stuck in inline for an interview?n400

[weakheart 118]

i created this to discuss about the process why it is taking so long for some people to be inline for an interview? are they stuck in background checks or just field office delays?

anybody tried to call uscis or have any insight to this topic,

it is going to be 3 months that i am waiting inline for an interview, no status changes yet..

how long you have been in this status and what to expect

 

[cdneh 3,112]

I'm going on 6 months in line. In checking threads from other months, before and after mine, I cannot see anyone, with one exception, at my field office, who has a date scheduled. That leads me to believe that my office is slow.

I expect that we will continue to wait.

[a+j 77]

Sorry I have no answer and wondering myself. What does your status say? Mine is "my oath ceremony will be scheduled" and I have not received any letter yet. Is it supposed to change after they send the letter?

[katnatd 5]

I was in that status from November 29 until April 26, I believe? My advice is to just trust that the process takes a while and not add to their workload by bothering them with case inquiries. It helps to watch similar timelines for your area so you know if you have been overlooked.

[a+j 77]

Now that I am thinking about it, I remember reading that sometimes they have large ceremonies on special occasions like July 4. I would imagine they would have to wait to have enough people for those. It sounds like it might be a reason for a long wait.

[weakheart 118]

17 minutes ago, cdneh said:

I'm going on 6 months in line. In checking threads from other months, before and after mine, I cannot see anyone, with one exception, at my field office, who has a date scheduled. That leads me to believe that my office is slow.

I expect that we will continue to wait.

Does it only depends on field office speed once you are inline? Anyone knows if backgrounds are clear once you are inline?

[weakheart 118]

22 minutes ago, cdneh said:

I'm going on 6 months in line. In checking threads from other months, before and after mine, I cannot see anyone, with one exception, at my field office, who has a date scheduled. That leads me to believe that my office is slow.

I expect that we will continue to wait.

Did you try calling them?

[cdneh 3,112]

3 minutes ago, weakheart said:

Did you try calling them?

It depends on the individual field offices, yes. I do not know, for certain,  if being inline indicates the background checks are complete.  No,  I have not called them. I have zero interest in spending half the day waiting to speak to someone who  cannot help me.

My field office covers a very large area. I know there were backups as a result of the chaos IOE filers faced, and I know pre and post election a great many people applied for citizenship. I'd frankly be surprised given all that if they were not backed up. And, I am in no hurry whatsoever. 

I hope your interview letter comes soon. Good luck!

[weakheart 118]

2 minutes ago, cdneh said:

It depends on the individual field offices, yes. I do not know, for certain,  if being inline indicates the background checks are complete.  No,  I have not called them. I have zero interest in spending half the day waiting to speak to someone who  cannot help me.

My field office covers a very large area. I know there were backups as a result of the chaos IOE filers faced, and I know pre and post election a great many people applied for citizenship. I'd frankly be surprised given all that if they were not backed up. And, I am in no hurry whatsoever. 

I hope your interview letter comes soon. Good luck!

Because some people from same field offices get interview letters quickly, which makes me think there is probably more than waiting for a slot to be open for interview at that office, it is weird to wait that much for interview to be scheduled... well hope the best

[HK12 273]

14 hours ago, weakheart said:

Does it only depends on field office speed once you are inline? Anyone knows if backgrounds are clear once you are inline?

Yes, once you are in line, it usually means that your background checks have been cleared.

 

It depends on the local field office how fast they can schedule you for an interview after that. As I mentioned before, OKC seems to be one of the slower offices, so it might take a while longer. You will receive a "We have started scheduling your interview" status update once they're ready to move forward and should receive an interview letter after that.

 

Good luck fellow OKC filer!  

[DGTB 10]

According to their official description, the bulk of the background check on an applicant seems to be done before getting into the inline for interview stage, however it does say :

Quote

If your case status indicates that you are currently in this step, you have either been scheduled for an interview or are in line to be scheduled for an interview. The amount of time your application will remain in this step will vary by office and is largely determined by the number of cases ahead of yours.

How I would interpret the above would be that while the case load at the field office may not completely determine when your number comes up, as there may be other factors that could cause the delay, for most applicants, the case load would be the primary factor. I have no idea what those reasons other than the caseload that could cause a delay maybe, and I would be cautious of accepting any other interpretations at face value, unless of course it is from an employee, just my two cents.

 

DISCLAIMER: I have only been inline for 1.5 months and my opinion may change as I wait longer and paranoia sets in

[Joe&LuMa 77]

1 hour ago, DGTB said:

According to their official description, the bulk of the background check on an applicant seems to be done before getting into the inline for interview stage....

I am sorry but I am not sure ... I had my FP on the FEB 7'and on the Feb 8 early morning I was " in line for interview.."

How were they able to do " bulk of the background check"  in such a short time ?? Hard to believe it..

By the way, I am still waiting for interview date as well  

 

 

[Bugs 455]

Average wait time from NOA1 to Oath is 8 months, so your 3 months wait time is well within normal processing times, in fact a bit too early to be concerned.  Yes, some get it earlier, but most do not.  Especially when you must factor in the uptick in DACA applications and the pair of ELIS fiascos that undoubtedly took away agency personnel this past quarter.  And, yes, field offices also play a factor in why some get it early and others do not.

 

Just be patient.  Expect the interview letter to arrive in the latter part of the summer.

[weakheart 118]

4 hours ago, HK12 said:

Yes, once you are in line, it usually means that your background checks have been cleared.

 

It depends on the local field office how fast they can schedule you for an interview after that. As I mentioned before, OKC seems to be one of the slower offices, so it might take a while longer. You will receive a "We have started scheduling your interview" status update once they're ready to move forward and should receive an interview letter after that.

 

Good luck fellow OKC filer!  

I wish you were not stuck in fingerprints so that I could get idea of time,not many ok fillers here

[DGTB 10]

1 hour ago, Joe&LuMa said:

I am sorry but I am not sure ... I had my FP on the FEB 7'and on the Feb 8 early morning I was " in line for interview.."

How were they able to do " bulk of the background check"  in such a short time ?? Hard to believe it..

By the way, I am still waiting for interview date as well  

 

 

That's a good point, but perhaps they already had a relatively up to date info on your background and therefore did not need a more rigorous check? I have seen quite a few on this board that got to the inline stage within 2-3 days, mine took 9 days, others take way longer, but once they are inline, their PD kicks in and are then queued inline for the actual interview according to their PD rather than the date they became inline. In any event, my assumption on the "bulk of the background check" comes from what they tell us in the "Initial Review Stage" below which comes before the "Testing and Interview stage" that includes being "inline":

 

Quote

During this step, USCIS initiates the background checks of the applicant/petitioner and identifies issues that may need to be addressed either during an interview or by asking the applicant/petitioner to submit additional information or documentation. USCIS reviews the applicant's/petitioner's criminal history, determines if there are national security concerns that need to be addressed, and reviews the application/petition for fraud indicators.

 

The only other place that I have seen the topic of background checks being covered is here : https://www.uscis.gov/policymanual/HTML/PolicyManual-Volume12-PartB-Chapter2.html .

 

Other than that , all I can tell you is best of luck, hopefully you will get your notice soon, i am not sure what the average wait times are in your F.O, but in mine, they are 3-4 months after F.P .