F & J

Sounds like a good plan! As a U.S. citizen, she must present herself as such when she goes through U.S. immigration so she really shouldn't use her Philippine passport to enter the U.S. as Alaska2012 said. In any case, you should ask the U.S. embassy how to proceed - maybe they can extend the validity of her passport just to allow her to return to the U.S. once the adoption is finalized?

After many calls to different facilities listed on the travel.state.gov website, one post office (fully booked and will no longer be accepting passport applications after next month) referred me to the local library in that city! They are thankfully doing walk-ins and even accept applications on Saturdays so I will be able to go this weekend without an appointment. They told me to be there right when the library opens even though they don't start processing passport applications until an hour later just so I can be sure to be first in line. *whew. BUT I'm now tackling this issue: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/583469-passport-application-naturalization-certificate-as-both-proof-of-us-citizenship-and-identification/ - I called the National Passport Information Center and they told me I can just submit my Naturalization Certificate but the library says otherwise so I emailed the NPIC and I'm hoping they can give me written confirmation that I can show the library. *fingers crossed*

Good question..... the post office only asked for one photo so that's what I gave them. I'll let you know once I hear back on the passport card, maybe that's why I haven't gotten it yet?

You only need one photo, for both book and card. The card photo is digitised, yes.

hi
for the nvc stage,
same documents, plus police report from countries she has lived in since she was 16 and where she has lived over 6 months
copy of her passport
and I don't remember if anything else

hi
copy of your birth certificate and copy of you dad's death certificate, plus translation into English of both
proof of citizenship as said, the form and payment, that's all

I would play it safe and just fill it out according to the form instructions, so 5 years.

I honestly wouldn't worry too much about it because you never actually used that name. Have you already had your Biometrics captured? The form that they ask you to fill out at your appointment asks for aliases so you can add it there. The IO who interviewed me also asked me again about any names I've used. Call USCIS and see what they say and you can always schedule an Infopass just to be safe.

I think the interview scheduling process is automated. XD When my interview was first scheduled, it was descheduled the next day. I was so sad but then a few days after I received the notices in the mail, I received a call from the IO handling my case and she said that the computer had automatically generated an interview schedule for me before she had a chance to so she had to cancel the computer-generated one to schedule an earlier interview appointment (due to military filing).

For first time/new applications, ORIGINAL proof of citizenship is required. This is because the post office is merely an acceptance facility for the State Dept. They do not actually process your application but merely pass it along to the Dept of State. There are some horror stories (as with any process) but overall the process is very efficient and reliable. Thousands of people use it without any issues.
But if you are that concerned, you have 3 options in my opinion: 1) apply for expedited processing which costs an additional $60, 2) apply at one of the regional passport agencies operated by the State Dept. for same day or next day processing but they require proof of imminent travel to use this service, and 3) if you have no immediate plans to travel overseas, defer applying for a passport until you have addressed the other items that you are concerned about which require proof of citizenship.
In my experience, expedited processing is not that much faster than routine. I applied for my passport on Dec 23 using routine processing, the check was cashed on Dec 30, my new passport produced by Jan 7 and finally delivered to me via overnight mail on Jan 9th. I received my NC on Jan 19th in almost pristine condition. And in between I sent back my passport to correct a printing error which was resolved very quickly and my reprinted passport returned within 7 days of submission. In fact, my reprinted passport arrived a day after the NC.

Other countries may be different and allow you to use your old passport even after taking the Oath of Allegiance but the Philippines requires us to apply to reacquire Philippine citizenship to become dual citizens AND apply for a new passport after reacquisition even though the old one hasn't actually "expired".
And the Oath does require you to renounce all other allegiances aka citizenship but as JimmyHou said, not your other nationalities:
Naturalization Oath of Allegiance to the United States of America
"I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty, of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the Armed Forces of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God."
https://www.uscis.gov/us-citizenship/naturalization-test/naturalization-oath-allegiance-united-states-america
So I remain a Filipino national though not a Filipino citizen, and your husband remains British even after naturalization.

