Mailing N-400

[Gnagnagna 1]

Hi,

I live in Maine, and will be sending next week (probably) N-400. Now, I looked up where to mail it. I expected USCIS here in Maine. Instead, I’ll have to send it to Dallas. I am a bit confused. Is it so that they receive the forms in Dallas (or Phoenix), and then send to your closest USCIS office? Or what do they do (and decided) there? This procedure appears to me very cumbersome.

Why do they do it like that?

[Nevin 12]

WEST: If you reside in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Territory of Guam, or the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, send your application to the USCIS Phoenix Lockbox Facility at the following address:

Regular Mail:

• USCIS
• P.O. Box 21251
• Phoenix, AZ 85036

Express Mail:

• USCIS
• Attn: N-400
• 1820 E. Skyharbor Circle S
• Suite 100
• Phoenix, AZ 85034

EAST: If you reside in Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or the U.S. Virgin Islands, send your application to the USCIS Dallas Lockbox Facility at the following address:

Regular Mail:

• USCIS
• P.O. 660060
• Dallas, TX 75266

Express Mail:

• USCIS
• Attn: N-400
• 2501 S State Hwy 121
• Business Suite 400
• Lewisville, TX 75067

[JimmyHou 611]

Hi,

I live in Maine, and will be sending next week (probably) N-400. Now, I looked up where to mail it. I expected USCIS here in Maine. Instead, I’ll have to send it to Dallas. I am a bit confused. Is it so that they receive the forms in Dallas (or Phoenix), and then send to your closest USCIS office? Or what do they do (and decided) there? This procedure appears to me very cumbersome.

Why do they do it like that?

Because they get hundreds of thousands of applications each year and it's easier and more efficient to handle them in a central facility than at dozens of individual local offices. It's like an assembly line where certain central offices only focus on certain parts of the process.

Once your application is received in Texas, Arizona, or Nebraska, it will be initially screened and accepted or rejected and your check will be cashed. After that it will be sent to the National Benefits Center in Missouri for further processing. This is where it remains as you do your biometrics and background check. It will then be sent to your local office when it is time for your interview.