Please help!!! Temporarily Relocating Problem.

[polar1979 4]

Hello everybody,

I have questions that I can't find answers by myself here, guess I need you guys help, might be a little bit long, please bare with me.

I will be eligible to send my N-400 this coming January 2012 (3-year rule). I've been a resident of Michigan since the first day I got here. Now, as the Michigan economy has taken its toll, my husband apply for a job in North Dakota that he will make 4 times more than what he makes now. However, it's only a temporary position (1-year contract, but can be extended after that), so what we're planing is that we will not move over there for good, it will be just temporary.

So we will maintain our address in Michigan, keep the house rent and all the utilities paid every month, not changing address with the post office and anything else like bank, credit card, ect., and we will not change our Driver Licenses.

Now, I'm over my head here,

1. Do I still have to file the AR-11 form?

2. If I don't file AR-11 and send my N-400 papers in with Michigan address and go to have interview in Detroit like I used to, will this become a problem later? Will they know we're living in another state too?

3. If I file AR-11 and send the N-400 in with my new North Dakota address, but all the other evidences including our driver licenses have Michigan address on them insted of Norht Dakota address, will that be ok? I will attach a rent agreement in North Dakota with both our names too though.

I don't want to wait another year or more (we don't know how long we're going to be out there, he might extend the contract when it's up, he siad), I want to get this done asap, this journey has emotionally drained me and comsuming me as whole, not to mention if I know I'm eligible already but just can't send the papers out like ther's something blocking my way, it'll just drive me crazy some more, I hope you guys understand this feeling.

Please give me insight of what I should do here that will not sabotage my naturalization journey. Any advice is very appreciated.

Thanks a lot in advance.

Edited September 17, 2011 by polar1979

[CoffeeBeans 1]

Hello everybody,

I have questions that I can't find answers by myself here, guess I need you guys help, might be a little bit long, please bare with me.

I will be eligible to send my N-400 this coming January 2012 (3-year rule). I've been a resident of Michigan since the first day I got here. Now, as the Michigan economy has taken its toll, my husband apply for a job in North Dakota that he will make 4 times more than what he makes now. However, it's only a temporary position (1-year contract, but can be extended after that), so what we're planing is that we will not move over there for good, it will be just temporary.

So we will maintain our address in Michigan, keep the house rent and all the utilities paid every month, not changing address with the post office and anything else like bank, credit card, ect., and we will not change our Driver Licenses.

Now, I'm over my head here,

1. Do I still have to file the AR-11 form?

2. If I don't file AR-11 and send my N-400 papers in with Michigan address and go to have interview in Detroit like I used to, will this become a problem later? Will they know we're living in another state too?

3. If I file AR-11 and send the N-400 in with my new North Dakota address, but all the other evidences including our driver licenses have Michigan address on them insted of Norht Dakota address, will that be ok? I will attach a rent agreement in North Dakota with both our names too though.

I don't want to wait another year or more (we don't know how long we're going to be out there, he might extend the contract when it's up, he siad), I want to get this done asap, this journey has emotionally drained me and comsuming me as whole, not to mention if I know I'm eligible already but just can't send the papers out like ther's something blocking my way, it'll just drive me crazy some more, I hope you guys understand this feeling.

Please give me insight of what I should do here that will not sabotage my naturalization journey. Any advice is very appreciated.

Thanks a lot in advance.

The rule for filing N400 is you have to be residing in the district or state in which you are applying for citizenship for the last 3 months. (Refer to Naturalization Eligibility Worksheet in M-476 A Guide to Naturalization from USCIS website). Basically, this one rule makes your questions above moot. If you want to file in Michigan/Detroit, you need to reside in the state/district. In your citizenship interview, you will be asked under oath, if you are a resident of the state/district where you filed your application in the last 3 months. If you misrepresent your answer, that will be a perjury and have serious negative consequences to your case (if USCIS ever finds out the truth).

[NickD 203]

To me, this is not like a kid going away to college or the military where their parents home is considered their permanent address, are both of you moving? Its more like in my profession with one year government contracts take you all over the country. Have to get that states drivers' license and become a resident. Have no idea why you even want to pay rent and utilities on a place you may never move back to.

Not even like where a spouse stays home and the other spouse is in another state only coming back weekends. You have to maintain residence in your new state for three months before you can apply. And if you are leaving today, will meet that requirement, and yes, fill out that AR-11.

Have no idea why the USCIS has that three month residence rule, don't these idiots know they are federal and not state? And regarding the economy, can only blame Washington DC for that, it is they that determine what countries we can do business with, set the limits for imports, and in the case of cheap labor Asian countries, not even employing a trade balancing tariff! Yet charging stiff tariffs on countries that were and are our allies.

[polar1979 4]

Thank you for your inputs, CoffeeBeans and NickD.

To answer your questions, yes, we both are moving to north dakota, but we will move back to Michigan for sure, that's why my husband (its his idea) wants to keep everything alive in Michigan. My husband is not with government, he's a construction worker, he doesn't want to change his driver license, because his license is a CDL-A type, he cliams that it might create some complications. I don't know how to argue this with him anymore, he's so hard-headed.

