N-400 May 2013 Filers

[M and F 3]

Woohoo!! Congrats drummer

Just received this e-mail!

On August 15, 2013, your N400, APPLICATION FOR NATURALIZATION was scheduled for interview. You will receive a notice with a time and place for your interview. If you have not received the notice within 30 days of the date the notice is mailed, please call customer service...

Finally!!! Yay!!!!

[BJINC 0]

I went for my interview today, it was good, the lady was nice, I was called in 30mins after I got there, I passed the test and she said congratulations, you passed! We went through all the paper work she already got and that was good too and after I signed the passport photos and all the papers she asked me to sign, she took my ID, Passport and Green Card and gave them back to me, I was thinking we were done, lol, we chatted about family issue, brother in-laws, sister in-laws and church pastors generally and her sister is a pastor, we chatted for about 10min and all of a sudden from nowhere, she said Ok, lets finish up, can I see your taxes for the last 3yrs, supporting documents showing you have relationship with your wife, lol, I said Ok, I gave her lease agreement with both names on it, gave her our business account which shows both name on it, she said no, I want the one that shows your home address, really? we have the business together..helloooooo? ok, she said photos, i gave her photos a stack of family photos about 200pics, she said, there are more of church photos here, I need more photos of you and your wife on vacation and more evidence, I said Ok....Finally she said, dont worry about it, just send me more evidence showing you and your wife live together and have a relationship in the mail, you dont have to come back here anymore, I will approve and send your oath letter after I get those evidence from you, Congratulations! lol.....

[M and F 3]

Wow that's pretty intense. Maybe personal joint bank accounts?? Can't believe that many pictures wasn't enough! Funny how standards are so different between offices and interviewing officers!

I went for my interview today, it was good, the lady was nice, I was called in 30mins after I got there, I passed the test and she said congratulations, you passed! We went through all the paper work she already got and that was good too and after I signed the passport photos and all the papers she asked me to sign, she took my ID, Passport and Green Card and gave them back to me, I was thinking we were done, lol, we chatted about family issue, brother in-laws, sister in-laws and church pastors generally and her sister is a pastor, we chatted for about 10min and all of a sudden from nowhere, she said Ok, lets finish up, can I see your taxes for the last 3yrs, supporting documents showing you have relationship with your wife, lol, I said Ok, I gave her lease agreement with both names on it, gave her our business account which shows both name on it, she said no, I want the one that shows your home address, really? we have the business together..helloooooo? ok, she said photos, i gave her photos a stack of family photos about 200pics, she said, there are more of church photos here, I need more photos of you and your wife on vacation and more evidence, I said Ok....Finally she said, dont worry about it, just send me more evidence showing you and your wife live together and have a relationship in the mail, you dont have to come back here anymore, I will approve and send your oath letter after I get those evidence from you, Congratulations! lol.....

[MrMrs Drummer 4]

I went for my interview today, it was good, the lady was nice, I was called in 30mins after I got there, I passed the test and she said congratulations, you passed! We went through all the paper work she already got and that was good too and after I signed the passport photos and all the papers she asked me to sign, she took my ID, Passport and Green Card and gave them back to me, I was thinking we were done, lol, we chatted about family issue, brother in-laws, sister in-laws and church pastors generally and her sister is a pastor, we chatted for about 10min and all of a sudden from nowhere, she said Ok, lets finish up, can I see your taxes for the last 3yrs, supporting documents showing you have relationship with your wife, lol, I said Ok, I gave her lease agreement with both names on it, gave her our business account which shows both name on it, she said no, I want the one that shows your home address, really? we have the business together..helloooooo? ok, she said photos, i gave her photos a stack of family photos about 200pics, she said, there are more of church photos here, I need more photos of you and your wife on vacation and more evidence, I said Ok....Finally she said, dont worry about it, just send me more evidence showing you and your wife live together and have a relationship in the mail, you dont have to come back here anymore, I will approve and send your oath letter after I get those evidence from you, Congratulations! lol.....

