rostov007

Has anyone else seen this?

Naturalization completed in January, she has a passport, everything is fine.  But every 2 weeks or so we get an email from USCIS saying “still processing your application and we’ll notify you when there are any changes”.

It’s almost as if someone forgot to hit the “case completed” button?

1 hour ago, Camelot13 said:

 

It sounds like you were able to get your change of address in before your original interview was scheduled? Were your old and new addresses in the catchment area for the same field office?  It looks like ours was processed right after they mailed out our interview notice. We're actually at our old address now and the new address is my parents' house so I got both letters - the one for my interview at my "old" address and then the cancellation notice to my parents' address. It didn't include info about when my husband's new interview is scheduled. I'm sure it's because we're now considered to be at a different field office so could no longer have our interview in downtown LA.

We did submit the address change before the interview was scheduled and we moved within the same USCIS coverage area so that’s probably why it worked differently.  Sorry to hear about your glitch and I hope you a speedy finish!

4 minutes ago, Camelot13 said:

I think I figured out what happened to my husband's. We submitted the change of address form because we're in the middle of our house sale and didn't know when we would be getting the interview notice. In the meantime, we were scheduled for the interview at the downtown LA office for Mar 26, then USCIS received our change of address and so they cancelled that appointment and have moved us to the Chatsworth office, to await an interview with them. I hope this doesn't cause a major delay in his case. How unfortunate. 

For anyone in this same situation, our change of address happened approximately 1 week before our interview was scheduled.  We filed the AR-11, changed the address with USCIS online, forwarded our mail with USPS, and crossed our fingers.  When our case status changed we called USCIS and asked what to do.  She said that the AR-11 and USCIS online address changed takes 30 days to complete and in this time window the letter will mail to the old address.  We asked her if USCIS allows the USPS to forward USCIS mail and she said she’d never heard that they wouldn’t.  Sure enough, our interview letter was forwarded to our new address after much anxiety.

For what it’s worth.

3 minutes ago, insipidtoast said:

At what point are you legally a US citizen? After the interview or after the oath ceremony?

 

At what point can you go to the post office and do a passport application?

You aren’t a citizen until after your oath.  You can go from the place of oath with your certificate and apply for your passport or register to vote same day.

30 minutes ago, rostov007 said:

 

Also, is there a best place for reviews of the naturalization process?  There isn’t a space for it in the timelines like there is for consulate reviews, etc.

Scratch that, I found it but it’s not in the timeline section.  It’s in USCIS local office reviews in the main menu.

 Cheers

17 minutes ago, Sam V said:

Yes. 2 questions:

 

1. When is the Oath ceremony every month in the SF area?

2. Online printout interview letter is good enough or do we need the one that comes in mail?

Question 2:

I asked this question of USCIS on the phone because we had an address change during the time the letter was being mailed.  She said that she couldn’t think of a reason it wouldn’t be acceptable to bring a printout.  I then tried to printout the document in many different ways (mobile, laptop, work computer) and was unsuccessful every time.  I kept getting “document is corrupt” messages.  In the end, the letter was forwarded by the USPS and we had the original so it didn’t matter but we were sweating until it came.

We did change our address with USCIS and AR-11 before the letter was mailed but they told me on the phone it takes a month for those changes to affect where mail is sent.  Proof of that is she has already been naturalized and we still haven’t received the official AR-11 confirmation by mail.

4 minutes ago, rostov007 said:

Can someone assist me with filling this form out from my timeline?  I’m on mobile and the formatting is not working.  Late August filer and interview/oath yesterday in Seattle.  I guess we got lucky on that part as my wife said other applicants in the ceremony had been waiting for the oath since December.  

 

Her interview appointment was yesterday 08:45 and oath ceremony yesterday 13:30. 

 

Want to contribute the info to the tracker but it’s not letting me.

 

Also, is there a best place for reviews of the naturalization process?  There isn’t a space for it in the timelines like there is for consulate reviews, etc.

I’ll put some info here for now until I find a better place for it:

We just returned from a long day at USCIS.  She was approved after the interview this morning and she took the oath this afternoon.  We decided to do the name change outside USCIS because the interviewer didn’t know how long it would take to finish the change and schedule the oath ceremony.  There was one this afternoon so he offered to place her in it if she wanted to postpone the name change, so she did.

We arrived 15 min before her appointment time (the maximum amount you can be early) and checked in and got a waiting number.  You then go upstairs to the waiting room until your number is called.  She was only in the room about 15-20 minutes before she came out approved.  She said they asked her 6 questions for the 100 list and she got all correct.  They had her write the answer to a verbal question on paper.  (“Name the three branches of the US government”. She then wrote the answer in a complete sentence “The three branches of the US government are...”) and then he checks it.  