One more question here, so if i change my driver license to North Dakota alone, but my husband's license stays Michigan, and I send a joint rent agreement of an apartment in North Dakota along with the application, will this be ok? Will USCIS think that we are separated?

[CoffeeBeans 1]

Thank you for your inputs, CoffeeBeans and NickD.

To answer your questions, yes, we both are moving to north dakota, but we will move back to Michigan for sure, that's why my husband (its his idea) wants to keep everything alive in Michigan. My husband is not with government, he's a construction worker, he doesn't want to change his driver license, because his license is a CDL-A type, he cliams that it might create some complications. I don't know how to argue this with him anymore, he's so hard-headed.

One more question here, so if i change my driver license to North Dakota alone, but my husband's license stays Michigan, and I send a joint rent agreement of an apartment in North Dakota along with the application, will this be ok? Will USCIS think that we are separated?

I do not recall ever needing to submit my driver license or copy of it in my entire N400 process to be honest. The only time I used it was at my finger printing session for proof of ID and that was it. The rest of time, they always asked to see the green card. Other than a copy of my green card (front and back views) with my N400 application, I never needed to submit copies of anything else. On the day of interview, the officer put me under oath before asking me if I had been a resident of my town the last 3 months and other questions. She also checked my passports (expired and current) to verify all the travel entries I listed on my N400 form. I travel (internationally) a lot for my work, so I have a long list of travel entries, yet she went through ever page of my passports to check the date stamps matched what I declared. She even picked up one entry I inadvertently misquoted a date on and questioned me about it. Luckily she accepted my explanation (I quoted typo and apologized sincerely) and let it go.

I suggest you have a look at M-476 A Guide to Naturalization from USCIS website, go through the check list and eligibility worksheet at the back to figure out what documents you need to supply for your case.

Good luck and cheers

[polar1979 4]

Thanks CoffeeBeans,

I browese through almost every post of interview experience, I saw 80% of the time they asked to see Green Card + Driver License, so that's why i'm worried here, and not only driver licenses, but our bank account, credit cards, car insurance, and other utility bills will still be with the same address. SO it's gonna be like one address with N-400 with everything else with other address. I'm worried it will cause problem.

Anyway, thanks again, i'll try to discuss some more about this with my husband, and i'll post update, in case it can be useful for people with similar situation like mine.

[Shakil 4]

Regardless of everything, if you are not physically residing in one place, you cannot say otherwise under oath. That is lying and can have serious consequences. Even if you maintain a place in Michigan, you will not be residing there when you have your interview as you would have moved to ND. Good chances are they won't find out since you will have alot of documentation of your residence in Michigan but if they do, that will have serious repercussions, not worth the risk. When do you intend to move? If you are moving now and file in Jan 2012 you would have staying in ND for 3 months (Oct, Nov, Dec). It is the law that you notify USCIS of any address changes by filing AR-11. I would suggest to keep things simple, just file an AR-11, move there, wait for three months and file N-400. 90 days is not that bad plus I would presume that their office is not as busy as Detroit so your application will take less time.

[polar1979 4]

Thanks Shakil for your advice, that enlighten me a lot.

If it will be that serious of an issue and can be considered lying to them like that, I'm definitely not gonna do it, because the last thing in this world I'm gonna do is lying to the intimidating USCIS. So I have decided I'm going to move to ND with my husband, file AR-11, and wait and see how thing's going and I will not file N-400 until this address situation is settled. I'll wait until we're sure where we will be living peramently, as long as it takes. Like you siad, it's not worth the risk at all. Thanks everybody for stopping me from screwing up my journey.

[Shakil 4]

Glad I could help. You don't have to be living permanently in ND to apply. Once you are legally resident (3 months) apply to USCIS. You are going for 1 year, even if you move from there and your application is pending, your application is transferred to other offices when you file an AR-11 again. Its not complicated. File, once it has been 3 months in ND. Best of luck.

[NickD 203]

Will be working and employed in North Dakota, your husband may be hard headed but should read:

https://secure.apps.state.nd.us/dot/mv/mvrenewal/tempRegWelcome.htm

That only covers vehicle registration, same link covers drivers' license requirements. If the local cops keep on seeing Michigan plates, can expect trouble.

United States, one can assume the only thing that unites these 50 different countries is the federal IRS. Each has their own laws, better find out what they are. Been living in the same residence for 26 years, but use to move around a lot, hate to move, it maddening all the things you have to do besides moving.

[polar1979 4]

Thanks Shakil for more information, and thanks NickD for the link. I never knew about this type of registeration at all. Looks like a good way to do it. I'll show the link to my husband, he'll probably comply with that Temporary Registration.

[NickD 203]

Thanks Shakil for more information, and thanks NickD for the link. I never knew about this type of registeration at all. Looks like a good way to do it. I'll show the link to my husband, he'll probably comply with that Temporary Registration.

To the best of my recollection, never had to surrender the drivers' license from my previous state, but who knows now. Did always have to take the written test, but only the drivers' test once or twice. Also seem to be a target of the local police when driving with out of state license plates, was stopped once for doing 56 in a 55, but my word against the cop, guess who won?