VJ-Newbie

OATH CEREMONY Done yesterday! July 12th! Please update the grid for us. 

The end was surreal. We're still reeling. Had to celebrate by eating the best burger in Atlanta at 1910 Public House in Lilburn and drinking Sprite from Mexico. We could not have made it these past 7 years without the VisaJourney family!

THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

@nathyn, @Jamaican_Gooner, and other ATLers - I normally write detailed accounts of each experience, but this time, I think those of you who are going to the Oath ceremony may prefer to experience it firsthand. So I won't give any spoiler alerts. 

The three things I'll say:

(1) Feel free to have your family take as many photos and videos. This is one of the rare times a federal building allows this, so GO FOR IT, if you like capturing memories like us.

(2) Your guests should know that first they'll have to sit in the waiting room on Level 3, before they'll be called down to the Level 2 waiting room. I'd recommend sitting near the stairs on Level 3 (a closed door on the left side of the room right before that short hallway near the middle-front) so that guests can quickly be one of the first to get down to Level 2. And then on Level 2 waiting room, guests should sit closest to the door at the front of right of the room right next to the windows  (I think it's titled "Ceremony Room 1". That door is what all guests will enter through. If you want a "good" seat -- which I'm not sure if there really is one, since guests sit behind the oath takers. I personally stood on the side where my husband was sitting so that I could take all the video and photos that I could. I'm glad I did! We got GREAT shots.

(3) We arrived 25 minutes in advance of 8am and the parking lot was already virtually full.

Have fun! And choose things that day to celebrate your way.

2 hours ago, Jamaican_Gooner said:

Congrats to you and your Husband, Thank you for the very detailed description of your interview experience. I'm moving from Memphis to Atlanta so once I change my address I probably will get my interview at the Atlanta FO, so I really appreciate your post. All the best

Yay Jamaican_Gooner! Glad to see you're coming down to HOTlanta. Nathyn also posted a good description of his interview experience today at the Atlanta FO. Wishing you a wonderful journey!

46 minutes ago, nathyn said:

So for some more detailed information regarding my Interview:

 

I arrived at the Atlanta field office at 6:50am for my 7:15 appointment, went through security and waited in line until the reception opened at 7. I was checked in and asked to go upstairs to the second floor. There I went to another window and was given a ticket number around 7:10am and told to sit down till my number was called. At 7:18 I was called over to door 1 and met the officer that was conducting my interview,  she was very professional and friendly.

 

 

That's a great update, nathyn! So happy things went smoothly and quick for you too. Our oath letter for the July 12th swearing in, took two weeks to the day to arrive in the mail (and we received the e-mail notifying us that the letter was on the way 9 days after the interview). Who knows they may try to get you in for the July 12th ceremony. Wishing you all the best!

We received our Oath letter on July 3rd. The oath ceremony will take place July 12th at 8am at the local Atlanta Office. Woo hoooo! 

@atlantaGC - Apologies for the delay! We just posted our experience. So happy to see everything went well for you too! 

Apologies for the delay, wonderful VisaJourneyers. Hubby went for his interview June 19th at the Atlanta Field Office and was preliminarily approved in 18 minutes!  It was, by far, the fastest experience we have had thus far. We are thankful for the kind and professional officer who conducted his interview.  He is awaiting the oath notice. And just received an e-mail and text message on June 28, 2017 that the oath letter has been mailed. We still haven’t received it yet.

I offer the following in-depth details for those of you who are like me and want to know as much about the experience to feel more at ease. But bottom line: This was a fast and stress-free process. They only asked for his interview notice, GC, and passport. They didn’t ask for any of the items listed in “What to Bring”—

No passport photos were needed as his IO explained that they rely on the photos they take at the start of the interview. (I think)

His interview was in the afternoon and to make sure we did not run into the infamous Atlanta traffic, we arrived about an hour before and waited in the parking lot. 29 minutes before his interview, we entered the building. Security had us show our ID and then put all of our things (bag of docs, belts, phones, my water bottle [which they allowed me to keep since I needed it for medical reasons] all into a bin, much like airport security.

We retrieved our things after going to a second table to reassemble ourselves and went up a small ramp to the left of the elevators to “Reception/Check In.” A professionally friendly check-in man asked for my husband’s interview notice and wrote 2nd Fl. at the top of the notice. We went back down the ramp and took the elevator to the 2nd flor. Upon exiting, we saw locked doors to our left and we turned right and stepped into a bright, quite sizable-large room with a full wall-length panel of windows overlooking the entrance and parking lot (a far cry from the biometrics place.) The room was filled with 18 rows of 12 golden-tan textured/designed seats, mostly empty—with perhaps 15-20 people waiting. All eyes of the waiting room seemed to fall on us momentarily and the room was strangely quiet except for the low tones of an episode of HGTV’s “Love It, or List It” playing at the front of the room on a tv screen too small (42”-?) for the large-sized room. Right next to the TV was a larger TV screen, perhaps 70” or so that showed ticket #s being served in the interview rooms and the Doors (1 or 2) through which the ticket holder should enter. Another TV of the same size and showing the same info was mounted on the left wall facing the front. These informational TVs also showed  helpful tips for submitting forms, updates, and nifty USCIS facts like: Did you know 23,000 applications are serviced daily? [I gained a better appreciation for the length of time these processes take!]

