N-400: is it good to apply? Plz need advice

[Caroline and Phil 14]

I'm sending my N-400 application maybe tomorrow.

I requested our tax transcripts and they got here yesterday in less than a week!

I just wanted to know if the proof we have is good enough, please!

I'm sending:

-Form N-400

-2 identical color photographs, with my name and Alien Registration Number (A-Number) written lightly in pencil on the back

of each photo.

-A check ($680)

---Copies:

-A photocopy of both sides of your Permanent Resident Card

-My husband's birth certificate

-Our marriage certificate

-My husband's divorce decree

-An IRS tax return transcript for the last 3 years (2008, 2009, 2010)

-copy of our credit cards (same number)

-Letter from my husband's work (Human Resources manager listing the documents we requested that are:)

-a. American Funds (401K)

-b. Employee's retirement plan (pension)

-c. life insurance

-d.health insurance plan (medical, prescription, dental) and vision

-Check from MI State Treasurer with both our names and our address

-Federal check from US Treasury with both our names and our address

Are these documents enough?

Should I send Tax Return forms from the past 3 years too?

For information: I was never married before, we don't have any kids together (he has 2 from the previous marriage).

Thanks in advance.

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

I'm sending my N-400 application maybe tomorrow.

I requested our tax transcripts and they got here yesterday in less than a week!

I just wanted to know if the proof we have is good enough, please!

I'm sending:

-Form N-400

-2 identical color photographs, with my name and Alien Registration Number (A-Number) written lightly in pencil on the back

of each photo.

-A check ($680)

---Copies:

-A photocopy of both sides of your Permanent Resident Card

-My husband's birth certificate

-Our marriage certificate

-My husband's divorce decree

-An IRS tax return transcript for the last 3 years (2008, 2009, 2010)

-copy of our credit cards (same number)

-Letter from my husband's work (Human Resources manager listing the documents we requested that are:)

-a. American Funds (401K)

-b. Employee's retirement plan (pension)

-c. life insurance

-d.health insurance plan (medical, prescription, dental) and vision

-Check from MI State Treasurer with both our names and our address

-Federal check from US Treasury with both our names and our address

[Caroline and Phil 14]

Thanks Just Bob!

so I don't need to send that additional documentation? I wasn't sure because I read some posts and people were sending a lot of stuff. i guess I'm so confused. LOL

Edited March 26, 2011 by Lisa and Phil

[NickD 203]

Thanks Just Bob!

so I don't need to send that additional documentation? I wasn't sure because I read some posts and people were sending a lot of stuff. i guess I'm so confused. LOL

With all due respect for Bob, believed he applied for the five year like my stepdaughter just did, while all could supply for her was her tax transcripts, they didn't even want to see those. But quite a huge difference when applying two years earlier with marriage. Stepdaughters application barely weighed over an ounce and her interview took barely ten minutes. Wifes' application weighed 23 ounces and hers took over 43 minutes with most of it proof that we were married, living together, I was properly divorced, US citizen, we were sharing all of our living expenses, had plenty of joint evidence, ownership, insurance, bank accounts, home deed, and even a joint utility bill they were making a big deal out of at the time. Even took both of our drivers' licenses as proof we had the same address. Her IO was kind of a b!tch on this issue, others haven't been quite that bad, but you don't know that.

Certainly you must have a dwelling both of you share, whether home ownership or a joint lease, I don't see that. Worse thing that can happen to you if everything else is fine, civics and English test, is to get an RFE, and that can add months to your processing. I go along with, you cannot have enough evidence for the marriage.

[Caroline and Phil 14]

Thanks NickD!

Well, we do not have this kind of proof. When we got married my husband already owned the house, we don't have joint bank accounts (I don't work - because I failed driving test, I'm too scared. I'm gonna try again though - so everywhere we go, we go together, everything we do we do together, if I have a dentist appointment for example, we go together. We never needed joint bank account. We do have joint credit card account (in case I need to buy something online when i'm at home or if I'm at a store for example), utility bills aren't in both our names, there's the water bill that's still coming on his ex-wife's name (he tried to change it to our names several times but they didn't, not sure why). We never really thought about names on the utility bills. My driver's license (permit) is expired.

