Jay&Jo

On 4/12/2021 at 11:51 AM, leonidas_alexan said:

 

Hearty Congratulations my fellow Norfolk interviewee.

 

Did the interviewer give you a form N-652?

 

 

 

 

No she didn't. I don't know what that is!

I had my interview yesterday, my case was approved.

I had to wait about 45 minutes for my name to be called.

My interviewer first asked me to remain standing and pledge to tell the truth.

She then informed me that although I had applied under the 3 years of marriage rule, I qualified for the 5 years rule - therefore she was going to update my application, so I didn't need to show any proof of marriage (fine by me!!). She asked if I had travelled outside the country in the last year (I had not).

I showed my ID and passports.

We quickly moved onto the test. I was asked the following questions:

* Who is the president?

* What is the rule of law?
* What are two ways Americans can participate in their democracy?

* What are 3 of the original colonies?

* Where is the statue of liberty located?

* How many justices are there on the Supreme Court?

After answering those 6 she moved onto the reading/writing portion. I was relieved she didn't ask anymore questions, as I knew then that I had passed that section!

I was asked to read the following question from the iPad: "Who lived here first?" And was told to write the answer: "American Indians lived here first."

She then asked me all the Yes/No questions from the end of the N400 application. And told me that I had passed, and would probably need to wait up to 3 months for my oath ceremony, which will probably be there at the Norfolk office.

It was extremely quick and painless. I was secretly disappointed she didn't want to look through all my documents that I had spent weeks compiling (just kidding!!)- 5 years of tax transcripts, birth certificates for all my family members, including myself, my marriage certificate, proof of travel over the last 5 years etc...

So glad its over!!!!!!! Woohoo!!!!

On 1/6/2021 at 11:32 PM, leonidas_alexan said:

Interview done earlier in the day on 6th January at the Norfolk USCIS office.

 

Arrived at 11.30 am for an interview at 11.45 am.

 

Showed my interview letter and driver's id to be let in.

 

Asked to wait in the 2nd floor. At around 11.55 am I was welcomed in by a lady officer.  While she called out my name I noticed she was struggling to pronounce my last name and I said "It's okay officer, even after 7 years of marriage my wife struggles with it till today" and she burst out laughing and I thought that immediately broke the ice. She led me into a room and a screen separated the officer from me.

 

The officer first asked  to see my passport, green card and driver's id.

 

The officer made me stand up, raise my hand and essentially made me  say that whatever I am about  to say in the interview is all going to be true.

 

Then she said she is now going to administer the English test. She asked me to write down "How many senators do we have? on the electronic pad which I did and then she made me write something to the effect that we have 100 senators. She announced that I passed my English test.

 

She then proceeded to ask questions for my civics test - she exactly asked me 6 questions which I got them all correct.

 

1) What did the Emancipation Declaration do?

 

2) What are the two main political parties in the US?

 

3) Who signs the Bills so that they become laws? ( I am paraphrasing her question here)

 

4) What ocean lies to the east of the US East Coast?

 

5) Name one of the two longest rivers in the USA?

 

I cannot remember the 6th question.

 

She proceeded to announce that I passed the civics test.

 

She then told me that she would go through my application. All she did was basically repeat what I filled out in my application and all I had to do was to say yes or no to them.

 

When the question about any Federal taxes owed was asked -  I replied "Owed at the time of filing application - fully paid as of today". She asked to see the relevant documents and I produced the IRS installment agreement, the 4 installments that I paid - and the final full amount that I chose to pay in advance to fully settle the amount. The officer made copies of the documents I gave her and returned the originals.

 

Then came the question of my speeding ticket and she did not ask to see any documents as she said "I saw the speeding ticket you uploaded online".

 

Before she proceeded to the next question - I politely interjected and said that I have something to tell you as I was not quite sure how to fill this out at the time of original filing of the application.

 

I mentioned to the officer that I was involved in a single vehicle incident - where my vehicle slipped on the ramp in heavy rain conditions and rammed into the guard rail. The cop gave me summons to appear in the court - I went to the court - paid the court fees and nothing ever appeared in my driving record and that was the end of that.

 

The officer actually commended me that I revealed this information to her- because she told me that she never did find anything in my driver's record but it was good that I told her about this incident. She asked for and made copies of the relevant documents that I brought.

 

She also made some minor corrections for some errors I made in the application.

 

She made me go through the corrections she made on my behalf and sign them all on the electronic pad.

 

At the end she gave me a paper which said  to the effect "Congratulations, Your application is recommended for approval".  "If final approval is granted you will be notified when and where to report for the Oath Ceremony".

