OldUser

Get it in writing from him.

Get it from them in writing saying it's fine. See how the lawyer reacts. By the way, if you have the previous lawyer's advice not to inform USCIS about divorce in writing, maybe that could be used in your defence when your N-400 is filed. It would be shaky evidence, but maybe a strong lawyer could use that to your advantage. E.g. "my client did not intend fraud and asked lawyer about the procedure but was misinformed." I am not sure this argument would fly, but it's worth considering. Do not apply for N-400 on your own. Only with good legal representation. You're right to be "a little scared". The cosequences of applying for N-400 can be huge in your case. Do you have plenty of good evidence of bonafide marriage with your ex spouse?

Hi @Charmss, if you're eligible, file under 5 year rule. You still will need to provide tax return transcripts for the last five years to show your good moral character. I think you still need to provide marriage certificate to prove your marital status. For N-400 under 5 year rule, you wouldn't need to provide bonafide marriage evidence. However, if you're I-751 is still pending, you and your spouse can still be interviewed or get RFE asking for more bonafide marriage evidence.

What do you mean? I-751 can only be filed on paper as of today.

That I don't know. I wouldn't think it's a problem though. There's a reason multiple fingers are fingerprinted.

No, this status change is normal. Your case can be in this status for a long time.

You mean I-751 approval? This can take from few days to 4+ years. Every case is different. You can also take a look at processing times to get an estimate: https://egov.uscis.gov/processing-times/

Was his name changed as part of naturalization in the US? Perhaps a FOIA request could help? Do you have a copy of his naturalization certificate?

Not a great move. The problem with this approach - whether you check in online or not, on your inbound flight to USA, your physical GC will be checked by airline, security, CBP at multiple stages. Don't let this discrepancy lead to issues. I find that being LPR or dual citizen, online check in may not work / worthless on international flights. Domestic US flights - sure.

Awesome, it should help somebody in similar situation in the future!

@WaterLeaf thanks for posting your experience. Did you fill out SS-5? How did you answer those questions? Sorry I couldn't find copy of my submitted SS-5

@hannac I wouldn't worry too much about it. I've seen this status reported by people after attending interview few times now.

If you look at the form closely, item #2 asks for existing SSN. Make sure to put it in.

I went through this process myself, speaking from experience here. You're changing information on SS card. This is one of the uses for SS-5 form. See attached image.

That's simply wrong. Many LPRs got their unrestricted SS cards, including me (I-751 pending).

Take all proof, print it out, as well as completed SS-5 form and ask again. If not, demand to see manager. You have rights, sometimes SSA employees need a bit of a nudge 🥲

@westmeetseast looks like it's time to study civics test and prepare for the interview. Good luck!

Instructions say submit evidence from day of marriage. However, many people had success submitting only evidence since becoming LPR until I-751 filing. If you want to be bulletproof, have evidence since beginning of marriage. Occasionally, USCIS lose some docs or not have them in the system. So it doesn't hurt to have it all. Especially if you had stokes in the past and may potentially have stokes again for ROC. Make sure to practise some questions and answers with your spouse. Make sure you both know answers to common questions about each other and your relationship history.

Thank you for clarifying the dates, this is less than 180 days thus your case should be approvable if filed in after September 20th 2023 (provided all other eligibility criteria is met). I am really sorry you had to live through abuse and hard times in your life. Nowhere I suggested that you had fun etc. My usage of "lengthy trip" wasn't implying any negative connotation or assuming vacation. Trips are trips and can be due to many reasons: family emergencies, business issues and other. I'm sorry if you felt I used words to shame etc, I had no such intention. All I was trying to establish whether this can be a point an IO can stumble upon. Doesn't look like it would be. Be ready to prove your case and fight for it though, not every IO is a nice sensible person. That applies not just to you and your case, anybody can face it in their immigration. Good luck with I-751 and N-400! I hope you have a good smooth application and quick approval. By the way, did you convert your case to divorce waiver case?

Here's a list: https://hackinglawpractice.com/marital-evidence

Life is somewhat unfair in general. I wouldn't feel guilty about your employment based GC getting approved faster than other's family case. A lot of LPRs, spouses of US citizens will get an opportunity to apply for citizenship on 3 year rule, whereas you'd have to wait for 5 years of residence. So many of them can become US citizens sooner than you!

@judythebunny became LPR in December 2018 and left for a lengthy trip less few weeks after in January 2019. Are 2-3 weeks of residence sufficient to start counting eligibility from December 2018? I know, technically he's LPR based on Resident Since. But the absense is also on the borderline of 6 months. What if the OP left the US on January 3rd and came back on June 20th? That would be 169-2 = 167? Of course, can calculate more precisely if exact dates are provided. I think it'd make a much cleaner case to start counting residence since return in June 2019.

I'd advise counting 4 years and 9 months since June 2019, to be on a safe side. That would be sometime in March 2024 for N-400 submission. Maybe @Mike E can comment?

@Bavarian91 thank you for sharing! As a side note, I also noticed case statuses now being retreived super fast in CaseTrack app. Like 10x faster than before. I think this may be to do with USCIS upgrading their backend systems. No longer it takes me few minutes to refresh status for 500 cases. Now it takes a few seconds, which is great.

Got it, are you sure? What's your resident since date? Are you filing under 3 or 5 year rule? Did you have long trip outside of the US?