Oh! I forgot to post about my interview experience XD Thank you for reminding me, javier2014!
My interview appointment at the Fresno, CA Field Office was at 12:45 PM. We had to wait a while for my number to be called. I think I finally got called in around around 1:30 PM. The interview went really fast! I stepped into the Immigration Officer's office and was immediately sworn in. She asked for my Permanent Resident Card, Passport, Military ID and Driver's License. She checked them then we started off with the Test right away.
Reading:
When is Columbus Day?
Writing:
Columbus Day is in October.
Civics Test Questions (can't remember what order they were):
Who is the Chief Justice of the United States now?
Name one war fought by the United States in the 1900s.
The House of Representatives has how many voting members?
Who is the “Father of Our Country”?
In what month do we vote for President?
We elect a U.S. Representative for how many years?
After that, the IO went over my whole N-400 application. She said that my immigration packet was the most organized she had ever seen and that she really appreciated it. She asked to see our Marriage Certificate. She said she knew that it was somewhere in my file but it was very thick and seeing how organized I was and prepared with my binder full of documents that she knew I had it with me and it would be easier to ask to see my copy than to look through my whole packet to find it. LOL. She went through all the questions on my N-400 form - we talked about the military here and there (she handles all the military cases). Then she asked me if I wanted to change my name to follow the Filipino traditional naming convention! I had originally intended to change my name to follow the American way and split my two first names so the second part of my first name would become my middle name but she said she couldn't do that since the Fresno Field Office no longer officers judicial oath ceremonies. She said that she knows my Permanent Resident Card was issued in a different state, Michigan, which did not allow us to follow the Filipino way during AOS but a lot of FIlipinos are naturalized in California so they are familiar with the Filipino naming convention. In this case, it would be a name correction. My Naturalization Certificate was issued as (FIRST NAME) (FATHER'S LAST NAME) (HUSBAND'S LAST NAME)...and then we got to the end of the form and she was signing some stuff and I got all choked up and quietly asked her if I had passed and she said that I had passed right at the beginning after the test! And that we just had to go through the whole interview. She asked me how my husband and I met and I told her our love story while she was preparing my "receipt" - the piece of paper that shows she was recommending my application for approval. After that, she handed me the form for the Oath Ceremony and explained that most people don't usually get to take the Oath of Allegiance on the same day so they have a bit of a gap between their interview and their Oath and even though there would only be a gap of around one hour between my interview and Oath, I still needed to fill out the form (it asks you about any changes that may have occurred since your interview). My Oath Ceremony was scheduled for 2:30 PM. She said that I could leave the office and come back and that there was a possibility that my Oath would be delayed until around 2:45 or 3:00 PM depending on how long it took to process my packet. I was trying so hard not to cry as I thanked the IO.
My husband and I decided to wait. Right at 2:30 PM, someone came out with a few Naturalization Certificates and started calling people's names. Mine wasn't one of them so my husband approached her and another IO after she swore in the other people and asked about mine. I piped in that the IO who interviewed me did say my Oath could get delayed 15-30 mins. and they said that they think we'll be fine in that case. Around 2:45 PM, a different IO asked us what we were waiting for and they went to check on it again - a few minutes later, he came back and said that they were processing my Naturalization Certificate and they were definitely tracking it so we had nothing to worry about. A little before 3 PM, the IO who swore in the previous group of applicants came and told us that they were just processing the name correction. Finally, the IO who interviewed me came out again - she came out 2 times before to speak with a fellow military applicant - and took passport photos from the other applicant (she was a fellow Filipina who was in the U.S. Navy)! I got to take my Oath with her a little after 3 PM! It was very emotional for me and I was holding back tears as I took the Oath.
It was an incredible experience! I found the Fresno Office IOs as well as the guards and receptionists to be very friendly! It was raining quite a bit when we arrived and I was trying to juggle my binder and purse to get my ID out and the guard said to take my time - there weren't any people waiting behind me when we got there but I didn't want to hold up the line just in case someone else came up behind me.