We turned right upon entering the room and proceed to the check-in desk where we were greeted by another professionally friendly representative (and cool glasses). She asked my hubby for his interview notice and wrote on a purple post it note his ticket # which placed on his notice. We took our seats, choosing to sit a few seats from the outside in the row closest to where we entered the room—a good, midpoint where we could see the locked doors next to the elevators (DOOR 1) and other locked at the front left of the waiting room (DOOR 2). We had not waited long when five minutes before his interview time, a woman came out from DOOR 2and called my hubby’s ticket number.

The IO had him stand and take the oath.

What’s the capital of state?

Who is the governor of state?

What does the Constitution do?

How many justices are there?

What was one war fought in the 20th century? (I think)

Q6 ----?

The reading test: Who is the first President of the United States?

She dictated the written test: George Washington is the first President of the United States.

You passed the civics, written, and reading test. Now, let’s go through your application.

The IO went through the form and asked a few questions here and there - Spouse’s (my) name; Confirmed where spouse (I) work; went through each of the YES/NO questions.

My husband wanted to add a middle name as a name change, but decided not to do it there when the IO explained that a name change would further push back the oath ceremony by 3-4 weeks. Note: name changers have to get sworn in at the federal courthouse. She removed the I-95 from my husband’s Ghana passport, gave him a confirmation letter, and returned his green card to him.

After everything was complete, the IO and my hubby had a friendly conversation about how his experience has been in the U.S. since coming here seven years ago.

If we could write a direct note of thanks to his IO and to the head of USCIS, we would! My husband’s IO epitomized the best of what the immigration process should be: professional, courteous, empathetic, expedient and thorough if all of the paperwork and evidence provided has already been reviewed well, and most of all, humane. Praying all VisaJourneyers have such a process. 

We’ll post the oath ceremony date once we receive it.

We received:

our interview letter notice date: May 12 

our interview letter received sometime between May 13-17 (we were traveling)

our interview date: June 19.

Can someone please update the grid for me?

Almost. there.

On 5/11/2017 at 1:30 PM, Dharri26 said:

Did my interview today ..

 

got approved on the spot 

 

oath ceremony tomorrow 5/12

 

one more day to go ! 

This is wonderful, Dharri26! I'm in Atlanta as well and my husband is awaiting his interview date. Can you share details of your interview and oath experience? Many thanks! VJNewbie

On 5/14/2017 at 1:13 AM, mike&rhio said:

Congrats VJ,  my wife filed her N400 in December, we are Atlanta also

Thanks, mike&rhio! I will surely keep giving updates re: ATL and look out for your updates as well. 

Happy day, VJers!

We just got the e-notice today that we can expect an interview letter soon for the Atlanta Office. Progress! Will post the interview date when we get the letter.

Be encouraged all!

8 hours ago, vegasbound said:

Welcome to the Nov filer thread! 

Could you please provide the info for the items below? 

 

GC-Date: The 'Resident Since' Date located on your first green card  (this can be the 'Residence Since' date on your Conditional GC)
Sent: Date N-400 was mailed to USCIS (the date that you mailed your N400)
Cashd: Date your check was cashed by USCIS (the date that your check is cashed or credit card payment is posted)
NOA: Receipt Notice Date Printed on your official I-797 notification (this is the Notice Date on the very first letter that you received from USCIS after mailing in your N400)

Thanks for your help, vegasbound.

VJ-Newbie

01/04/2011 - GC-Date

6/19/2013 - Removal of Conditions on Green Card approved

Mailed to Texas

Field Office: Atlanta

11/3/2016 - Sent

11/4/2016 - USCIS received package

11/4/2016 - Credit Card payment posted

11/12/2016 - NOA

11/14/2016 - FP scheduled

12/4/2016 - Fingerprints

12/7/2016 - Notice that Case is In line for Interview Processing

Hi there VJ Community,

Glad to find you again as we round the final bend on this journey. Anyone else awaiting an interview in ATL?

Please add to the list:

VJ-Newbie

June 19, 2013 - Removal of Conditions on Green Card approved

Mailed to Texas

Field Office: Atlanta

11/4/2016 - USCIS received package

11/14/2016 - FP scheduled

12/4/2016 - Fingerprints

12/7/2016 - Notice that Case is In line for Interview Processing

Just received our card today. Thanks so much to everyone for their support. Still thinking about and hoping for good, speedy news for the rest of the October Flier Family still waiting.

