Damian P

Thanks Damian P and i passed , they have an oath today but i have changed my name and he said i will have to wait for my oath letter in mail. I'll give more update later. Thanks a lot guys

Oh, well you'll be fine then. I'm glad we both don't have to go through this horse-.

The US will only consider you American, so you never pull out your British passport when entering the US. But when entering the UK, you can switch to your British passport and take your whole family through the short line. And you have easy travel around EU nations with a British passport.
Once American, you are obligated to file a US tax return every year if your earnings are above the filing level, no matter where in the world you live or earn. That doesn't mean you pay taxes to the US if you earn money and reside back in the UK. There is a tax treaty where the same money isn't 't taxed in both places. There's foreign income exclusion and such. People may say "if you become American you will have to PAY US taxes the rest of your life." Not pay, but maybe FILE with zero money to pay. There is a difference between "filing" and "paying".

You become a US citizen by going through the process and paying the fee.
You get an American passport using your shiny new naturalization certificate.
You keep your British passport and renew it when necessary.
There is no "choice" to be made. You are simply adding a second citizenship. The Brits will never cross you off their roles unless you file a form and pay a fee to the home office to formally revoke.

OK, so here's how it went down:
I turned up at the federal building in St Louis about 20 mins prior to my interview. I slipped the appointment letter into the slot provided, and was called right on time.
From the second the lady IO swore me in, the whole experience was positive and pleasant. I instantly knew that I'd passed, which made the whole process a breeze. She smiled and said "I don't think you're going to have too much of a problem with this" as she asked me to read a sentence and write "California has a lot of people" on the piece of paper provided.
I was then asked the following six questions:
There are four amendments to the Constitution about who can vote - describe one of them.
If the President can no longer serve, who becomes President?
Who is in charge of the executive branch?
How old do citizens have to be to vote for president?
What is one reason colonists came to America?
Name two national US holidays.
She then went through the formality of asking me the questions on the N-400 form, actually apologizing for having to do so! And here's where the hitch occurred. Everybody familiar with the eternal speeding ticket debate? Well, I had one four years ago, and I mentioned as much on the N-400. I actually kept the ticket, along with proof of the defensive driving course they had me take as to avoid the offence ever appearing on my driving record. However, that was not enough, and she insisted that I needed something from the courthouse concerned stating that the matter had been dealt with. So many other people have said that their IO wasn't bothered about it but mine was. I explained that it was four years ago and it had never gone to court and as such, they probably didn't haven't any record of it. To her absolute credit, she altered her wording on the N-14 form (that's the one they give you when further documentation is required) stating that if there was no official record, that a letter stating as much on headed paper would suffice. As it goes, I went to the courthouse concerned, and incredibly, all she had to do was type in the four-year-old ticket number and hey presto, up it popped!! Keep all your speeding tickets, folks!!! I returned to the USCIS office with the required documentation the next day (today) and now it's just the a case of waiting for the oath ceremony.
Really was a an absolute breeze - a most pleasant experience. We were chatting about current affairs, movies etc by the end of it!

Full review of the experience on the June filers thread, bud.

Yep. Just an updated list of the stuff you used for the initial K-1/CR-1 all those years ago!

Congratulations and I'm very glad you had that ticket! It'll make things move a lot faster. I think an RFE does cause at least a minor delay, because without it you could have been approved on the day of your interview, but I don't think the delay will be significant. It probably depends on the backlog of RFE files at your local office and whether they process your file as soon as you respond or if there's a delay of a couple of days of weeks. In most cases I've read about, where they're only asking for something routine that doesn't affect the status of your application, it's only a delay of days and not months. Good luck.
Now let me rant:
I wonder how may people end up having to fight USCIS (either with the help of their representatives or through the courts) over this issue. Many people will simply not be able to respond to such an RFE. The Naturalization Guide and the USCIS Policy Manual both state that no evidence needs to be submitted if traffic tickets were under $500 and not DWI/DUI related (you still have to disclose them, but don't have to supply evidence). There are many people who have been residents for 10, 15, or 20 years and I really doubt that a 40 year old would still have a speeding ticket from when he/she was 21. I don't know about other states, but in Texas, your driving record does not show anything older than 7 years... so even if I knew I had a speeding ticket from 2003 while driving up to Dallas, I wouldn't know where to ask for documentation unless I remembered exactly which little town I was stopped at 11 years ago and whether I was stopped by a City officer, a High patrolman, a Sheriff's deputy, or a State trooper. I'd have to call every county and city courthouse between Houston and Dallas to see if they had a record of my ticket and I probably would only have a rough idea of the date.
And what about people who were bad drivers when they were younger and have 5 or 10 tickets from 20 years ago? They probably don't remember every one and wouldn't even be able to accurately list them all on their application... I suppose the best they can do is tell the IO that they just don't remember... but then they'll end up with an RFE that they can't respond to. It seems rather ridiculous speeding should stop you from being naturalized.