I just wanted to post an update! I passed my interview and took my oath today!!! Thank you so much for your support everyone! <3
(will post details soon! very sleepy at the moment)
:dance: :dance: :dance: :dance:

N-400: November 2015 Applicants
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USCIS Dallas/Lewisville, Texas Lockbox
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UserName.........|GC-Date.|Sent.|Cashd|NOA..|Fprints.|In Line..|Int ltr..|Intview..|Oath.....|Field Office
Hamada2013.......|10/20/10|10/28|11/12|11/05|12/03/15|12/07/15.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Philadelphia, PA
ar & bi..........|01/26/13|10/28|11/03|10/30|11/25/15|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Houston, TX
Diana and Chris..|05/02/12|11/02|11/08|11/05|12/01/15|12/03/15.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Dallas, TX
Geralda780.......|01/12/11|11/02|11/10|11/09|12/01/15|12/14/15.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Newark, NJ
rup001...........|01/??/11|11/02|11/04|11/13|11/23/15|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Hartford, CT
Tim42............|01/30/13|11/02|11/04|11/05|12/02/15|12/30/15.|01/16/16.|02/20/16.|--/--/--.|Boston, MA
trader1960.......|01/07/11|11/04|11/17|11/13|12/06/15|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Newark, NJ
ppihtr123........|01/30/13|11/05|11/12|11/10|11/30/15|12/30/15.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Washington, DC (Early FP:11/27)
Olejka...........|01/26/13|11/07|11/12|11/10|--/--/--|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Dallas, TX
AmyWrites........|08/12/12|11/09|--/--|--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Richmond, VA Plamjordan11.....|01/29/13|11/11|11/30|11/23|01/19/16|12/31/15.|01/09/16.|02/12/16.|--/--/--.|Louisville, KY (Early FP:12/29)
Javier2014.......|08/21/13|11/19|11/23|11/25|12/15/15|01/13/16.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Philadelphia, PA
ITERtheway.......|02/19/13|11/20|11/27|11/24|12/23/15|01/19/16.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Atlanta, GA
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USCIS Phoenix, Arizona Lockbox
================================
UserName.........|GC-Date.|Sent.|Cashd|NOA..|Fprints.|In Line..|Int Ltr..|Intview..|Oath.....|Field Office
Cherry08.........|01/??/11|10/31|Waive|11/09|12/07/15|12/21/15.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Los Angeles, CA
Anniecruz........|01/29/13|11/02|11/05|11/07|11/25/15|12/29/15.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|San Francisco, CA
carocaro.........|12/12/10|11/04|11/05|11/09|12/02/15|12/04/15.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Phoenix, AZ
kheops85dz.......|10/07/10|11/04|11/06|11/09|12/04/15|12/08/15.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Chicago, IL
IstanBulls.......|02/09/10|11/04|11/13|11/12|11/30/15|11/30/15.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|San Francisco, CA (Early FP:11/24)
Stinkerpotsam....|01/14/10|11/12|11/17|11/18|12/10/15|12/17/15.|01/02/16.|02/02/16.|--/--/--.|Boise, ID
dreamer15........|07/13/10|11/12|11/19|11/18|12/10/15|12/14/15.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Chicago, IL
Devyn............|05/31/12|11/12|11/17|11/18|12/10/15|12/17/15.|12/31/15.|02/03/16.|--/--/--.|Spokane, WA
Mahal_kita.......|12/06/12|11/12|11/17|11/16|12/11/15|12/07/15.|01/06/16.|02/11/16.|--/--/--.|Denver, CO (Early FP:12/03)
Jamnan_n_Steve...|01/29/13|11/13|11/18|11/17|12/07/15|12/29/15.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|San Francisco, CA
Spacklebert......|12/01/12|11/16|11/24|11/20|12/15/15|12/17/15.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Seattle, WA
Mr & Mrs Owl.....|01/30/13|11/23|12/02|11/30|12/22/15|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|Los Angeles, CA
Sharito83........|01/31/13|11/24|12/01|11/30|12/23/15|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|San Jose, CA (Early FP:12/15)
===========================================================================
USCIS Lincoln, Nebraska Lockbox (Filing Under 319b, 328, or 329 of the INA)
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UserName.........|GC-Date.|Sent.|Cashd|NOA..|Fprints.|In Line..|Int Ltr..|Intview..|Oath.....|Field Office
Jpelf............|--/--/--|10/28|--/--|11/12|--/--/--|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|--/--/--.|New York, NY
F & J............|04/01/10|11/07|11/17|11/18|12/11/15|12/15/15.|01/07/16.|01/22/16.|01/22/16.|Fresno, CA (02/02 Interview Descheduled; Rescheduled to 01/22)
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8. Red Font="I'm A United States Citizen"!