Wow! Now I am getting nervous, we did not take many pictures together last year. My husband's mom is in hospice care now and my parents have helath issues too, so we did not celebrate Christmas or other holidays Plus we have not traveled that much because we have to pay my son's college. I wish I could have some feedback from Portland office

Congratulations though

[kanga 2]

Wow! Now I am getting nervous, we did not take many pictures together last year. My husband's mom is in hospice care now and my parents have helath issues too, so we did not celebrate Christmas or other holidays Plus we have not traveled that much because we have to pay my son's college. I wish I could have some feedback from Portland office

Congratulations though

My friend just went through Portland office, she had a wonderful experience AND after the interview they said "come back at 1:30 for your oath ceremony!"

You have good reason to not have photos but I think that is judged personally. I have worked in the media all my life, my face has been in living rooms all over the world (no not famous i just happened lol) - I avoid cameras like the plague, I value my private life so much that I don't have one photo of me in the last 3 years lol

The very fact that you have stuck by your hubby in such a trying time and been their for HIS mother says a lot more than any photo you could ever provide. If you were here just to get a greencard then you wouldn't need to be hanging around a hospice. He is a lucky man to have someone so supportive <3

[MrMrs Drummer 4]

My friend just went through Portland office, she had a wonderful experience AND after the interview they said "come back at 1:30 for your oath ceremony!"

You have good reason to not have photos but I think that is judged personally. I have worked in the media all my life, my face has been in living rooms all over the world (no not famous i just happened lol) - I avoid cameras like the plague, I value my private life so much that I don't have one photo of me in the last 3 years lol

The very fact that you have stuck by your hubby in such a trying time and been their for HIS mother says a lot more than any photo you could ever provide. If you were here just to get a greencard then you wouldn't need to be hanging around a hospice. He is a lucky man to have someone so supportive <3

Thank you so much kanga for your words of encouragement! I am feeling a little less nervous now. We have plenty of proof, including my son's college savings account, in which we are all included. I hope my IO will be a nice one

By the way, I have a cousin that is half Australian and half Spanish. She is living in Melbourne. We are meeting for the first time since I was 10 this Christmas in Mexico. If everything goes well I will be traveling as a US Citizen then!

Take care!

Edited August 16, 2013 by MrMrs Drummer

[sumer 1]

Hello Good morning, Happy Friday

So i went for my Naturalization Interview yesterday and I passed the test, thank God.

I arrived at Chicago Downtown office at 1:10 pm (my interview was scheduled at 1:45pm) and after going through security, i was asked to go on 2nd floor. I went there, showed my interview letter to the lady sitting at the reception, behind a glass window. She noted my name and asked me to sit and wait at Door#1 (For Naturalization interview area). There were already 5/6 people sitting theer. I sat there, started to review the questions/answers and after 10 minutes, my name was called. All other people who were already there and waiting were still waiting. At the door, a USCIS officer greeted me and told me that I need to follow her to her room. She introduced me (told me her name), asked me to raise my right hand and say i will say the truth etc. Then she opened my file and all documents+evidence i sent earlier were there. Then she asked me to sign & print my name on N-400 form that i sent earlier, the last section, i think Section#13. Then she gave me a paper with 10 questions with three answers and asked me to sign and date at the end. I was unable to look at the questions as it was done very quickly.

After that, she kept that paper in front of her and started the questions as below.

1. What is the supreme law of the land?
2. Who is in charge of the executive branch?
3. Who does a U.S. Senator represent?
4. What are two ways that Americans can participate in their democracy?
5. What is one reason colonists came to America?
6. During the Cold War, what was the main concern of the United States?
7. Why does the flag have 50 stars?*

After question#6, she told me I passed that test ( after reading test....then she said OK let me ask one more question, lol). She was writing my answers on that sheet she asked me to sign.

After that, she asked me to write- Washington is the father of our Country. Then she asked me to read one sentence- What is the old Capital of United states.