OK, so here's how it went down:
I turned up at the federal building in St Louis about 20 mins prior to my interview. I slipped the appointment letter into the slot provided, and was called right on time.
From the second the lady IO swore me in, the whole experience was positive and pleasant. I instantly knew that I'd passed, which made the whole process a breeze. She smiled and said "I don't think you're going to have too much of a problem with this" as she asked me to read a sentence and write "California has a lot of people" on the piece of paper provided.
I was then asked the following six questions:
There are four amendments to the Constitution about who can vote - describe one of them.
If the President can no longer serve, who becomes President?
Who is in charge of the executive branch?
How old do citizens have to be to vote for president?
What is one reason colonists came to America?
Name two national US holidays.
She then went through the formality of asking me the questions on the N-400 form, actually apologizing for having to do so! And here's where the hitch occurred. Everybody familiar with the eternal speeding ticket debate? Well, I had one four years ago, and I mentioned as much on the N-400. I actually kept the ticket, along with proof of the defensive driving course they had me take as to avoid the offence ever appearing on my driving record. However, that was not enough, and she insisted that I needed something from the courthouse concerned stating that the matter had been dealt with. So many other people have said that their IO wasn't bothered about it but mine was. I explained that it was four years ago and it had never gone to court and as such, they probably didn't haven't any record of it. To her absolute credit, she altered her wording on the N-14 form (that's the one they give you when further documentation is required) stating that if there was no official record, that a letter stating as much on headed paper would suffice. As it goes, I went to the courthouse concerned, and incredibly, all she had to do was type in the four-year-old ticket number and hey presto, up it popped!! Keep all your speeding tickets, folks!!! I returned to the USCIS office with the required documentation the next day (today) and now it's just the a case of waiting for the oath ceremony.
Really was a an absolute breeze - a most pleasant experience. We were chatting about current affairs, movies etc by the end of it!

:: LoveJalapeño Cheetos (not the Flaming Hot)
Lay's Salt and Vinegar or Kroger store brand Salt And Vinegar chips
Just sayin'

I felt at home the second I stepped off the plane an onto the tarmac at MSP in March of 2009. Uncle Sam is my home, period. And when I return (after having spent a year or so back in England once the citizenship thing is done) then I will refer to it as "coming home." Truly.

I have never had to enter the passport information when purchasing the tickets. The name on the ticket is the most important part as airlines will not do a name change without canceling the one ticket and issuing a new one. You can buy the tickets and never enter the passport or visa information. Doing so does make check-in go a bit faster and you can verify that the information is correct.
Dave

Alamro, just put Jordan. I mean, it's just a means to an end, right? It doesn't make you any less Palestinian at the end of the day. It's like the oath ceremony, when you have to disavow any association with any other land. I have a British friend that woun't become a U.S. citizen because he point blank refuses to speak the words necessitated in the swearing of the oath. Why?? Is it going to make him any less British?? Is it going to erase his birth and upbringing? Is it bollocks! He'll always be a Brit in his heart just like you'll always be a Palestinian - there's no "betrayal" issue here if that's what you're worried about. ;-)

You know what? When I read threads like this I'm SO glad that I'm just an ordinary working grunt that doesn't have to worry about all things "professional." Appearance, education, grammar, spelling - all complete non-issues when you spend your working day surrounded by hogs in various states of dismemberment!
Hey, newbud - my place is always hiring. And English is most definitely not a requirement (ditto education, good moral character, the ability to walk upright, etc....)

I totally agree.
Also, I feel that second stage has done nothing wrong, he's always trying to help everyone, sometimes more than he probably should. On the topic today, he was just trying to figure out ways to help certain people who can't do their own research about their own field centers and keep "freaking out" about every little step of this process, when their expectations (which are usually off) are not met. The theory about GC dates and in line for interview dates when someone used the 90-day rule has been proved correct in most cases (but not all). There are and there will always be exceptions, but it's also interesting to see how things work. We are all on the same boat and should try to help each other instead of putting each other down.
Unfortunately there are people here who like to create drama and some people who like to instigate the drama too. I was trying to stay out of it, but I had to defend second stage. Do I always agree with him? No. I might say things that other people don't agree with. But he is already a citizen and is only giving his opinion and time to help. I'm not saying that you shouldn't voice when you disagree about something but attacking him because of it is not ok.