Legend:
GC-Date: The 'Resident Since' Date located on your first green card
Sent: Date N-400 was mailed to USCIS
Cashd: Date your check was cashed by USCIS
NOA: Receipt Notice Date Printed on your official I-797 notification
Fprints: Date assigned for fingerprinting (Bio-metrics)
In Line: Date you received e-notification about the start of your interview shceduling
Int Ltr: Date you received the official letter in the mail regarding interview
Interview: Date of your interview
Oath: Date Oath taken
Field Office: Your local USCIS office where you will have the N-400 interview
Passport tracker: 2016 US Passport Application Tracker List

I believe it's the exact same stuff that you can download from the website though! There was an extra sheet they gave me - update for Question # 47
47. What is the name of the Speaker of the House of Representatives now?
Paul D. Ryan
(Paul) Ryan

*The answer to this question has changed as of October 29, 2015.

Of course, this raises the question of how much the US embassy will help any of its citizens, dual citizens or not. US citizens are routinely arrested in Latin America while trying to smuggle cocaine into the United States. The embassies are likely to give those drug trafficking citizens all the help you'd expect, which is pretty close to none. I remember watching a thing on TV about some young women who were arrested in Peru by DINANDRO (rough equivilant of the DEA). The totality of the US embassy's help was to offer each of them a single sheet of blank paper and tell them that if they wanted to use it to write a short message to their families, the embassy would fax it to a fax number in the US. Those young women would have faced thirty-five years in a US prison had DINANDRO not snatched them before they got on their plane home, so the feds weren't exactly willing to move mountains to help them.
There was also recently a news item about two American girls who were arrested in Israel, supposedly because the Israeli government thought that one of them had a vaguely Arabic-sounding name and might have once said something that was somewhat sympathetic to the plight of the Palestinians. The girls were stripped naked and thrown into some filthy holding cell. The American embassy's response was more or less to tell them that they shouldn't have run afoul of our great allies, the Israelis, especially when one of them has such a name. Thanks a lot, embassy!
The bottom line is that even if you're not a dual citizen, if you get arrested in a foreign country and yell out "But I'm an American citizen!," you are likely to be laughed at.

STOP. Just stop. You don't know what you are talking about. You are factually incorrect. The Supreme Court of the United States and the United States Department of State have already issued rulings on the issue. Once again you have quoted material that directly contradicts your assertion, as your quote is of the amended INA, which was brought into line with Vance v. Terrazas with the inclusion of the phrase "voluntarily and with the intention to relinquish," the product of an amendment. As I have already shown you by posting the policy of the Department of State, the method that is used to determine the intention of the United States citizen in question is, and a quote, directly from the Department of State, "the consular officer will simply ask the applicant if there was intent to relinquish U.S. citizenship when performing the act. If the answer is no, the consular officer will certify that it was not the person's intent to relinquish U.S. citizenship and, consequently, find that the person has retained U.S. citizenship."
Now, you may not like this, and that's fine. You can write a letter to the Secretary of State urging her to change this policy. Or, perhaps, you do not understand the policy, and that's fine also. But if you don't understand it, you should not post about in on this board, as you are telling people something that is wholly incorrect. I don't know how else to impress this upon you. It is particularly frustrating that you are quoting material that in absolute plain text that any literate native speaker of English would understand states that applying for citizenship in a foreign country is only considered a renunciation of citizenship when there is the specific intent to do so.

