March Filers?

[Balad 0]

Had my oath today I AM DONE

[sz2lc1 0]

Hello

Hello, I was curious how long your actual fingerprinting process took in CIS Boston. I only have one hour before I have to run to a different meeting. Is 1 hour enough time or do you wait in line for a long time?

Thank you very much.

Edited July 8, 2008 by sz2lc1

[Gulskjegg 0]

Depends on how busy your local office is. Here in Montana there was a very small group of people, less then 5, waiting in the Helena USCIS office. We were finished within 20 minutes or less.

[NickD 202]

Depends on how busy your local office is. Here in Montana there was a very small group of people, less then 5, waiting in the Helena USCIS office. We were finished within 20 minutes or less.

We were in and out of Milwaukee in less than ten minutes, the only ones there, that crazy hand filled out form took the most time and my wife couldn't remember her SS number, ha, let me have that form and filled it out in about two minutes. The officer was standing there waiting for her. But that eight hour drive to and from was the killer along with road construction, we both had to take the day off.

It has to be done, can't you even get an hour and fifteen minutes off? What about travel to and from? Got a place to park?

[Oasis 0]

I had my fingerprinting done in Boston... I dont remember what time I went but there were not really alot of people in there and it went rather quick.. less then an hour I would say - but that was my personal experience.

Now when I went for the interview that was a different story - JFK Bldg was packed and I was there at least 3 hours.

[Oasis 0]

Hello Everyone..

I was wondering if anyone knows how soon I can expect to get my letter for the date of the Oath Ceremony ?

Did anyone get theirs yet ?

Thanks

Anja

[tammiandtom 0]

I don't know, they told Tom within 3 months. Did they mention a time frame to you?

[Oasis 0]

They said its in September.. I just like to know a date since my other paper from the german consulate is running out by September 9th. Which means if I take the oath after I would loose my German Citizenship.

Well I been in touch with the consulate.. they "said" a new document is on the way.. from Berlin..

German laws and rules are so complicated... I just want this over with.. LOL

[tammiandtom 0]

It has to be done, can't you even get an hour and fifteen minutes off? What about travel to and from? Got a place to park?

Good luck tomorrow!! Soon it will all be over.

[eric-lyn 0]

Hello all-

I hope I'm on the right thread...WE GOT IT! (NOA2, that is). Praised be Jesus and Mary....the answer to our prayers has been received. Wishing similar results for fellow K1 filers...

Eric

[ChrisR 0]

Hi all!

I decided to do one more post in case anyone is curious about the Oath ceremony...

They wanted everyone there by 12:30pm, even though the actual ceremony did not start until 02:30pm.

400 people were "invited" to come take the Oath, 391 showed up.

"Check-in" was basically me handing them my letter and greencard. They checked to make sure the questions in the back were filled out and had me proceed to the auditorium.

They handed out a bunch of things (letter from the president, a few "know your rights" kind of books, an American flag, voter registration, passport application).

It was hot and boring until the actual ceremony started (though one of the booklets with some civics history was a rather interesting read while waiting).

We had some entertainment (a USCIS officer's two sons came in Scottish outfits and played the bagpipes and drums every so often).

The ceremony itself is basically a formal court session.

A USCIS officer went through making the motion for citizenship, answered abunch of questions the judge asked, etc.

They listed all the countries represented and asked everyone from whatever country they were calling to stand up. They saved Mexico for last as about 1/2 the people there were from Mexico.

The judge had us recite the oath, then declared us U.S. citizens.

We watched a video from the president, then listened to some guest speakers.

Then there was some general information provided about voter registration and passport application, they handed out the Naturalization certificates (which was one of the documents they had me sign during the interview) and we were outta there around 4pm.

A few things to remember:

• Be sure to go to the social security office with your certificate and have them update your status to citizen.

Go get a passport as soon as possible so you have another way to prove your citizenship.

Be sure to let your employer know you are a citizen so they can update your W9 form.

One scary thing is that they *WILL* take your naturalization paper when you apply for the passport and mail it in with your application, though you get it back later.

