PedroDaGr8

We just filed a few hours ago and have already received the receipt notice and biometrics waiver notice. As expected, the estimated time until decision is 13 months.

Add us to the list of Seattle Filers:
 

Submitted online a few hours ago and already received the receipt notice and the biometrics waiver notice.

36 minutes ago, H-I said:

Just an update about the situation. I talked to the officer about it and she said that I still can have interview in my old state no matter that I reported change of address (they haven't processed it yet though). The reason is that I still belong to the old state jurisdiction for 90 more days since moving (if I got it correctly). So according to her I have a choice in which state to have my interview. I didn't expect it, I thought that the officer would just cancel my interview as it is usually written everywhere about similar cases. Now something to think about.

I would DEFINITELY consider just going back for the interview (especially if they do Oath the same day) Once the interview and oath are completed, you will never have to worry about it again. If you change your office, you will basically get put back in line to wait for an interview. 

36 minutes ago, Utah123 said:

Yes but that early filing is based on 3 years of permanent residency. However, it says we must be living with US citizen spouse for the  last 3 years. However, we have lived together for only 2 years and 9 months? 

They will not adjudicate your application until after your 3 year date actual date so this is not an issue. The just allows you to get the paperwork in early and get it queued up for processing. I know USCIS is notorious for gotcha's like this but this is not one of them.

2 hours ago, rlm1893 said:

Hello all,

 

We filed the I-751 on October 9th, Biometrics were on 12/11/20. On 5/26/21 we received a RFE. On 6/8/21 Nebraska Service Center received an additional book of a mountains worth of evidence. Over 2 months of not hearing anything, we requested help from from our Congressman. Today 8/30/21 we received a notice that our case was being transferred.

 

We believe that USCIS got pissed after I legally adopted my wife's son in January of 2020, which automatically makes him a US citizen (2000 Child Citizen Act), which instead of filing for a Certificate of Citizenship, we filed for a passport. Because of Covid shutting down the Passport offices, we didn't receive his passport until after we filed the I-751 but had it when she went to get fingerprinted in December. The local USCIS, was noticeably angry. They yelled at my wife, demanding how she got it. We followed the law, it is 100% a legal. 

 

Is it possible they are just screwing with us because of me legally adopting her son and getting the passport instead of the Certificate of Citizenship and the USCIS not getting $1170 from us?

 

Thanks

No, they don't care about the Certificate of Citizenship nor the $1170.

You don't mention what the RFE was for and that is critical information. 

I can't speak to why your local office had a problem with this or if they even did (meaning the local office not the employee that yelled). In my experience, they tend to be very stern (bordering on rude) but I have, luckily, not encountered them yelling at someone. 

On 8/27/2021 at 6:26 PM, RamonGomez said:

CR1 visas gets a mandatory ROC interview. It could literally be 2 minutes long and a rubber stamp approval. Unfortunately, it could also be a very long wait until the interview depending on the field office workload... some people are waiting 2+ years for an interview (COVID obviously didnt help)

This is correct, for the most part the interview/no interview decision for ROC comes down to whether you have already had an interview in the US. For example,

• Those who arrived via K-1 and went through AOS pretty much always have an interview in the US as part of the AOS process. As such, they typically (but not always) get their interview waived.
• On the other hand, those who arrive via the CR-1 process had their interview at a US Embassy/Consulate and have not had an interview in the US. As such, they are typically referred for interview. 

On 8/26/2021 at 7:18 PM, arnab221 said:

Thanks @PedroDaGr8 for the great analysis and data representation .

From the backlog numbers it appears that the backlog as it stands today is very close what we had around 3/2019. However the staffing numbers now are more than 2019 and rate of processing is faster. I am hoping the backlog will continue to accelerate downwards as time advances.

 

Some of that backlog reduction appears to be due to a transfer of around 1000 cases from Seattle to Spokane who are having BY FAR their highest office case load for N400 since at least 2013:

Either way, this should hopefully help them get their processing backlog down some. 

As promised, here is the Google Sheet of compiled historical data: PNW - N-400 Naturalization Historical Case Load Data

The file includes data for Seattle, Spokane, Yakima, and Portland.