Received email notification yesterday (June 13) that production of card has been ordered. Woot!

Woot! God is good! We just received our approval!

Yessssss!

Can someone please update the chart for me?

Approval date: May 23, 2013

Mail received: May 29, 2013 (signed by the local office on that plain unofficial looking paper everyone has been mentioning; and it looks like the letter was mailed twice--it has two postmarks May 24 and May 28).

So happy! Blessings to all of you still waiting.

Just writing to say I am getting antsy over this CSC wait.

Man!

Dear Proud Phinay,

I am so sorry to read about your RFE. Can you post the precise language of the RFE so that we can get a better sense of what the USCIS is requesting?

Be encouraged! We shall all get through this.

Hi there npson - My response to your red response is in blue.

1. To further establish that you have shared and continue to share the same residence: I was planning to send them copies of our respective drivers licenses which show our communal address - both for our previous address and current home. I think that's the right thing to do. Some folks also include bills/mail they received addressed to both of you/either of you at your address.

2. Re: d - auto insurance - perhaps include full premium payment statements spanning the entire length of your marriage we usually make a full payment for the duration premium - can we just highlight that payment from our joint account bank statement? Good question. I'm unsure. My sense is that a combination of the actual payment statement from yoru auto insurance (you could probably call them and ask for it) and highlighting your joint bank account statement may be the way to go. You mention entire length of our marriage. My understanding is that they just need info from the point at which I received conditional status. I have nothing to hide it is just that my wife (US citizen) and I lived in the UK and we started our i-130 process with the UK embassy which was all approved. We both moved to the US once I received my green card in January 2011 and have joint accounts, joint auto insurance policies etc from Jan 2011 to the present day. Prior to that that, (in the UK) we were living at my mothers house and we had provided all evidence of our joint UK bank accouint (the funds in this account are now at 0 as we transferred this to our US joint account). I have read in the USCIS forms NOT to submit evidence that was previously sent as part of an application. You mentioned entire length of your marriage and wanted to give context. Any thoughts? I'm hoping that some of our VJ friends can respond. I'm not as familiar with the I-130 process and am unsure if you should include additional information prior to your arrival in the U.S. Will showing the payment from our joint account covering each policy be sufficient?

3. Re: f - health coverage - perhaps ask your health insurance folks to simply send you a verification letter with both of your names listed indicating that you both have been covered from date xx/xx/2010 - present; also, perhaps include any EOBs that demonstrate both of you have used and paid for medical expenses covered by your insurance company I have been on the phone with my employer benefit hotline asking for a letter that fits this descrption but they are saying they only have a standard letter that does not provide a "to" date as it remains open ended as benefits can change etc. The info I provided already shows my name, my wife's name our DOBs and when the coverage started - with that I am not sure what else they would need, am I missing something here? I contacted the health insurance company (e.g. Blue Shief, Aetna, etc.) directly and they were the ones to write the letter instead of my employer's benefit office.

4. Re: joint financial liabilities -

a. bank statements - I think you should submit evidence spanning your entire marriage until now - as many statements as possible; and if you can get the bank manager to write a letter verifying the dates you both opened the account and a summary of transactions, that might help as well; see my comments in red above in 2 regarding when we moved to the US

b. joint tax returns - did you send them in previously? This is a must. Thanks for the tip - we can send them the last two years of our joint tax returns! Be sure to request IRS tax transcripts! I am pretty sure that is what USCIS wants to see.

Re: affidavits - though most folks on the boards say affidavits are not necessary, since your RFE specifically asked for it then somethings to help might be doing the following: a. my lawyer friends said it's key to be thorough and detailed (and follow legal formatting since an affidavit is a legal document); and if possible include "Exhibits" (documentary evidence: photos of you and your spouse with the affiant; include dates and location in a caption). My friends, family members, and co-workers specified dates, locations, and as many details as possible when chronicling their interaction with us. Thanks - we will ask our friends and family to be more detailed. Can we request for the two individuals who already submitted their affidavits to re-write a more detailed description? Hmmm -- I am unsure. I would say yes and ask two additional folks to write a letter. Also, can anyone write the affidavit or does it have to be a US citizen or US Perm Resident? Good question. I'm unsure. I ask as we could request for our family and friends from London to write and affidavit.

Additional advice will be greatly appreciated! I hope our VJ friends can help you out soon!

Hi npson,

I'm not an expert and am still waiting for a decision on my submission; but wanted to offer my thoughts based on other postings. It sounds like your RFE is a case of not enough evidence spanning the entire length of your marriage and some additional details needed. Be encouraged!

