Usher

Thanks Tini27 and raleighn400... will update you! good luck to everyone else this week!

Good luck, queendlee!

You'd think someone with a Masters degree would know how to properly spell "illiterate."

Forget the I-751, it'll come when you least expect it. Focus on your N-400 and start preparing it and all the supporting documents.

From what I understand the interview is a good thing. You have an end date in sight, many do not. We just sit and wait, sit and wait. No information, no incling as to when it will all be over. They have to adjudicate on your case within so many days (not sure the number) of the interview.

Would give an arm and a leg for an interview!!!!

No you wouldn't. They usually get very nasty at those interviews and ask very private, embarassing questions and to top it off, they never give you a definitive answer. You'll have to wait for a while before they mail you an approval or a denial.

He runs the risk of being deported. Watch out.

I think they did it on purpose, to remind you of what can happen to you if you slap your wife.

Do the interview and get it over with. At least you could stop stressing after that.

I did the FP April 2008 for the 751.

Well, from what I understand, they're supposed to be good for 15 months. So good luck on the interview.

You did them April of 2008 or 2009?

God I hope not!

You should TOTALLY reschedule your oath ceremony. I mean what's a naturalization ceremony compared to YOUR BABY'S FIRST BABY SHOWER!?!

I double checked and it says exactly in red text and caps:

"IT IS PUNISHABLE BY U. S. LAW TO COPY, PRINT, OR PHOTOGRAPH THIS CERTIFICATE WITHOUT LAWFUL AUTHORITY"

I would assume that 'copy' includes scanning or digitizing because in doing so one would make a copy, no matter the form.

hmm... does it say anything about scan or digitalized? how about all those when you go google images that popped up?

Keyword here is "Lawful Authority." The owner of the naturalization certificate has lawful authority over the certificate and can therefore, copy it, print it, and or scan it. Anyone else -except for some government agencies- does not have lawful authority over a certificate that's not their's. I hope this clears it up for everybody.

I sent in a handmade anniversary card my daughter made. I also sent in a letter my father-in-law mailed to us when our daughter was born telling us how happy he was with the addition to the family. I also sent in a letter my sister-in-law in England sent me that discusses the planning of the large Christening party my husband and I planned and threw in England for family and friends. I'm sure the financial items play a large role- but showing that you have an emotional LIFE together is also important. These little things prove the true love commitment. Anyone can open a joint checking account for a few years and file taxes together...but a child's innocent writing about a step-parent, the process of a family Christening, the pleasure a grandparent has in the birth of a child and other sorts of emotional photos/letters/etc prove a true and real commitment. If they aren't looking for those sorts of items, the whole process is just a bogus financial exercise that can be faked by anyone.

Which one would be easier to forge, a letter from your sister-in-law, or a tax transcript from the IRS? A card or letter written by a child, or a joint-bank statement? Trust me, that's how they look at it. They don't care about the "emotional" stuff, because they're extremely desensitized. It's a job requirement to be emotionally detached and not to identify with any certain case.

To be brutally honest, they don't give a damn. They need to see joint tax filing and joint money accounts. Life insurance, health insurance, bank accounts and the like. To them, any two strangers can pose together for pictures, but it takes a lot of faith and trust to share financial burdens, privileges and liabilities. All I sent was financial stuff, most importantly - joint tax filings, and I got approved last week. No RFE, no interview, just a simple approval.

With that said, if it makes you feel better, send the cute stuff along. Just make sure you give them what they need first, they want to know that you're taking this as seriously as they are.

How do you know they "don't give a damn"? I imagine when they see that my son drew a picture (including names in his handwriting) in school of "who I live with", and it includes my husband, that adds a little more proof that we're living together. The newspaper articles with pictures of the two of us, also with captions of who we are, also shows that we spend time together. Yes, the financial (and 'social') stuff is important - and we have the deed to our house that we bought together, a car title, tax returns, utility bills, credit cards, drivers licenses, life insurance, retirement accounts, the trip to Morocco, pictures of us together at (no joke) both a wedding and a funeral, cards and letters from friends/family and businesses, etc. But remember that there are (despite jokes to the contrary) actual humans opening and inspecting these packets. They are the ones who get to decide whether or not to send an RFE (and maybe pick us for an interview or flag us for suspected fraud), and we all know that mood influences their decisions. Backing a strong case with cute evidence (like pictures of people with cookies in their mouths) can possibly make the difference. Some people get approved with much less, some people get RFEs and can't figure out why because they sent everything on the list. You just never know. The more you send, the less you stress while waiting, I think.

And in my case, my kids are excited that their school papers, drawings, etc. are being copied and sent. You can't put a price on that.

If nothing else, it makes us and them (at USCIS) smile a little.

Congratulations on your approval.

venusfire

Yes, all the stuff you mentioned is indeed precious. However, they have a checklist that they go by. And the only personal thing I believe they have on that checklist is sworn affidavits from family and friends. From what I understand, is that they send out RFE's for about 10% of all applications, for training purposes if nothing else. So can you imagine if you send all this stuff and then you get an RFE, how disappointed and anxious you would be? I'm not saying that you shouldn't send it; I'm just saying that you shouldn't expect that stuff to seal the deal. And that you should focus a little bit more on official paperwork that proves your togetherness.

Good luck and thanks for the congrats.

To be brutally honest, they don't give a damn. They need to see joint tax filing and joint money accounts. Life insurance, health insurance, bank accounts and the like. To them, any two strangers can pose together for pictures, but it takes a lot of faith and trust to share financial burdens, privileges and liabilities. All I sent was financial stuff, most importantly - joint tax filings, and I got approved last week. No RFE, no interview, just a simple approval.

With that said, if it makes you feel better, send the cute stuff along. Just make sure you give them what they need first, they want to know that you're taking this as seriously as they are.

A double-post ten minutes apart? That's weird.

You can kiss your son's chances of becoming a president goodbye!

Best way to do it would be to get an infopass, visit your DO and speak with an officer.

You are going to lose your GC if you live and work outside the US.

Big deal man. You lost $5.18. A lot of people have been and are still going through much worse.

I guess VSC's stupidity has rubbed off on CSC. Hope you hear something positive soon.

It's time to get in touch with your senator, ASAP.

Hello,

website does not give the option to talk to a human. Does anyone know what the number is?

Many thanks,

Kiki

Very simple, call the 1-800 number and then choose menu option 1 for the first menu, 2 for the second menu, and 3 for the third menu and it'll put you through to a representative. ^__^

They're processing April 08 cases now. Give it another month or so before you go to panic mode.

RFE basically means they want to see;

A- More Joint filing tax transcripts.

B- That you're still together since it's been a long time since you first submitted the I-751.