goldsus,
You're simply wrong.
While it is true that every N-400 case is unique, there are certain traits that, for the vast majority, are true irrespective of their individuality. Casual observation of previous experiences supports the point second stage is trying to demonstrate (kudos to him for his persistence, by the way) which is that the majority of N-400 applicants are placed in-line for interview scheduling no earlier than 30 days before the relevant anniversary of their "Green Card Date."
This is a useful tidbit of information because, in the March 2014 forum where we followed this discipline fairly studiously for instance, it helps anxious filers manage their expectations of when they can expect to be placed in-line. In fact, I would argue that Moaz benefitted directly from this debate when his case did not follow the expectations laid out by second stage and he took action accordingly. Applicants are generally put in-line for interview scheduling in two waves:
- those who apply well beyond their 90-day eleigibility window and are placed in line almost immediately after completing their bio-metrics appointment and
- those who apply inside their 90-day eligibility window and are held till no earlier than 30 days preceding their "Green Card date" before being placed in-line
Other aspects of the N-400 appliction process that are fairly uniform (contrary to your assertions of highly individualised experiences) are that most people receive their Notices of Action within two weeks of submission, are scheduled for their bio-metrics appointment within two weeks of application acceptance (consistent with USCIS bio-metric scheduling goals), and receive dates for their bio-metrics appointments that are within five weeks of application acceptance.
Like every rule, exceptions will aplpy but those exceptions do not, as you imply, disprove the rule. Just accept the "Green Card Date" column which helps much more than it hurts and does not "mess-up" the formatting. If you have objective evidence that the "Green Card Date" column does not lend additive value to the timelines, by all means, do share it with us.

Don't have any issue at all with the waiting during this final part of the visa journey. I mean, we're here, with our loved ones (for the most part), we have our jobs, SSNs, driving licenses etc. It's not like being stuck on the wrong side of the Atlantic frustratingly waiting for NOA2 during the K-1 process, right?? The citizenship lark is a stroll in the park compared to that - it takes as long as it takes.

You know what? When I read threads like this I'm SO glad that I'm just an ordinary working grunt that doesn't have to worry about all things "professional." Appearance, education, grammar, spelling - all complete non-issues when you spend your working day surrounded by hogs in various states of dismemberment!
Hey, newbud - my place is always hiring. And English is most definitely not a requirement (ditto education, good moral character, the ability to walk upright, etc....)

You know what? When I read threads like this I'm SO glad that I'm just an ordinary working grunt that doesn't have to worry about all things "professional." Appearance, education, grammar, spelling - all complete non-issues when you spend your working day surrounded by hogs in various states of dismemberment!
Hey, newbud - my place is always hiring. And English is most definitely not a requirement (ditto education, good moral character, the ability to walk upright, etc....)

Have you considered a different field entirely? There are always laboring jobs, in landscaping or irrigation or construction. Then, if you have management skills you can work up. At any rate it would pay the bills for now. Often it's not about what you know but who you know, and getting out working at anything puts you in contact with so many prospective employers. Who knows, the person whose lawn you mow may have an opening in his or her company. Good luck with it, it's tough not seeing family for so long.

I was at the party in Kansas City for the USA game (the director cut to it several times along with the NYC bash) and let me tell you, if soccer is still considered a "minority" sport in Uncle Sam, then they didn't get the memo in KC. Fantastic atmosphere.
Oh, and as well as hopping on the U.S. bandwagon, I'm really wanting Mexico to do well. Why? Two words: Miguel.Herrera. Total legend!

I was at the party in Kansas City for the USA game (the director cut to it several times along with the NYC bash) and let me tell you, if soccer is still considered a "minority" sport in Uncle Sam, then they didn't get the memo in KC. Fantastic atmosphere.
Oh, and as well as hopping on the U.S. bandwagon, I'm really wanting Mexico to do well. Why? Two words: Miguel.Herrera. Total legend!

We've got to qualify first though, right? And you will see TWO top-drawer young right-backs emerge in the next year or so. Their names are Callum Chambers and Nathaniel Clyne and they both happen to play for the same team - Southampton. Of course, it's completely inevitable that at least one of them will move on before the new season kicks off, but trust me, they're both class and MILES better than Johnson!!!
Oh btw, on an entirely different note, I took some time to read excerpts from your blog a little earlier; it's funny how we all seem to have a single friend that, despite being wholly incapable of forming a relationship with anything other than his hand, is very quick to trash-talk relationships such as ours.

With regard to the 90 day notice thing - I've never understood anyone's need to adhere to that. You're emigrating to America - so what if your boss says you have to give 90 days notice?? You can just finish on Friday and say "bye" giving no notice at all if you felt like it surely? What are they going to do? Ask the U.S. government to extradite you for failing to give the required notice at work??? Or am I missing something??

With regard to the 90 day notice thing - I've never understood anyone's need to adhere to that. You're emigrating to America - so what if your boss says you have to give 90 days notice?? You can just finish on Friday and say "bye" giving no notice at all if you felt like it surely? What are they going to do? Ask the U.S. government to extradite you for failing to give the required notice at work??? Or am I missing something??