I thought this might help those of us considering a legal name change.
The N400 application is (in most cases) a great time to legally change your name. It's fast and it's free. Outside of the N400 process, a name change requires a visit to your local courthouse, may require a public announcement in a newspaper (depending on your state and local laws) and will cost you money. In New York City, the cost is about $65 while on Houston it is over $400, so cost varies from city to city.
You can change your name to anything you want within certain limitations. You can't change your name to impersonate someone or in an attempt to hide your identity for illegal purposes. Other than that, it's up to you. If you are Arthur Robert Wilkinson, you can become Geraldo Mohamed Leibowitz.
It's important to note that if you are just changing your last name to take your spouse's last name or to revert to your maiden name, then a legal name change is not required. This is because a marriage certificate or a divorce certificate acts as proof of legal name change. This is true EVEN IF your certificate does not show the new name that you want to take. For example, if Anita Mary Harrolds marries Geraldo Mohamed Leibowitz, she can legally be known as Anita Mary Leibowitz even though that name does not appear anywhere on the certificate. In fact, she can also hyphenate both last names without a legal name change. However, if she wanted to change her middle name from Mary to Margaret, she would need a legal name change.
To request a legal name change through the naturalization process, fill out the name change section of the N400. The interviewer may ask you to confirm that you still want to change your name because some people change their minds between the application and the interview. The interviewer may ask for proof of your current legal name. In case of a discrepancy between your green card and your passport, a birth, marriage, divorce, or name change certificate determines your current name, so make sure you have these with you (if they apply in your case...it's always a good idea to have your translated birth certificate with you at the interview). The interviewer will print out some forms (three I think) for you to check and sign. These should have your old and new names on them.
You will have to be scheduled for a judicial oath ceremony. This is because USCIS does not have the legal authority to change your name and must ask a judge to do so. If your city has regular judicial ceremonies then there shouldn't be any delays. If your city holds regular administrative ceremonies, but not many judicial ceremonies, then the name change may cause a delay. Some cities (including San Francisco and San Jose) have stopped scheduling judicial ceremonies altogether. Applicants in these cities cannot legally change their names through the N400 application. Your interviewer will inform you of this and will cross out the name change section during the interview. You will have to request a regular name change before or after naturalization if you live in these cities (see above).
At your oath ceremony you will be given your naturalization certificate as well as a name change certificate signed by a judge. This second certificate will show your old and new names and you'll need it to update your name with your banks, on your drivers license, credit cards, etc. In addition to doing all the paperwork to make these changes, you'll also have to consider the effect of the name change if you have dual citizenship; your name on your two passports may not match and your other country may require you to go through different name change procedures or may not allow name changes at all. People do travel using passports with different names, but you have to be careful when booking tickets and you may want to travel with your name change certificate (and translations).
If you want to check whether or not (and how often) judicial ceremonies are held in your location, find your office here and look under naturalization ceremonies:
http://www.uscis.gov/about-us/find-uscis-office/field-offices

Because you did not get married in the Philippines, you won't be able to get a Certificate of Marriage from the NSO.
However, if you apply for a CENOMAR from the NSO, the NSO will issue you a CRS Form No. 5 - Advisory on Marriages. This document is known as a CEMAR. It should show your marriage because you reported your marriage abroad already.
Link to photo: CRS Form No. 5 - Advisory on Marriages.

I've had connecting flights in Japan three times now - Naritam all 3 times - and did NOT need a visa. The first time was on my way to the U.S. on my K-1 visa, second was on the way to Manila then third, back to the U.S. from Manila. They know from your boarding pass / itinerary that you have a connecting flight so there shouldn't be any problems. Just DON'T LEAVE THE AIRPORT!
You will need a transit visa IF you intend on actually entering the country:
"A Transit Visa is issued for persons who stop over in Japan en-route to another destination, with the period of the stay not exceeding 15 days."
Source: http://www.atlanta.u...ransitvisa.html

If you can't reach someone at the embassy, the next best place to call is JAL (Japan Airlines), as they are the flag carrier of Japan and more than likely they would know if certain nationals would need a transit visa in Japan.
But just for reference, the 3 times I had connecting flights in Japan, two of my layovers were only between 1 to 3 hours. The other 1, I was only at Narita for a few minutes - I almost missed my connecting flight because my previous flight was delayed. Thankfully there were only a few passengers on that flight (small plane) so they waited (and there were about 3 or 4 of us from the previous delayed flight).

Yes - we got a big tax refund the past two years we filed jointly (since the year we got married) and our accountant said it was because we filed jointly and I didn't have a job yet? ^__^;;

Where is the down vote button?

Most likely because you don't have a credit history yet?

Most likely because you don't have a credit history yet?