We do have insurance as proof (as I said before) and I thought those documents were enough proof, now I'm kind of lost on this.

To me the most important proof was the ones that counted the most for ROC like tax return transcripts, health and life insurance etc (We sent these kind of proof except those checks from the Government, plus other proof such as letter from relatives, cards, photos etc last year when we filed for ROC and didn't have any problem - only my fingerprints (don't have them) so I had to send a letter from the local police and it was solved soon after that).

Is there something we could add to prove we are happily married as we really are and we live together?

PLUS, this part I forgot to mention that we have the copies of all this documents:

Letter from my husband's work (Human Resources manager listing the documents we requested that are:)

-a. American Funds (401K)

-b. Employee's retirement plan (pension)

-c. life insurance

-d.health insurance plan (medical, prescription, dental) and vision

Not only the letter, sorry my mistake.

With all due respect for Bob, believed he applied for the five year like my stepdaughter just did, while all could supply for her was her tax transcripts, they didn't even want to see those. But quite a huge difference when applying two years earlier with marriage. Stepdaughters application barely weighed over an ounce and her interview took barely ten minutes. Wifes' application weighed 23 ounces and hers took over 43 minutes with most of it proof that we were married, living together, I was properly divorced, US citizen, we were sharing all of our living expenses, had plenty of joint evidence, ownership, insurance, bank accounts, home deed, and even a joint utility bill they were making a big deal out of at the time. Even took both of our drivers' licenses as proof we had the same address. Her IO was kind of a b!tch on this issue, others haven't been quite that bad, but you don't know that.

Certainly you must have a dwelling both of you share, whether home ownership or a joint lease, I don't see that. Worse thing that can happen to you if everything else is fine, civics and English test, is to get an RFE, and that can add months to your processing. I go along with, you cannot have enough evidence for the marriage.

Edited March 26, 2011 by Lisa and Phil

[ED*Riza 0]

Hello Lisa,

I just had my interview and oath last March 22. I only submitted same documents ( copies) that Justbob emphasized.

I brought all the originals and extra stuffs like bank statements, credit card statements, health and car insurances and my husbands thrift savings account document.

At the end of the interview Th IO just asked if I have some documents to submit and I told him my Tax Transcript original.

He told me he already have that then i just said I have some car insurance policy here and my husband's Thrift saving and he accepted them.

He did not even read them. He just put them together with my file,

I was so over prepared

Honestly , I can say that you are good to go.

Riza

[Caroline and Phil 14]

Hello Riza, thanks!

Yes this is what we have for now. Even car insurance, my name is not there anymore (it was before when I was trying to get my DL), for now it's not because my husband would be paying for something we are not using. But of course I'm gonna try again and we have to re-add me there.

We didn't worry about utilty bills because we thought it was not important since it's just a name there. Didn't know it would prove something.

Did you bring photos to your interview?

Btw, congratulations on passing on your interview!!!

Hello Lisa,

I just had my interview and oath last March 22. I only submitted same documents ( copies) that Justbob emphasized.

I brought all the originals and extra stuffs like bank statements, credit card statements, health and car insurances and my husbands thrift savings account document.

At the end of the interview Th IO just asked if I have some documents to submit and I told him my Tax Transcript original.

He told me he already have that then i just said I have some car insurance policy here and my husband's Thrift saving and he accepted them.

He did not even read them. He just put them together with my file,

I was so over prepared

Honestly , I can say that you are good to go.

Riza

[ED*Riza 0]

Thank u and You are welcome!

I brought pictures and greeting cards but he never asked for them!

I am not in any utility bill as well or in any property of my husband.

I think he only asked if i have more documents to submit because I have so many folders...lol.

Anyway, this is only base on my experience.

[Caroline and Phil 14]

Thank you Riza. Yes, people's experiences help a lot. I pray to God that they can see the truth about us.

Thank u and You are welcome!

I brought pictures and greeting cards but he never asked for them!

I am not in any utility bill as well or in any property of my husband.