8 hours ago, arnab221 said:

Can someone explain this .. For Seattle , how has the N400 backlog grown from 22886 to 23167 when the (Approved+ Denied) > Received ? The same seems to be the case for Spokane and Yakima as well. 


Data Source : USCIS N400 Performance metrics as of August 2017. 

That's not what that says: 

• 22,886 is the number of non-military naturalizations pending
• 3,988 is the number of military naturalizations pending.
• There are a total of 23,167 applications (both military and non-military) pending at this time.

You have to go to the previous quarter see the change between quarters. At the end of Q2, there were 27,979 applications pending. So the number has dropped by over 4000 between quarters.

That being said, it seems like case transfers between offices are not explicitly denoted in these charts. Spokane had 538 pending applications a the end of Q2 and now has 1709. Similarly, the delta between received and decided (approved + denied) does not seem to correlate to the change in cases pending. 

USCIS N-400 2021Q2 Data

I will try to compile the local area data into a google sheet for anyone to peruse. 
 

1 hour ago, MaryD said:

you are not. The Official web site ( https://egov.uscis.gov/processing-times/ ) show from 6 up to 49 months.  Check you center for more information. 

Yes, they are if they are at SRC (I seem to remember that they are). SRC is currently processing from  receipt date Jan 2021 for i751. 

16 hours ago, Sutlac26 said:

Hello Team. Finally We came to end of our USCIS Journey. Like everyone, we applied ROC Last year and since then we did not see much update, Therefore , we applied N-400 for Naturalization on June6th. After Citizenship application, everything started to move super fast. We got our interview notice for citizenship for August 16.  We were little worried for possible delay because of our ROC application. But everything went very smooth and we did combo interview and got apporoved for 10 year green card and citizenship at the same time. Sharing our experience and timeline to encourage people to apply citizenship.

 

I-751 Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence

August 18, 2021 Case Was Approved

August 17, 2021 We ordered your new card.

June 10, 2021 We transferred your Form I-751, Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence, to another USCIS office that now has jurisdiction over your case.

June 9, 2021 Your Form I-751, Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence, was transferred to another USCIS office.

April 23, 2020 We received your Form I-751, Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence.

 

N-400 Application for Naturalization (USCIS Columbus OH Local Office)

 

August 18, 2021 Oath Ceremony Notice Was Mailed

August 18, 2021 Your Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, was placed in line for oath ceremony scheduling.

August 18, 2021 We recommended that your Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, be approved. Your case was submitted for quality review.

July 2, 2021 We scheduled an interview for your Form N-400, Application for Naturalization.

June 6, 2021 We are actively reviewing your Form N-400, Application for Naturalization. Our records showed nothing is outstanding at this time.

June 6, 2021 We received your Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, and sent you a receipt notice.

Wow, your N400 case was approved in one month!? That is absolutely incredible. 

51 minutes ago, M+M said:

Just to let everyone know, The case status will not change if your biometrics has been waived. Case Status will only change if you have to go in and provide them.

FYI, this is not correct. We were just approved a couple weeks ago and when they waived our biometrics back in May, our case status updated to state: "Biometrics Applied...USCIS was able to reuse your previously captured biometrics and fingerprints." As with anything with USCIS, your mileage may vary, but historically case statuses do change with a biometrics waiver. It would not surprise me if they take a few weeks to appear though. 

1 hour ago, Awalnet said:

Me and My present wife whom I want to file ROC with were divorced in the past and our divorced were final years back. I just want to know if I should submit our divorce decree document along with the ROC petition.

You do not need to. They should already have that information on your file from your adjustment of status/IC1 application. She will only need to refile that information when/if she applies for citizenship and only if she does so based on the 3yr marriage timeline. 

2 hours ago, SMK 89 said:

hmmm...i wondered what happened/if this has happened before...really odd how they just stopped out of nowhere? 

Texas IS getting hit pretty hard by COVID right now. 

GC received! Now, time to start prepping for the N-400 next month. 