They only asked us to provide one document, our daughters birth certificate, but they did ask her a lot of questions.  She said it was very conversational and relaxed, like talking to someone instead of formal.  Very easy if you are telling the truth and have studied English and the government.

For the oath ceremony we came back at 1:30 and waited upstairs to be called.  Then the families go to the auditorium while the applicants check in.  The ceremony itself is quite short depending on how many applicants.  Ours was just under an hour for the whole thing. 

She walked in in the morning at 8:30 and left around 3:30 a fully naturalized citizen.  Some of the people she sat with had their interviews in early December and had to wait until today to take the oath.  I think we got lucky that our interview was on the same day as an oath ceremony that had open slots available.

Relax, enjoy it, and you will do fine.

best to you,

Richard

14 hours ago, MRainier said:

N-400: August 2017 Applicants

==================================
Dallas/Lewisville, Texas Lockbox
==================================
UserName......|GC-Date.|Sent.|Cashd|NOA..|Fprints.|In Line.|Int ltr.|Intrvw..|Oath....|Field Office.....|NBC/IOE
Ellinora......|10/01/14|08/02|08/10|08/09|09/06/17|09/11/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Baltimore, MD....|NBC
krizkroz......|--/--/--|08/03|08/08|08/08|08/28/17|08/30/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Atlanta, GA......|NBC
Maldita808....|--/--/--|08/09|08/14|08/14|09/01/17|09/07/17|10/05/17|11/06/17|12/13/17|Honolulu, HI.....|NBC
berber_wife...|10/28/14|08/10|08/15|08/15|09/11/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Ft. Myers, FL....|NBC
RRM...........|07/25/14|08/10|08/21|08/18|09/15/17|09/19/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Charlotte, NC....|NBC
althes........|05/10/76|08/14|08/16|08/16|09/12/17|10/10/17|11/04/17|12/07/17|12/21/17|Boston, MA.......|NBC
hsa12390......|09/30/14|08/16|08/24|08/22|09/14/17|09/20/17|10/23/17|11/27/17|12/14/17|Boston, MA.......|NBC
Westpalm .....|08/13/12|08/21|08/23|08/23|09/28/17|10/02/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|West Palm Beach..|NBC
ask2much......|04/05/14|08/21|08/31|08/31|09/20/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Atlanta, GA......|NBC 
tunc..........|07/23/11|08/29|08/31|09/01|09/28/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Boston, GA.......|NBC
niniclt.......|03/29/06|08/09|08/10|08/14|09/07/17|09/11/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Charlotte, NC....|NBC

================================
Phoenix, Arizona Lockbox
================================
UserName......|GC-Date.|Sent.|Cashd|NOA..|Fprints.|In Line.|Int ltr.|Intrvw..|Oath....|Field Office.....|NBC/IOE
eeosucess.....|11/04/14|08/07|08/10|08/14|09/06/17|10/10/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|San Francisco, CA|NBC
finalleg......|10/28/12|08/07|08/11|08/11|08/28/17|10/10/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Los Angeles, CA..|NBC
Camelot13.....|10/29/14|08/08|08/11|08/11|09/08/17|10/11/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Los Angeles, CA..|NBC
Zombie69......|11/04/14|08/08|08/15|08/10|08/29/17|10/10/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Los Angeles, CA..|NBC
Clonespiracy..|08/31/10|08/08|08/10|08/09|09/18/17|10/10/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|San Diego, CA....|NBC 
cali2017......|10/21/12|08/10|08/17|08/17|09/06/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Los Angeles, CA..|NBC
thunder11.....|09/03/14|08/10|08/15|08/16|09/06/17|10/10/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Denver, CO.......|NBC
synix.........|11/08/12|08/11|08/17|08/17|09/07/17|10/10/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Seattle, WA......|NBC
Sunny0007.....|11/--/12|08/15|08/21|08/27|09/12/17|10/16/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|San Jose, CA.....|NBC
tukfpe........|11/06/12|08/16|08/19|08/25|09/14/17|10/06/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Los Angeles, CA..|NBC
AustinCanada..|11/20/14|08/22|08/24|08/24|09/22/17|10/20/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Seattle, WA......|NBC
ZirZai........|11/25/13|08/26|09/01|09/01|09/29/17|11/17/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Santa Ana, CA....|NBC

