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Portland ME USCIS Office Reviews
Average Rating: 4.6
/ 5
16 Review(s)
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| Portland ME |  Review #32559 on October 2, 2023: |
KiwiinMaine
Rating: 
Click here if you found this review helpful | Review Topic: Naturalization
I had my N400 interview and Oath ceremony at the Portland, ME Office.
Interview Experience:
I arrived 15 minutes prior to my appointment and I got through security quickly. Once you're through security you will go to the waiting room to the right. There are lots of seats and bathrooms to the back of the waiting room. My IO, Jeremy was extremely prompt and called me in for my appointment bang on my appointment time. You'll follow the IO to their office, where they will ask you to raise your right hand and swear in for your interview. After that is done they will get you to answer the reading and writing portion of the civics test on the iPad in front of you. Then, they will generate your civics questions and ask you them before typing your answer into their computer. Once the civics portion is concluded they'll ask any questions they have about your application, or confirm your information on there, then ask you the yes/no questions. You'll then review your information on the iPad before signing the oath. My IO printed out a piece of paper and handed it to me before explaining that I had been approved and my oath would be before the end of the month. All in all, a very comfortable experience!
Oath Experience:
I arrived 30 minutes before my oath ceremony time, but didn't enter the office until 20 minutes before the scheduled time. Security had a line as there were quite a few of us taking the oath and everyone had family/friends coming to watch. We all sat and waited to be ushered into the Naturalization room. There are areas to complete the form required to take your oath as you're need to complete it the day of your oath, not before. They then called us all in to the Naturalization room, and we were to line up along the right side wall to give in our green cards and form, plus get our packet. The IO that completed my interview was the office swearing us in as US Citizens, so that was special! We were asked to sit at the first two rows of the chairs, but lots of family and friends had taken up spots, so we squished wherever we could. After we had all been checked in and were seated, Jeremy welcomed us all and, read out the countries we came from (21 of them!), then got us to stand, raise our right hand and repeat the oath after him. That took maybe 60 seconds and then he congratulated us on being the newest Americans! He passed out our Naturalization certificates. We got to register to vote at the ceremony too. There were spots to take photos to celebrate the momentous occasion, and then we were free to go. Very quick and enjoyable!
| | | Portland ME | Review #31197 on June 30, 2022: |
Verrou
Rating:
Click here if you found this review helpful | Review Topic: Adjustment of Status
Background : married with USC while in removal proceeding.
i-130 never been touched or approved for 19 months, tried everything like : call uscis, chat emma, asked helped from local congressperson, even when it’s outside processing time, USCIS never approved my case. I think also because I applied during that dark time in 2020 ( many 2020 filer still waiting and its not just me) and the only reason I got interview is because I filed i-485 in Feb 2022 with understanding that my i-485 cant be approved without removal proceeding being dismissed ( my lawyer said ICE / IJ no longer used the word termination anymore ).
6/28/22 interview scheduled at 1.15 pm, I showed up at 12.50 pm, super empty office, checked in, gave the checked in staff my interview letter , no need to take out my shoes because I wear dressed shoes, and wait. the immigration officer called my name at 1.30 pm. She brought me & my husband to the office.
She asked for : my passports. I brought 3 passports ( current, the one when I used to enter USA, and the other one with my B1/B2 visa) and she checked it all. She asked me if I have other evidences to submit. I gave her my huge stack of evidences with the index tabs ( roughly about 500 pages of new evidences worth for 18 months like : joint checking account, joint credit cards, tax transcript, health insurance, dental insurance, 14 new photos, etc ) + 2 photo albums, from the wedding and also early in our relationship. She asked for medical i-693 and I told her I already submitted with the initial package, does she want to have the copy and she politely said no.
She said that she can only conduct interview for i-130 ( no surprise here) and cant processed i-485 because of my removal proceeding with immigration court. I-485 will be Administrative Closure. i said yes, understood.
Then she took our oath and started the interview. Im surprised she didn’t even separated us ( im 100% sure the IO will separate us before I came because of my case ). She also took my pictures + finger prints.
Her questions is simple like :
- Have I ever leave US since I arrived. ( the answer is No)
- When did you meet, How did u guys meet, where did u have first date
- When do you move in together
- Any proposal or engagement or just talk about it kind of thing for the marriage
- Who’s the people on the wedding ( referring from the photo albums, asking question specifically pointed her finger to the flower girl in the picture )
- Where do u live and do you have neighbours ( obviously IO live in the area because she can describe the landlord’s dog who often is at the porch and the bakery next door to our apartment)
- Has my husband come to my home country yet ? ( obviously no because im in removal proceeding)
- What’s the plan in the future, planning to move or ? I answered I aint moving anywhere I want to go to that law school
Just like conversation/small talk with nice stranger, and doesn’t feel like interrogation. Most questions didn’t address to specific person, and boy my husband talked a lot LOL. He mostly answer all her questions, which is good because this is his petition.