In addition to what you plan to send, perhaps consider the following:

1. To further establish that you have shared and continue to share the same residence:

a. Perhaps front and back copies of drivers licenses/IDs showing communal residence at (a) your former and (b) current residences

2. Re: d - auto insurance - perhaps include full premium payment statements spanning the entire length of your marriage

3. Re: f - health coverage - perhaps ask your health insurance folks to simply send you a verification letter with both of your names listed indicating that you both have been covered from date xx/xx/2010 - present; also, perhaps include any EOBs that demonstrate both of you have used and paid for medical expenses covered by your insurance company

4. Re: joint financial liabilities -

a. bank statements - I think you should submit evidence spanning your entire marriage until now - as many statements as possible; and if you can get the bank manager to write a letter verifying the dates you both opened the account and a summary of transactions, that might help as well;

b. joint tax returns - did you send them in previously? This is a must.

3. Re: affidavits - though most folks on the boards say affidavits are not necessary, since your RFE specifically asked for it then somethings to help might be doing the following: a. my lawyer friends said it's key to be thorough and detailed (and follow legal formatting since an affidavit is a legal document); and if possible include "Exhibits" (documentary evidence: photos of you and your spouse with the affiant; include dates and location in a caption). My friends, family members, and co-workers specified dates, locations, and as many details as possible when chronicling their interaction with us.

5. Not sure if it's really helpful at this stage and given USCIS emphasis on financial comingling habits, but re: further proof of a shared life - perhaps include more than just travel itinerary but the boarding passes of your trips and photos; We were told at our AOS interview that photos with other people present were a good thing; be sure to caption with date, location, and people

Be encouraged!

deleted

Thanks for the support Vj-Newbie. The only things i can think of that i didn't send with my original package was a cover letter, don't think i sent a copy of my hubby's DL and i only sent summaries of our bank statements, i'm guessing they want to see transactions? we don't have kids yet so no Birth Certs to send.

This is a copy of the cover letter which contains a list of what i'm planning on sending by the end of next week....What do you guys think?

Evidence of Good faith Marriage

• Copy of RFE notice
• Marriage certificate
• Joint Tax fillings (2010,2011,2012)
• Joint bank statements (2010,2011,2012,2013)
• Bills (2010,2011,2012,2013)
• Random mail with same address
• Copies of both Drivers license
• Copy of petitioners Green card
• Copy of both passports

Yep, Sis J. I think this looks like a good start. Perhaps a will or trust if you did not include that before?

***THIS MAY ALSO HELP--- I cut and pasted the following info from another RFE inquiry on the ROC Forum that a fellow VJ member is being requested to provide*** Did your RFE specify the following as well?

Include "evidence covering the period of your marriage that you and your spouse have lived together, shared responsibility and ownership of financial resources and obligations or have made joint health coverage, estate and financial planning arrangements.

Please submit evidence to show that you and your spouse entered the marriage in good faith and continue to share a life together. The evidence should cover the entire period of your marriage and may include one or more of the following:

- evidence that you and your spouse resided together and shared responsibility for a common residence

- leases in both names showing joint occupancy

- deeds and mortgages in both names showing joint ownership

- evidence that you and your spouse have combined financial resources may include financial records showing joint ownership of assets and joint responsibility for liabilities such as joint checking and savings account statements showing deposits or withdrawals for the period of your marriage, insurance policies that show the other spouse as the beneficiary, joint tax returns

- evidence that you and your spouse have made estate health and financial planning arrangements with each other: a will, a trust or a durable power of attorney, for health care or property or both

-affidavits from third parties who have knowledge of the bona fides of your marital relationship. An affidavit should be supported by documentary evidence and must be sworn to or affirmed by at least two people who:

It's a freaking RFE! we sent lots of proof, don't know what else they need, but we'll resend it and hope we get approved. I'm disappointed.

Oh nooooo, Sis J! I am so sorry to see this! Be encouraged and send what they have requested. Was it something specific they felt was lacking? What did you send before?

The two of us have similar timelines and the Ghana connection. We should swap stories sometime about this immigration journey because most of the Ghana folks I know on this board have been going through the same hoops (e.g. Interviews, RFEs, etc.). Until then, know that we all support you and your hubby!

Hey there, yes I did sign up for both email and text notifications but received neither. I was actually in Chicago when the letter arrived and my wife called m very excited

It'll happen for the rest of you soon, I can feel it!

Good to know and thanks for that encouragement, Andrew + Bethany! Truly

Received a letter in the mail saying I have been approved

This is dynamite! YAY CSC!

Quick question: Did you sign up for e-mail/text notification; and did you receive that notification before the letter in the mail?

Doing a dance of joy for CSC approvals!

Hey there VJ family,

Just saw this interesting article and immediately thought about all of us going through this process. Immigration reform is a must!

TITLE "Waiting half a life for a green card: Families languish in immigration line"

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/04/12/17709883-waiting-half-a-life-for-a-green-card-families-languish-in-immigration-line?lite&ocid=msnhp&pos=2