==================================
Chicago, Illinois Lockbox
==================================
UserName......|GC-Date.|Sent.|Cashd|NOA..|Fprints.|In Line.|Int ltr.|Intrvw..|Oath....|Field Office.....|NBC/IOE
okininja......|--/--/--|08/07|08/14|08/14|08/29/17|09/07/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Albuquerque, NM..|NBC
Aneta73.......|11/07/12|08/09|08/15|08/14|08/28/17|10/10/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Chicago, IL......|NBC
tom.in.chi....|11/22/11|08/11|08/17|08/17|08/28/17|09/07/17|10/13/17|11/20/17|12/18/17|Columbus, OH.....|NBC
Bic...........|10/21/11|08/16|08/22|08/23|09/14/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Chicago, IL......|NBC 
rovers........|--/--/--|08/27|09/01|08/31|09/25/17|10/26/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Chicago, IL......|NBC 

==================================
Online Filing
==================================
UserName......|GC-Date.|Sent.|Cashd|NOA..|Fprints.|In Line.|Int ltr.|Intrvw..|Oath....|Field Office.....|NBC/IOE
Ken Adems.....|10/27/14|08/01|08/01|08/02|08/22/17|08/22/17|10/18/17|11/27/17|11/30/17|Charlotte, NC....|IOE
Chicagocbd....|09/26/14|08/01|08/04|08/01|09/01/17|09/06/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Chicago,IL.......|IOE
aphrodite.....|05/30/06|08/02|08/03|08/03|08/23/17|08/23/17|08/25/17|10/10/17|11/14/17|Tampa, FL........|IOE
NaturalizeHope|11/05/12|08/07|08/07|08/07|08/15/17|08/30/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Seattle, WA......|IOE 
waiting_for_ao|11/05/12|08/07|08/07|08/08|08/28/17|08/30/17|10/25/17|12/01/17|01/10/18|Oklahoma City, OK|IOE
Pinkrlion.....|10/16/14|08/08|08/08|08/08|08/28/17|08/31/17|10/06/17|11/13/17|02/09/18|Kansas City, MO..|IOE
John Go.......|09/12/14|08/09|08/09|08/11|08/30/17|08/31/17|09/09/17|10/11/17|12/08/17|Albuquerque, NM..|IOE
Darkchile.....|08/13/14|08/14|08/15|08/15|08/31/17|08/31/17|11/02/17|12/08/17|--/--/--|Orlando, FL......|IOE
YashMin.......|10/18/14|08/15|08/15|08/15|08/25/17|08/30/17|11/15/17|12/20/17|--/--/--|New York City, NY|IOE
IPv6Freely....|09/11/12|08/15|08/15|08/15|08/28/17|10/06/17|10/07/17|11/14/17|12/20/17|San Diego, CA....|IOE
qaszxc1234....|09/11/14|08/15|08/15|08/16|08/28/17|09/06/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|San Francisco, CA|IOE
Canrebat......|04/12/10|08/20|08/20|08/20|09/14/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|San Antonio, TX..|IOE
cj777.........|08/30/12|08/22|08/22|08/22|08/30/17|08/31/17|09/01/17|10/05/17|11/16/17|Dallas, TX.......|IOE
H'rrekkah.....|10/02/14|08/22|08/22|08/22|09/06/17|09/06/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Washington, DC...|IOE
Air_Borne.....|11/12/14|08/23|08/23|08/23|08/30/17|09/07/17|--/--/--|11/27/17|01/20/17|Washington, DC...|IOE
GCholder222...|08/09/06|08/23|08/23|08/23|09/21/17|09/22/17|10/10/17|11/16/17|12/18/17|Philadelphia, PA |IOE
BigK..........|06/02/09|08/23|08/23|08/23|09/19/17|09/20/17|11/08/17|12/14/17|01/17/18|Houston, TX......|IOE
leswede.......|11/20/14|08/24|08/24|08/24|09/05/17|09/15/17|11/03/17|12/12/17|01/24/18|San Diego, CA....|IOE
MRainier......|11/01/08|08/25|08/25|08/25|09/08/17|--/--/--|12/08/17|01/16/18|01/16/18|Seattle, WA......|IOE
punter13......|11/24/14|08/26|08/26|08/26|09/07/17|09/14/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|Dallas, TX.......|IOE
Sam V.........|--/--/--|08/27|08/28|08/28|09/07/17|09/13/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|San Francisco, CA|IOE
r060106.......|09/23/16|08/28|08/28|08/29|09/22/17|09/22/17|11/15/17|12/20/17|01/18/18|Milwaukee, WI....|IOE
Vetswife328...|10/31/09|08/29|08/29|09/05|09/19/17|--/--/--|12/15/17|01/22/18|--/--/--|Seattle, WA......|IOE
altito........|11/29/14|08/31|08/31|08/31|09/18/17|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|--/--/--|San Francisco, CA|IOE


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Can someone assist me with filling this form out from my timeline?  I’m on mobile and the formatting is not working.  Late August filer and interview/oath yesterday in Seattle.  I guess we got lucky on that part as my wife said other applicants in the ceremony had been waiting for the oath since December.  