22 minutes ago, Nelson0308 said:

It's actually great compared to 18 to 22 from potomac 😭

To be fair, those times aren't always accurate. From my understanding they can be heavily skewed by cases which need interviews. For example, LIN is showing 17mo - 36.5mo but in reality if an interview isn't needed, then processing times have been running 7-9 months.

That being said, I don't see any approvals from YSC for anyone going back to SEP2020, so either they have a high percentage of interview cases or they are heavily backlogged.

Just received the GC shipping update. For those wondering, it ships from Corbin, KY.

4 minutes ago, WillieT1986 said:

Wait seriously? Damn, their online estimation shows a huge range lol so I told my wife like whelp, maybe in 3 years. haha

We applied mid-late November of last year and were approved recently (along with a bunch of others), I believe they are working on NOV20-JAN21 right now. Now obviously, this can slip/change but right now they seem to be consistently rolling through applications. Obviously, if you end up needing an interview then you are at the mercy of your local USCIS office (which is the reason for the longer times on the website). 

3 hours ago, Sukie said:

We photocopied the fronts and backs of both credit cards (we had two joint CC accounts) and sent a couple of statements.  You can explain that your spouse was added to your card on xx/xx/xx and then show the statements since then.  For her account, you might be able to find a page on her profile (online) that shows authorized users, and include a screen print of that page.  Make sure the URL shows at the bottom of the screen print so that they can see the actual page it was copied from.

 

Just think of what you can send to show "togetherness" financially.  I think you'll be ok.  Just from what you have written so far, it's plain to ME that you have a legit relationship!

 

Best of luck!

 

Sukie in NY

Pretty much this. My wife and I do not have a shared bank account but we do have shared credit cards, insurance, lease, etc. We were approved along with a bunch of others around our same date. Remember that USCIS doesn't have hard and fast rules, they are trying to build a picture not cross off check boxes. 

5 hours ago, WillieT1986 said:

Everything I sent was based off the Instructions letter for the I-751. I had also searched through the forums and there were a couple examples of cover letters that people had sent off that were detailed and I had tailored the documents to those letters that I sent.


My Wife got her text this morning at 0219 US Eastern and hers is being assigned to LIN Processing Center. 🤢🤮

I wouldn't be too upset, LIN has been the second fastest processing center behind SRC. Approvals are running around 7-9 months (if an interview isn't needed).

On 8/7/2021 at 3:32 PM, Catseal said:

Ah I see, good for you! 
Yeah that is what I am dreading, really hoping to not have one either since the Seattle office is extremely slow. It already took an extra year to get the AOS interview, compared to other offices. Not keen on repeating that timeline.. 😬😔 we shall see! Congratulations to you

The good news is if you had an interview for AOS, then it is notably less likely that you will have to have one for ROC. 

1 hour ago, americaninlove said:

That's great to. know! Thank you for posting. So now we just sit and wait for 9 months or so?!!?

Our biometrics were waived due to COVID though I have heard they are starting to require biometrics again. Other than that,  yep just sit and wait. That being said, with USCIS YMMV, everyone has a unique experience.

14 hours ago, Catseal said:

Oh that is great news, congratulations! Did you need an interview? 

No interview.  If you have an interview then your timeline depends on your local office.

41 minutes ago, Vj USerrr said:

How much time it is taking for interview after your biometrics appointment.?

Depends on your local office not the Service Center, which means it is highly variable. Some people get it within a few months and others are waiting over a year.

On 8/2/2021 at 5:59 PM, americaninlove said:

The I-797 arrived today. LIN number for us -- I didn't think we would be there with a K1 from Philly...also curious about processing times there. Notice dated 7/28/21.

November 2020 filer and we were just approved. They appear to be working on cases OCT-DEC 2020 (~7-9mo) at this time but as with anything USCIS, YMMV. 

27 minutes ago, nicknkatie0608 said:

Ugh!  I don't like to hear that!  We've never had to interview at all...except for my hubby prior to coming here.  Everything has always gone thru quickly, up until now.  Hoping all goes ok for you guys

That's likely why you are having an interview. From what I have seen, most people who have their interview waived for Removal of Conditions had an Interview for their Adjustment of Status.