I think he only asked if i have more documents to submit because I have so many folders...lol.

Anyway, this is only base on my experience.

[NickD 203]

This is the US citizenship discussion section of this board, correct? Most of us to get this far already went through the AOS and ROC stages to get here, so for US citizenship applications, really nothing new, correct?

If one were to define the N-400, is nothing more than a combination of the AOS and ROC stages that can make you wonder how you or your spouse got their green card in the first place. In a quick review of the information requested on the N-400, wasn't all this information provided before? Sure enough, on the I-130, G-325a's, I-751, and the I-485. For us, was a copy and paste operation with essentially only a one year update going back to the I-751.

In our case, during our AOS interview, the IO never wanted to see all the original evidence, and in like manner accepted all of our photocopies for the I-751. So easy to assume, we never had to bring along all the original documentation to the N-400 interview. This introduces yet another variable depending on which side of bed your IO got up on. Fortunately, we did, or would have had to make another trip provided our application was not denied.

Can recall several major headaches during out AOS, dumb state of Illinois hired a bunch of people that can't even type where my birth certificate has typo's in it, took me and them three months to straighten that out with the burden of proof on my shoulders. Did get extra copies, so that was done. Also typo's on my wifes' birth certificate and divorce papers, yet another error we needed to have corrected at our expense, least that was done. Was told against our state law to make photocopies of our marriage certificate, so at that time, said give me a half a dozen, that was done.

A friend living in Milwaukee wife was rejected for the N-400 because he never added his immigrant wife to his home deed. I didn't want to pay the 500 bucks to have my wife added, but found a way to work around that by finding that very inaccessible form those crooked attorneys managed to hide and filling it out myself. No big deal, just sold my home on paper to myself and my wife, its the register of deeds that determines if everything was correct of not, she said even attorneys make errors. She was very nice, but no errors. But that was done.

Since a year went by with no word on our I-751, elected to send a letter, since it has been a year since we sent in all of our evidence, enclosing all up to date evidence. What this boiled down to, was no additional evidence was sent to the USCIS for the N-400, they had all of it. But resubmitted the same old stuff anyway.

If there is any entertainment in this, is reading about the paper reduction act at the end of the N-400 instruction sheet.

[Caroline and Phil 14]

I agree with u NickD, this application (N-400) is all the previous ones added and updated. We still have to prove the same facts.

We have always been aproved without interview, my major problem is my fingerprints (can't be read, never works). We are gonna send the proof we have and by the time I was studying and gathering documents for ROC I found good posts here and the documentation that are really important.

Even sometimes it's confusing because my ROC for example, we sent all the paprwork, I went for biometrics (2 times), then I got a letter saying my fingerprints were not accepted so we had to provide a letter from the local police (same thing for AOS). The thing is this letter was a RFE and besides the letter from the police it was requesting the same exact documents we had already sent to them. My husband called them and the lady who talked to us couldn't exaplain well so my husband said to me " talk to her and see if you can understand". Then I said: " the letter says I have to send these documents because they are being requested but it also states - do not send documents you've already sent. So should i send them again since they are being requested or not?" She said: " send exactly what they are asking for." So, already used to this since k-1 (American consulate answered the same way my questions by email. BTW they were so fast on their replies) I told my husband i was gonna send all they were requesting. I think 2 weeks later my ROC was approved.

No in this case I can see the proof we have like a good proof but it will depende on the IO decision (as you said depending on which side of bed your IO got up on).

The fact is our marriage is for real, we love each other and God sees this and i hope and pray not only for me but for everybody here with good intentions that the IO also sees the truth.

This is the US citizenship discussion section of this board, correct? Most of us to get this far already went through the AOS and ROC stages to get here, so for US citizenship applications, really nothing new, correct?

In our case, durIf one were to define the N-400, is nothing more than a combination of the AOS and ROC stages that can make you wonder how you or your spouse got their green card in the first place. In a quick review of the information requested on the N-400, wasn't all this information provided before? Sure enough, on the I-130, G-325a's, I-751, and the I-485. For us, was a copy and paste operation with essentially only a one year update going back to the I-751.

ing our AOS interview, the IO never wanted to see all the original evidence, and in like manner accepted all of our photocopies for the I-751. So easy to assume, we never had to bring along all the original documentation to the N-400 interview. This introduces yet another variable depending on which side of bed your IO got up on. Fortunately, we did, or would have had to make another trip provided our application was not denied.