Her interview appointment was yesterday 08:45 and oath ceremony yesterday 13:30. 

Want to contribute the info to the tracker but it’s not letting me.

Also, is there a best place for reviews of the naturalization process?  There isn’t a space for it in the timelines like there is for consulate reviews, etc.

Just wanted to add that if your biometrics appointment letter says, for example, 10:00 am you don't have to wait until 10:00 before they will see you.  This was true in Seattle, at least.  Also, in Seattle, save yourself the $7 cash parking charge and drop off your applicant at the load/unload only spot and pick them

up there again when they come out in 15 minutes.  So much better an experience than paying to hike up that hill only to see your applicant coming out the door when you arrive, lol.

Your interview sounds very much like ours, congratulations.

If you file now then you'll probably be denied, and you'll end up spending a long time - maybe years - trying to get it fixed.

Take your time. Build your relationship. Save your money. Have a proper Dam Hoi, invite the whole village to the party, get a nice tux and gown, and hire professional photographers. Try to get a married couple from your family to come to VN and represent you. When you've got at least one tax return with sufficient income, current paystubs, a letter of employment, and big box of evidence, then go ahead and file the petition. Your chances of sailing through the consulate will be substantially better.

Jim is right, and I would add that the Dam Hoi is not for the case officer of the embassy, it is for you, your fiance, and your new family to celebrate and confirm the union. The reason it is important to the CO is it shows your serious commitment to the relationship.

Sounds like you are getting the cart before the horse a little bit. Slow down, build a solid relationship with her and her family, then apply to bring her here.

Sorry to everyone for not replying back sooner. Thank you so much for your replies, I'm glad you found it meaningful. My ability to see this from her perspective was some sense of empathy derived from living in Vietnam for a year myself. I remember the fish out of water feeling, the "spend most of my time listening and trying to catch up" feeling, the hunger to hear and speak native English and be understood.

Anh is fluent in English so that will help her avoid some of those feelings, but not all of them. So I have done some minor things to make her environment a little more friendly. I stocked up on Cam Ly and Minh Tuyet, Paris by Night and Asia DVDs, we are making an ancestor altar for her to tend to, and I'm trying to find access to the San Francisco VN television/radio stations online. (If you know where, please reply, would be great to hear from some of you who have walked this path before.

Anyway, I feel this post sliding into being moved to another forum. I'll post a POE review and update the timeline a little later.

Cheers everyone,

I wanted to let my VJ friends know that Anh is on her way here as we speak. She just sent me an email from Taipei during her layover. I'm very excited, I've already done all of my bachelor preparations, the florist is on standby, and we have a lovely weekend in Seattle planned.

I'm posting this not only to share my joy, but also to post something of a warning as well. This may seem obvious, I certainly knew it already, but no matter how excited your wife or fiance is to be with you, the fact remains that she is leaving her country, her family, and her friends to come to a foreign country for the rest of her life. Last night I called her on the phone just as she was boarding the plane in HCMC, and she was crying. I know my wife's voices, and this was the sorrow of loss tone that I learned so well during her Mom's funeral in HCMC. Never forget the courage it takes to get on that plane, regardless of the depth of love she feels for you.

The tone of the email from Taipei was distinctly more positive, like she had mourned and now remembered why she went through the earlier pain. I love her for both of these abilities, she is amazing.

Oh, one thing I just found out is I will have a business trip to New York City in October so very quickly after her arrival, she will get to take photos with the Statue of Liberty. How cool is that?

Best of luck on all of your journeys,

Well, if they knew already that they would deny you, there is no reason to keep your passport, they would give it back after the first interview and tell you no. The only reasons to keep your passport is to attach a visa to it or examine it further. The extra info in your case is the "additional interview". In my mind there are two possibilities.

Their instinct is approve but something doesn't seem quite right so they want additional time to check it out, want one more chance to talk to you before they can be confident saying yes. Or their instinct was to deny and they wanted extra time to research, and an extra interview to flush out their concerns.

Did they give you any papers at all to explain the second interview? Could they have just meant come back in a week to get your passport? That's how it was phrased to us, "here is an appointment time to come back to get your passport."

Was it like this?

You are a good man. Patience of steel.