Be SURE to make a copy before you have them mail it off as that is your only proof of citizenship.

I was very impressed with the speed of the passport office. It took 1.5 weeks to get my passport and I only filed the normal way for $100. They have not yet mailed my naturalization certificate back.

OK, now a public service announcement for the paranoid...

The new passports come with an RFID (radio frequency identification chip). The chip contains all your data and the idea is that the immigration officer waves the passport in front of a reader to see your data rather than having to scan it.

The problem is that this brings up some interesting security issues, like someone making a bomb to only detonate when an American walks by (based on the bomb reading the passport):

Here is a news article: http://news.cnet.com/Researchers-E-passpor..._3-6102608.html

Here is a video: http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=-XXaqraF7pI

The outside of the passport has a shield so the passport can not be read when it's COMPLETELY closed. It never is though, it'll be partially open even if you just lay it down.

If a passport contains a chip, but the chip quit working, immigration officers will process it as if it didn't have a chip, so I do not see an advantage to having a working chip (better to be safe).

It is illegal to tamper with the passport however, but there are stories of people smashing the chip with a hammer or simply microwaving it for three seconds.

Naturally I can not recommend any of this as it is technically illegal... ;-)

If you are worried about the chip, but do you want to disable it, there are RFID signal blocking passport covers you can buy, i.e. at http://www.rfid-shield.com/products.php

I am not affiliated in any way with the above websites.

Good luck to everyone on your journey!

Christian

03/14/2008: Mailed N-400 to Texas Service Center

03/18/2008: Texas Service Center received my application (per the USPS return receipt)

03/18/2008: Priority Date

03/18/2008: Check Deposit Date

03/19/2008: Check Cleared by my Bank

03/26/2008: I-797C- Notice of Action mailed - "You should expect to be notified within 210 days of this notice"

03/26/2008: I-797C- Notice of Action mailed - Biometrics Appointment scheduled

04/15/2008: Biometrics Appointment @ 0900 CST in San Antonio

04/15/2008: FBI sent fingerprinting results back to USCIS

05/15/2008: I-797C- Notice of Action - Interview scheduled (mailed 05/19/2008, received it 05/21/2008, noticed that on

05/20/2008: My case status on USCIS website gave a "Case Status Retrieval Failed" error

06/06/2008: Interview - Interviewer recommends my application be APPROVED!!!

06/26/2008: N-445- Notice of Naturalization Oath Ceremony mailed

07/23/2008: Oath in San Antonio

07/24/2008: Updated social security administration, W-9 at work, applied for U.S. Passport

08/02/2008: Received U.S. Passport in the mail

[Completely 3]

[

quote name=ChrisR' date='Aug 4 2008, 04:51 PM' post='2081425]

Hi all!

I decided to do one more post in case anyone is curious about the Oath ceremony...

They wanted everyone there by 12:30pm, even though the actual ceremony did not start until 02:30pm.

400 people were "invited" to come take the Oath, 391 showed up.

"Check-in" was basically me handing them my letter and greencard. They checked to make sure the questions in the back were filled out and had me proceed to the auditorium.

They handed out a bunch of things (letter from the president, a few "know your rights" kind of books, an American flag, voter registration, passport application).

It was hot and boring until the actual ceremony started (though one of the booklets with some civics history was a rather interesting read while waiting).

We had some entertainment (a USCIS officer's two sons came in Scottish outfits and played the bagpipes and drums every so often).

The ceremony itself is basically a formal court session.

A USCIS officer went through making the motion for citizenship, answered abunch of questions the judge asked, etc.

They listed all the countries represented and asked everyone from whatever country they were calling to stand up. They saved Mexico for last as about 1/2 the people there were from Mexico.

The judge had us recite the oath, then declared us U.S. citizens.

We watched a video from the president, then listened to some guest speakers.

Then there was some general information provided about voter registration and passport application, they handed out the Naturalization certificates (which was one of the documents they had me sign during the interview) and we were outta there around 4pm.

A few things to remember:

• Be sure to go to the social security office with your certificate and have them update your status to citizen.

Go get a passport as soon as possible so you have another way to prove your citizenship.

