries in terms of what to expect on 'THE' day.

My and my wife's interview was in Seattle USCIS @ 12500 Tukwila International Blvd. There is a parking lot next to building so parking should not be an issue. Due to COVID, they are not allowing anyone to enter the building more than 15 min. before interview time. It was stated on my interview notice as well and they are truly following it. After entering building, you will go through normal airport style security check on same first floor. After that there is a appointment desk where someone will validate your notice/id card and then check you in. They will give you one printed token number. After that you will have to go to second floor and just wait in waiting area out there. Make sure that phone is completely switched off in this place.

USCIS Officer comes there and calls by token number or name. And then he/she will take you to their office room. You will be put on Oath to speak truth and then it goes through interview process of Civic test, English test and any follow-up questions on your N400 form itself. If you have traveled outside USA after your application date then please make sure that you have all details of the same. For writing test, they do it on tablet set up there. After interview is done, officer tells you that your application is approved or not (was of course approved in my case ) and you will be required to sign some forms on that tablet itself. Same officer administers Oath right there immediately after interview (assuming it is approved). In my case, officers were really nice and they combined Oath administration for me and my wife together although actual interview for us was taken by two different officers in two different rooms. After Oath is taken, that marks the end of process with the officer. You will be asked to wait in waiting area again where some other admin person will come out and hand over naturalization certification and welcome kit. 

Of course above experience is my personal experience and this may change in future depending on COVID situation. But nonetheless thought of sharing it with folks who will have interview in upcoming days.

I wish you all the very best for your citizenship process. I am unlikely to track this thread actively now onward but if you have questions then feel free to reach on 1:1 message.

5 hours ago, Shivoham said:

Can someone who received their interview notice please answer my query? 

I had applied in Sep 2019, still waiting for interview notification, but I need to travel outside USA for next 1-2 months, and so i'll be checking my status everyday, and plan to come back early if the interview gets scheduled early. I understand that when they schedule me for interview, I will see change in my online status. That 'status change' doesn't mention the actual interview date, correct? Since that 'Status change', when would i actually be able to know the interview date? Will i see a letter in my online account? OR would i have to wait for the letter to reach in my physical mailbox? Also, after how many days of 'status change', did you see the letter, online or physcial? 

Thanks you.  

Make sure that your online account has notification enabled for email as well as text message. Without that setting, you will not get notification. Once you get a notification on email that there has been status update on your account then in first step you will be able to see that "Interview has been scheduled" (you will not know date immediately). But after say 24 hours - 48 hours, they upload actual interview notice in your documents folder in online account in which you can see entire details including interview date. Exact same notice gets sent to you via mail as well. I received mail in about 4-5 working days.

On 12/18/2020 at 2:43 PM, Daisy&Vincent said:

We received the interview notice and updated the spreadsheet with the interview date.  My wife has been continuing to study non-stop, hoping to report some good news in the new year.  Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and Happy New Year all!

Great - All the best for your interview