Then she asked me to sign on my pictures that i sent earlier with my I-751 with a black marker (not pen) and then she checked my Green card, my passports and birth certificate, my marriage certificate, my son's birth certificate and asked some general questions like when & where did i get married (date) , where are my in-laws, where do i work, where does my husband works, is my husband with me for this interview (i said no he is at work), what is my son's name, how many times i visited out of USA since i got my green card and for how many days, she asked all questions from N-400, the Yes/No questions like have you ever been arrested, deported etc etc. She asked are we renting a place or owned, i said we bought our town home in Dec 2013, she asked are we filling our taxes every year and is there any debt on us from IRS, i said No.

BTW, she didn't even saw my yellow letter.

Advice: Please don't talk too much with the officer as then you may run into issues, like after she asked me 6 questions, she already told me that I am passed but during my reading test, when she asked me to read, What is the old Capital of United states, i just said i know the answer of this question too. Then she said OK, let me ask you one more question (question#7 above). SO BE CAREFUL

Once she handed off the Form N-652, Naturalization Interview Results, with a tick on Congratulations, she told me you will get a notice via email in next 3/4 weeks for Oath ceremony and it will be here in the same building. I just asked carefully, can i bring my husband and my borther with me, she said YES. I said can i take pictures, she said YES. and then i thanked her, picked up my stuff in my bag and she accompanied me to the exit door. At the door, she smiled and said i like your shirt, it is pretty I just said thanks and stepped out of that room and came back to my work.

So all in all it took me 20 mins or so, as i was outside the building at 1:48 pm

Regards,

S. Umer

[kanga 2]

Well done S.Umer! I think the officer is a purely personal thing. Some are chatty and some are not. I spoke to a lovely man yesterday who had been to Australia to live for three years (a long time ago) - speaking with him was like chatting with a new friend. I have also come across the person that makes me feel nervous (the building does initially lol) and they have sometimes been a little rude, but when I see some of the people they have to deal with I think I would be the same lol

I really have never had a bad experience with any part of immigration - mainly just the wait that gets to me and no one can really control that a lot of the time.

There was a man there yesterday that was just so rude, he spoke to America owed him and that becoming a citizen was his right - it isn't but I bet he complained about the lady talking to him (she did nothing wrong but she was straight forward to him after he put on his little performance.

[kanga 2]

Thank you so much kanga for your words of encouragement! I am feeling a little less nervous now. We have plenty of proof, including my son's college savings account, in which we are all included. I hope my IO will be a nice one

By the way, I have a cousin that is half Australian and half Spanish. She is living in Melbourne. We are meeting for the first time since I was 10 this Christmas in Mexico. If everything goes well I will be traveling as a US Citizen then!

Take care!

Your cousin is half an absolutely wonderful person LOL

Hope you have a wonderful meeting with her, has she been to Mexico before? Australia has so many different nationalities there, mostly from Asian countries, I don't think I had met any hispanics until I came to America!

You will be an American citizen for sure

Edited August 16, 2013 by kanga

[MrMrs Drummer 4]

Your cousin is half an absolutely wonderful person LOL

Hope you have a wonderful meeting with her, has she been to Mexico before? Australia has so many different nationalities there, mostly from Asian countries, I don't think I had met any hispanics until I came to America!

You will be an American citizen for sure

She is indeed a wonderful person She was born in Mexico, her dad was my mom's brother. All are Spanish orogon, my grandparents came to Mexico after the Spanish civil war. My uncle went to Australia to study and married an Australian. Later they came back to Mexico and my cousin was born and grew there until my uncle died from a heart issue, he was 40 My cousin and her mom went back to Australia when my cousin was about 9. I have not seen her since then, but we keep contact in Facebook. We are looking forward to the family meeting in December

Thanks so much! I am sure I will be an American citizen soon!

[Terry J 50]

Just received this e-mail!