 

Does anyone know what "If Final Approval is granted" means -  what else could they be checking at this point?

 

Overall it was such an incredibly painless experience - given my initial worries about some issues I had with my application.

 

I wish everyone all the very best in their N400 journey.

 

I have my interview in Norfolk on Friday! I was grateful to read your experience 

3 minutes ago, Jorgedig said:

You did not save a copy to your computer, or print one at the time?

You would have thought I did, and yet I can't find it on my computer.

I submitted online back in June 2020. I have my interview next week, and now I want to pull up a copy to review my answers. Why can't I find it in myuscis?

I know I have a hard copy somewhere in my house, but I assumed this should be easier to find!

On 6/8/2020 at 3:35 PM, James120383 said:

A week to 1 month

What do I do after 1 month? I haven't heard anything, haven't had any confirmation that they've even received it (other than the confirmation from the post office that it was received May 12th). 

36 minutes ago, Neickers said:

You should've done it Online. Do you have a tracking number?

You can't submit online when applying for reduced fee unfortunately. I only have my tracking number from the USPS saying it was delivered on May 12th. I haven't received anything from USCIS yet.

I submitted my N400 by mail (we're applying under the reduced fee). According to my tracking from the post office, it was delivered May 12th. How long should I expect to wait to hear something?

5 hours ago, mrsR said:

Hi,

 

We didn't qualify for it so we paid the whole fee. We received the decision within a month so if you're not in a hurry, you could try applying with the reduced fee waiver.

Thank you! Yes, think I'm going to at least try! I guess all they can say is no right? Sorry you didn't qualify. All the best.

On 2/12/2020 at 11:20 AM, mrsR said:

Unfortunately, we are not qualified anymore if I added my income this year. But I explained on the next page that I had a change of income this year, and our 2019 taxes was showing our previous income which qualifies for the I-942. And the documentation they require is the 2019 tax return and 2019 W2s. I dont have a paystub yet since I just started working..

Can you update me on what you decided to do? We are trying to fill out the paperwork for the reduced fee now, and our situation is also quite complicated. We definitely qualify for it, it's just a complicated situation to explain!

I was about to submit my N400 application online, but I have just realized that I'm eligible for the reduced fee. I'm looking for stories of others who have filed the I942 at the same time as the N400, with the reduced fee and supporting documents. Did it cause issues or was it pretty smooth sailing?

23 minutes ago, gregcrs2 said:

https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/files/form/n-400instr.pdf  Read starting from page 10.  Actually, you should read the entire N400 instruction pdf.

 

Thanks that's exactly what I was looking for!!!!!

4 hours ago, gregcrs2 said:

It always helps to read the USCIS Instructions for the N-400.

Here's what the instructions say (unless I'm missing something - which is why I posted the question!)

"Documents you may need

We will automatically determine which documents you need to provide us as you fill out your application.

The other documents you need will depend on the information you provide in the application, such as your personal history, family, and circumstances."

Based on that information.... and the fact the application didn't ask for any further documents from me (no tax documents, no bank statements or mortgage etc), would you submit any additional documents?

Genuinely looking for help please! I see others submitting a lot, and don't want to be missing something.

16 hours ago, magentahaze said:

Same here! I'm getting ready to send mine in the first week of May. SUPER late, but now is just as good a time as any.

Are you submitting additional documents?

1 hour ago, millefleur said:

Are you applying under the 3 year rule? If so, consider uploading bank statements, cohabitation proof, etc.

No, I've been married for 10 years now! I'm super late in applying for my citizenship!!!

I am completing the N400 online. Where can I find updated information on what I need to submit as evidence? 

The application has prompted me to upload my green card, marriage certificate and children's birth certificates, but nothing else.

I feel like I'm missing a huge amount of proof, that I always had to supply for my K1 visa, or Green card application (bank statements, tax returns, mortgage documents?)

Thanks!

What else would I need to submit under this section of the N400. I have already uploaded documents under green card, marriage certificate, name change and children. The final evidence section doesn't seem necessary for me, but when I try to move to continue completing the application, a message pops up saying I SHOULD PROVIDE EVIDENCE (under the additional evidence section).

What else do I need to submit?

Please help me answer this question on the N-400. I'm a lawful permanent resident. So I am a US resident right? So my answer is NO because I haven't ever called myself a non-US resident?!

Have you called yourself a "non-U.S. resident" on a federal, state, or local tax return since you became a lawful permanent resident?