Be sure to let your employer know you are a citizen so they can update your W9 form.

One scary thing is that they *WILL* take your naturalization paper when you apply for the passport and mail it in with your application, though you get it back later.

Be SURE to make a copy before you have them mail it off as that is your only proof of citizenship.

I was very impressed with the speed of the passport office. It took 1.5 weeks to get my passport and I only filed the normal way for $100. They have not yet mailed my naturalization certificate back.

OK, now a public service announcement for the paranoid...

The new passports come with an RFID (radio frequency identification chip). The chip contains all your data and the idea is that the immigration officer waves the passport in front of a reader to see your data rather than having to scan it.

The problem is that this brings up some interesting security issues, like someone making a bomb to only detonate when an American walks by (based on the bomb reading the passport):

Here is a news article: http://news.cnet.com/Researchers-E-passpor..._3-6102608.html

Here is a video: http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=-XXaqraF7pI

The outside of the passport has a shield so the passport can not be read when it's COMPLETELY closed. It never is though, it'll be partially open even if you just lay it down.

If a passport contains a chip, but the chip quit working, immigration officers will process it as if it didn't have a chip, so I do not see an advantage to having a working chip (better to be safe).

It is illegal to tamper with the passport however, but there are stories of people smashing the chip with a hammer or simply microwaving it for three seconds.

Naturally I can not recommend any of this as it is technically illegal... ;-)

If you are worried about the chip, but do you want to disable it, there are RFID signal blocking passport covers you can buy, i.e. at http://www.rfid-shield.com/products.php

I am not affiliated in any way with the above websites.

Good luck to everyone on your journey!

Christian

03/14/2008: Mailed N-400 to Texas Service Center

03/18/2008: Texas Service Center received my application (per the USPS return receipt)

03/18/2008: Priority Date

03/18/2008: Check Deposit Date

03/19/2008: Check Cleared by my Bank

03/26/2008: I-797C- Notice of Action mailed - "You should expect to be notified within 210 days of this notice"

03/26/2008: I-797C- Notice of Action mailed - Biometrics Appointment scheduled

04/15/2008: Biometrics Appointment @ 0900 CST in San Antonio

04/15/2008: FBI sent fingerprinting results back to USCIS

05/15/2008: I-797C- Notice of Action - Interview scheduled (mailed 05/19/2008, received it 05/21/2008, noticed that on

05/20/2008: My case status on USCIS website gave a "Case Status Retrieval Failed" error

06/06/2008: Interview - Interviewer recommends my application be APPROVED!!!

06/26/2008: N-445- Notice of Naturalization Oath Ceremony mailed

07/23/2008: Oath in San Antonio

07/24/2008: Updated social security administration, W-9 at work, applied for U.S. Passport

08/02/2008: Received U.S. Passport in the mail

I have my passport now as well. but the Embassy did give me a hard time on my passport but they give it to me anyways.. I left USA with foreign passport but I carried my original naturalization certificate with me.. I have applied my passport at the US embassy overseas..

Just question, how will I update my SSN to reflect my current status right now.. Do I need to change the status right away? I forgot to do this when left THE us as I just stayed there only for 5 days. I am not coming anytime soon in the US as I am pregnant right now.. Is this really a big problem if I did not change the status of my SSN?

[ChrisR 0]

I have my passport now as well. but the Embassy did give me a hard time on my passport but they give it to me anyways.. I left USA with foreign passport but I carried my original naturalization certificate with me.. I have applied my passport at the US embassy overseas..

Just question, how will I update my SSN to reflect my current status right now.. Do I need to change the status right away? I forgot to do this when left THE us as I just stayed there only for 5 days. I am not coming anytime soon in the US as I am pregnant right now.. Is this really a big problem if I did not change the status of my SSN?

Completely,

it's no big deal if you can't update the SSA right away, it just avoids potential future hassles (i.e. records not matching if you start a new job and tell your employer you are a citizen, yet the SSA database does not show you as a citizen).

Just more potential explaining/paperwork in the future...

Chris

[Yiyi and Chris 0]

Had my oath today I AM DONE