Can recall several major headaches during out AOS, dumb state of Illinois hired a bunch of people that can't even type where my birth certificate has typo's in it, took me and them three months to straighten that out with the burden of proof on my shoulders. Did get extra copies, so that was done. Also typo's on my wifes' birth certificate and divorce papers, yet another error we needed to have corrected at our expense, least that was done. Was told against our state law to make photocopies of our marriage certificate, so at that time, said give me a half a dozen, that was done.

A friend living in Milwaukee wife was rejected for the N-400 because he never added his immigrant wife to his home deed. I didn't want to pay the 500 bucks to have my wife added, but found a way to work around that by finding that very inaccessible form those crooked attorneys managed to hide and filling it out myself. No big deal, just sold my home on paper to myself and my wife, its the register of deeds that determines if everything was correct of not, she said even attorneys make errors. She was very nice, but no errors. But that was done.

Since a year went by with no word on our I-751, elected to send a letter, since it has been a year since we sent in all of our evidence, enclosing all up to date evidence. What this boiled down to, was no additional evidence was sent to the USCIS for the N-400, they had all of it. But resubmitted the same old stuff anyway.

If there is any entertainment in this, is reading about the paper reduction act at the end of the N-400 instruction sheet.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

Just to add in - I applied based on 3 years of marriage. I sent only what was listed to send on the application form - nothing more, nothing less. I brought with me to the interview all of the 'extra' documentation they might wish to see. My folder remained un-opened in my lap. She did not want to see anything in addition to what was submitted - and what was already in my very large file that was on her desk I had actually submitted 4 years of income tax transcripts as the most recent one arrived just before I filed and I didn't bother to remove the earliest one. The interviewer pulled the earliest tax transcript out of my folder and gave it back to me saying she didn't need it.

This is the easiest and most straight forward part of the whole immigration process. You have made it through all of the previous hoops they have asked you to jump through very successfully otherwise you would not be here. You will be fine.

For the record - I am still not listed on the deed of our home, nor our mortgage, nor any of the utility bills. We had sufficient evidence to prove the validity of our marriage all the way through the process. At the citizenship stage they basically just want to make sure you are still married and living together to qualify for the 3 year option rather than the 5 year option.

So, I tend to agree with Just Bob. Exceptions to the basic information are very very rare and you just be prepared by bringing those with you to the interview instead.

[Caroline and Phil 14]

Thank you Kathryn41, for sharing your experience.

On the form they really say only what JustBob said. A friend of mine applied last year and she said she also sent only that too. But she said some law changed last January and now you have to send more proof. I didn't see anything about this anywhere.

Anyways, I will assemble my package and send and I am sure God will help us people with good intentions.

Just to add in - I applied based on 3 years of marriage. I sent only what was listed to send on the application form - nothing more, nothing less. I brought with me to the interview all of the 'extra' documentation they might wish to see. My folder remained un-opened in my lap. She did not want to see anything in addition to what was submitted - and what was already in my very large file that was on her desk I had actually submitted 4 years of income tax transcripts as the most recent one arrived just before I filed and I didn't bother to remove the earliest one. The interviewer pulled the earliest tax transcript out of my folder and gave it back to me saying she didn't need it.

This is the easiest and most straight forward part of the whole immigration process. You have made it through all of the previous hoops they have asked you to jump through very successfully otherwise you would not be here. You will be fine.

For the record - I am still not listed on the deed of our home, nor our mortgage, nor any of the utility bills. We had sufficient evidence to prove the validity of our marriage all the way through the process. At the citizenship stage they basically just want to make sure you are still married and living together to qualify for the 3 year option rather than the 5 year option.

So, I tend to agree with Just Bob. Exceptions to the basic information are very very rare and you just be prepared by bringing those with you to the interview instead.