During the whole time of the interview, she keep flipping around my “black-hole thesis†( extra evidences) a redditor called it black-hole thesis because it is so thick, IO quite surprised when my husband told her I made the “thesis†myself without the help from our attorney. She commented “ It’s nicely done, im very impressedâ€
At the end of the interview, IO said †im going to approve this petition and im going to keep all of this extra evidences ( she returned the photo albums, though I have extra newer pictures on the stack that she kept ) Unfortunately we cant approved ur I-485 todayâ€. Again im not surprise, I’m well aware USCIS wont be able to approve my GC application without the termination of the removal proceeding. I swear that If im not on removal proceeding, she will approve my GC application on the spot. Oh well….
Also im quite shocked when she told me she will take all the evidences. I thought she’s going to pick and choose things that she wanted and she gave the rest back to me. Im very glad she did take it all.
Offered her if she need to see all the original documents that I brought like marriage certificate, birth certificate, all EAD etc and she said no need. When she walked me out, she said she will need to scan the whole extra evidences, and I keep apologizing to her because it is so thiccc LOL. IO actually mentioned 3 times, that she’s going to approve this petition.
Total interview is 30 mnts. Got out at 2.05 pm
Overall experience : 10 out of 10. IO is super nice and chill, respectful and polite.
| | | Portland ME | Review #27850 on January 22, 2020: |
rita&vinnie
Rating:
Click here if you found this review helpful | Review Topic: Adjustment of Status
The interview was scheduled for 1pm. We arrived at the office at 12:20 thinking that we would be able to advance the interview, as we had another appointment at 2:30, but the office was closed for lunch between 12 pm-1pm. Around 12:50 the door was opened, we passed through security, which instructed us to put the interview letter in a tray on the counter and wait.
Around 1:15 we were called by the officer, he explained what the interview would be like (we would take an oath, he would check the information on I-485, ask me to leave the room to ask my husband some questions and then call me back to finish).
We took the oath, he took a picture and fingerprints, asked for IDs, when I handed over my passport he noticed that I had 2 visas (K1 and visitor) and said “even with a tourist visa you did the right thing, which is the K1, that's good!". He started to check my personal information and then some of the YES?NO questions. Then he asked me to leave the room for about 10 minutes.
He asked my husband about where he was born, why he was living in Pennsylvania before he returned to Maine, how we met and how our first date was. He asked about the wedding, who was there, asked about his brother. He asked about my dog ​​(name, if his family likes him), about my job, if his family likes me, about plans for the next few years, if we were going to stay in Maine or move somewhere else. My husband said it was very quiet and I could hear them laughing while waiting outside.
About 10 minutes later the officer asked me to go back to the room, asked me what my husband does for a job, how we met, asked about a specific moment in our relationship that my husband had told him before, where our wedding will be (we will have a big reception in April) and if my family would come.
Then he said he had everything he needed, asked if we wanted to add something to the process, I handed over joint assets (health insurance, joint account, credit card). He said he had everything he needed (I showed him the big folder I brought with me), and he said “Oh God, no! I have enough â€. But that he wanted to see the photos out of curiosity.
After seeing the photos, he said that he would approve our process, explained the next steps, ROC, naturalization, asked if we had any questions and amended “but clearly you shouldn't have, you can see that you have studied a lot about the processâ€. The interview lasted about 40 minutes, but it was more of a conversation, I could tell that he was very curious about my husband's work. He said it could take up to 45 days to receive the green card, but it usually arrived between 1 and 2 weeks. The end! 
| | | Portland ME | Review #27633 on December 5, 2019: |
Anna_Paula
Rating:
Click here if you found this review helpful | Review Topic: Adjustment of Status
The interview was scheduled for 10 am and we got there around 09:20. The officer called my husband and I around 09:30. He introduced himself, we took the oath, asked for our ids and took my picture and fingerprint. After that he politely asked me to step out of the room so he could talk to my husband alone first. It took around 10 minutes, while I was away the officer looked at pictures with took and asked how we met and the layout of our apartment (which he didn’t ask me).
I came back to the room he asked me a little about how we met, why we moved states and then started going over the whole form I-485 with me asking for info about me (name, date of birth, city of birth and everything that is included in the form), about my husband and date of our marriage. Before he made all the yes or no questions he made sure to tell me that was standard procedure and he had to ask them all.
After that he asked me if I wanted to add any more proofs of relationship to the file and that we were approved. He explained about the process to obtain the second green card and citizenship.
It was a really relaxed interview. The officer was polite and pleasant throughout the interview.
| | | Portland ME | Review #26642 on July 12, 2019: |
TogoAfrica
Rating: 
Click here if you found this review helpful | Review Topic: Adjustment of Status
The interview took about an hour
We were both asked to come into the room and was sworn in and explained what would happen. Then my husband was asked to step out and the uscis agent started asking me questions about our life. The questions were simple everyday questions about how we met, about our life together, what we do, how we live, there was questions about our religious beliefs, about our families, work we do, our routines. There was even some funny questions about what meats I have in the freezer and if we have a coffee maker at home. Then they asked him back in and she asked him questions based of the conversation we had just had. Overall it was a professional, calm experience. Everyone was nice! My husband received his green card approval, July 3, 2019 and July 12, 2019 we received it in the mail!!! He can finally work!! We waited 7 months for the interview and received his green card the same time as his work/travel cards came 🤪😜
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