As I'm sorting through all my documents - it's surprising how much "stuff" is really just in my husband's name. Our electricity bill is just in his name, as well as our cable bill. I decided to write a letter explaining this, and directing them to the bank statements where they can see the money coming out of our joint account. Do you think this is the right thing to do?

Or should I send electric and cable statements that are just in his name to support this?

As I'm sorting through all my documents - it's surprising how much "stuff" is really just in my husband's name. Our electricity bill is just in his name, as well as our cable bill. I decided to write a letter explaining this, and directing them to the bank statements where they can see the money coming out of our joint account. Do you think this is the right thing to do?

thanks for the replies.

The extra Bank statements is a good idea. I thought I didn't have any more but I have about the whole year of 2011 also I could add. I don't have any saved from 2010. I read what others have said about bank statements that the first page is not enough and they want to see transaction history so I will be including almost all pages from the statements. That's the best I can do besides requesting the bank send me statements from 2010.

I did not have the family letters notarized. I read somewhere that notarization really wasn't needed probably on a thread here somewhere.

I do all my banking online, so didn't have any statements at all. Just 2 days ago I went into the bank with my I-751 instructions and said I needed statements from January 2010 onwards or I'll be deported (that's a joke, but I did explain my situation very politely). The bank teller was happy to print out full statements for every 3 months while I waited! It was quick and I didn't waste any ink at home!! Worth a try if you have a bank close by.

Good luck, and thanks for the response about the notarization

Just to let you know, I was RFE'd back in August. *filed Nov.2011* We sent in basic items...mail with both names on...vehicle in both names..a couple bills...credit cards *copies* in both names...as well as my own personal ones, so that they saw it came to the same address. All my work schedules came mailed to me....photos and proof of us taking trips together.

There where NO income tax forms as I had not work, and my husband is on disability, therefore doesn't file. And he owns his house, no mortgage on it..so no lease etc and my name is not on the house. I explained all that in a letter along with the packet. I knew it was all weak, but I had a hope

Along comes RFE.

So...now I had income tax, and just started a job this year where my husband is on a life insurance policy. We also sent 4 very strong affidavits from friends. Oh..and in the orginal packet sent bank account statements with both our names but it was from March 2011 until Oct. And they wanted to see the duration of marriage for that. So we back tracked to get the statements from 2009 *when we got married*. Lo and behold..my name wasn't on them untl March 2011! I thought we added it much sooner than that. So I wrote a letter and said I really didn't know what happened because the first few months after moving, getting married and going on trips were a whirlwind!! In a nutshell..I apologized for not having my act together better!! So we mailed off a very weak RFE.

Almost 5 weeks later, I got the email that my card was ordered!! I'm almost positive it was the affidavits that helped, but I'd like to think they got a kick out of my letter and thought it was just too cute not to pass!

Best of luck with everything!! I'm sure you'll be fine!!

Thanks for such a helpful post. My bank statements say my maiden name until February of this year - I wonder if I should send a note just mentioning that I thought the bank had corrected this - seeing as my debit card was in my married name for the past 3 years!!!

Obviously you chose to go with the affidavits route. Would you share what you wrote in these affidavits, and if you chose to notarize them? Thank you!

Jo

I am about to do the same thing as you and have only 1/2 or maybe only 1/3 of what you have. I think your good to go.

This looks like a great list.

Do you have any more bank statements than just the previous year? I believe they like to see statements for the duration of marriage?

I only mention, because I got an RFE based partly on the lack of bank account evidence.

Did you decide to notarize your family letters? I'm considering having friends and family write letters as supporting evidence, but don't know if they need to be notarized or not.

Good Luck!

That's pretty common for CC companies to do that. Most (except 1) of my CC statements look like yours.

I did photocopy all of the cards we have with the same name and just sent that. If they RFE - I'll send the statements too.

I only sent the statements for 1 card that shows both of our names on it.

You can send the statements along with the copy of the cards, they are not too dumb in USCIS, they'll figure it out. It's definitely NOT a red flag.

Alright, great! Thanks for the advice

Jo

Could anyone help me out with this question:

We share a credit card, we both have a credit card with our own names on it. However, when I just went to print out statements from our credit card account online, only my husbands name is listed. Mine is not listed on any of the statements from the past 3 years.

I still want to prove we have a joint credit card account, so I was thinking of photocopying both cards (with our own names on) as well as printing out quarterly statements from the account, despite my name not being on there.

Is this going to cause a concern for the USCIS? I don't want to for them to see this as a red flag!

Thanks!