Thank you. =)

you have to send it all to get stamped by the consulate I believe

Correct. Without the consulate bindings and stamps, they are not official documents.

One thing to keep in mind during Tet is seemingly everyone in the country travels for the holiday to hometowns, vacations, etc. Last year my wife and I booked a sleeper car from HCMC to Hue to visit her family, which, if you've ever been on the VN trains, means one person per bed realistically from a size perspective. Each room has 4 beds (on this train, I don't know about others). Which, logic would suggest, means a maximum of 4 people per room. Even at it's best, there is no privacy in a "private compartment".

But that is not what happened. When we boarded the train we actually found out that each "bed" has four seat assignments. So we entered our cabin and found 12 people already in the room. So my wife and I crammed into one of the top bunks and twelve others crammed onto the other three, for a 15 hour trip. Also, no running water or cleaning in the bathrooms, no paper of any kind anywhere, and more people sold tickets to sit in the hallways and corridors of the train.

Truly a nightmare. Any other week I'm sure it's fine, but not at Tet.

Take Anh Map's advice and hire a car, your sanity will thank you.

Hey, Mark is a good guy.

I'm not talking about Mark

If you want to know what's wrong with this country, just read this thread.

so how do they charge me the fee if I just download the website. I don't see no fee on there.

You are confusing two issues. There is no fee to download the forms from their website.

There is a fee to process the filled out paperwork.

Uhmmmm....When you got your passport, you either got a form from the Post Office or downloaded it from the website, for this there was no charge, right? When you filled out the form and sent it in for processing, there is a fee to get a passport, right?

Exactly the same here.

Rostov, I admire your patience.

It is slowly waning however. I think I missed a couple of birthdays.

I do not know what to do,and maybe I am TOO BLIND to see the REALITY but I need honest opinions/answers.

Not only am I confident that she is using you, but she's terrible at it. Because she won't succeed.

Right?

When I send all the documents to the Secretary of State do I need write them a letter with those documents? If so what do I tell them or just tell them that I need those document apostille for Vietnam marriage? As for the Consulate in SF what do I tell them or I don't need to tell anything? Also can you guys give me the Address for the Secretary of State and VN Consulate in SF please

For SOS, a letter saying you need Apostilles for foreign marriage registration. For SF consulate, attach all the forms together with the application for marriage registration and fee on the top, they will know what you want.

Also when I called the VN Embassy they told me to follow the instruction on the website, so I assume this is what they meant by the look on the website http://www.vietnamembassy.us/consular_services/marry_a_vietnamese/ but what I'm confuse is how do I get those document from them? Do I just click on the red link and download it, fill everything and print it out? Do I need to pay for those documents? If so where is the fee for this?

Yes, no, no.

Also when I called the VN Embassy they told me to follow the instruction on the website, so I assume this is what they meant by the look on the website http://www.vietnamembassy.us/consular_services/marry_a_vietnamese/ but what I'm confuse is how do I get those document from them? Do I just click on the red link and download it, fill everything and print it out? Do I need to pay for those documents? If so where is the fee for this?

Yes, that is the approximate fee. We paid a similar amount plus the cost of my visa. Yes, download the documents from their website and fill them out.

For this one should I get it now? Is there an expiration time length like 3-6 months thing? Do I just download this AFIDAVITOFSINGLESTATUS.pdf from here http://www.vietnamembassy.us/consular_services/marry_a_vietnamese/ and fill it out and get it notarized and apostille then send to the consulate in SF?

If you just downloaded it, then that is the most recent version. I'm not sure how long they are good before you file it, however I'm fairly sure they come back from the consulate with a date on it. If you are heading there soon to marry and file, you will be fine.

Also does the Single Status look something like this CHS Single Status Request form.pdf or like from the VN Embassy website AFIDAVITOFSINGLESTATUS.pdf which is it? Because one is from the VN Embassy website and one is from the Vital Statistic/Records Office from my State (Washington State) When I send them an email and ask for the single status certificate they email me back with that Single Status Request form. I also ask them this is for oversea marriage in Vietnam, so they told me when I order for this they will send it to the Secretary of State for apostille. I guess that is what I will do. As for the Certificate of No-marriage Records should I get from both County and State?

The Single Status Request form is the form you must fill out so the State of Washington can do the search in the computer and present you with a certificate that says you are single. Fill it out and they will give you a certificate of single status. This you will have apostilled (it sounds like they are offering to do that step for you before they give it to you, if that is the case, great.) and sent to the consulate in SF.

The Affadavit of Single status form is a Vietnamese government form that contains your promise, a sworn statement, that you are indeed single. This one you notarize and apostille before sending to the consulate in SF.