On August 15, 2013, your N400, APPLICATION FOR NATURALIZATION was scheduled for interview. You will receive a notice with a time and place for your interview. If you have not received the notice within 30 days of the date the notice is mailed, please call customer service...

Finally!!! Yay!!!!

Very excited for you; great news!

[Terry J 50]

Hello Good morning, Happy Friday

So i went for my Naturalization Interview yesterday and I passed the test, thank God.

I arrived at Chicago Downtown office at 1:10 pm (my interview was scheduled at 1:45pm) and after going through security, i was asked to go on 2nd floor. I went there, showed my interview letter to the lady sitting at the reception, behind a glass window. She noted my name and asked me to sit and wait at Door#1 (For Naturalization interview area). There were already 5/6 people sitting theer. I sat there, started to review the questions/answers and after 10 minutes, my name was called. All other people who were already there and waiting were still waiting. At the door, a USCIS officer greeted me and told me that I need to follow her to her room. She introduced me (told me her name), asked me to raise my right hand and say i will say the truth etc. Then she opened my file and all documents+evidence i sent earlier were there. Then she asked me to sign & print my name on N-400 form that i sent earlier, the last section, i think Section#13. Then she gave me a paper with 10 questions with three answers and asked me to sign and date at the end. I was unable to look at the questions as it was done very quickly.

After that, she kept that paper in front of her and started the questions as below.

1. What is the supreme law of the land?
2. Who is in charge of the executive branch?
3. Who does a U.S. Senator represent?
4. What are two ways that Americans can participate in their democracy?
5. What is one reason colonists came to America?
6. During the Cold War, what was the main concern of the United States?
7. Why does the flag have 50 stars?*

After question#6, she told me I passed that test ( after reading test....then she said OK let me ask one more question, lol). She was writing my answers on that sheet she asked me to sign.

After that, she asked me to write- Washington is the father of our Country. Then she asked me to read one sentence- What is the old Capital of United states.

Then she asked me to sign on my pictures that i sent earlier with my I-751 with a black marker (not pen) and then she checked my Green card, my passports and birth certificate, my marriage certificate, my son's birth certificate and asked some general questions like when & where did i get married (date) , where are my in-laws, where do i work, where does my husband works, is my husband with me for this interview (i said no he is at work), what is my son's name, how many times i visited out of USA since i got my green card and for how many days, she asked all questions from N-400, the Yes/No questions like have you ever been arrested, deported etc etc. She asked are we renting a place or owned, i said we bought our town home in Dec 2013, she asked are we filling our taxes every year and is there any debt on us from IRS, i said No.

BTW, she didn't even saw my yellow letter.

Advice: Please don't talk too much with the officer as then you may run into issues, like after she asked me 6 questions, she already told me that I am passed but during my reading test, when she asked me to read, What is the old Capital of United states, i just said i know the answer of this question too. Then she said OK, let me ask you one more question (question#7 above). SO BE CAREFUL

Once she handed off the Form N-652, Naturalization Interview Results, with a tick on Congratulations, she told me you will get a notice via email in next 3/4 weeks for Oath ceremony and it will be here in the same building. I just asked carefully, can i bring my husband and my borther with me, she said YES. I said can i take pictures, she said YES. and then i thanked her, picked up my stuff in my bag and she accompanied me to the exit door. At the door, she smiled and said i like your shirt, it is pretty I just said thanks and stepped out of that room and came back to my work.

So all in all it took me 20 mins or so, as i was outside the building at 1:48 pm

Regards,

S. Umer

Great news and congratulations!

[merkie 0]

OK...I received my letter for the oath ceremony in the mail yesterday... It will be held on 08/29/13.... oh the end is so near... please update... Thank you... feeling excited

[SONG41 15]

Great News & once again Congratulations everyone who is progressing well on this final journey.

I hate the waiting for the Interview!

[kanga 2]

Ya'll (see me new Texan accent there ) are beating me lol Congrats everyone - love that posts are so regular now. My test is on Friday