N-400 and I-751 combo pending

[lovely girl 0]

This

33 minutes ago, karensita said:

Yes, he did. I thought it was a Combo-interview so I knew he needed to come with me. I am just so pissed right now 

This is just crazyyyy because I read where people did the interview with and without the spouse. After such a long waiting u must be pissed. My N400 interview is next month and my husband is coming with me due to my pending I- 751.

[karensita 0]

3 minutes ago, lovely girl said:

This

This is just crazyyyy because I read where people did the interview with and without the spouse. After such a long waiting u must be pissed. My N400 interview is next month and my husband is coming with me due to my pending I- 751.

Yeah, but he could have done himself a combointerview he just said he wasn't qualified for that and that everybody else was just so busy today.

But I know a lot of people is getting their both interview the same day. I guess I was just unlucky 😢

[Nayda 28]

Warning: LONG story. But I have never read so far that anyone had a case like me here. 

 

Filed I-751 in Dec 2017 (now, on July 6th, will be exactly 19 months pending, which is maximum for California Service Center).

Applied for N400 in Jan 2019, and I had interview on May 9th. Notice didnt mention I751. I wrote inquiries and a message from MyUSCIS account inbox. I got a call from them, and I was told that it would be “most likely” combo interview. Then, I got the written reply back in inbox, but it was a general response about N400 interview, without mentioning I751. 

 

My husband and me went to the interview. I got the nicest officer ever. He said to my husband he doesn’t need him to come with me.

He told me right away it will be only N400 interview, because he doesn’t have I751 case in front of him. He requested it from CSC, but they didn’t deliver it to him to be ready for my interview. Then he talked general about life and the his job and different people who he meets thru his job (I noticed he literally was scanning me, as professional profiling of the applicant, by talking about random things). 

The interview itself was easy and straight forward - test, 6 questions, signature ... He told me my case is easy and clean (we have a child and all proofs) and that I submitted so many documents, that all is good. He said he understood it was frustrating that he couldn’t approve my citizenship, but he couldn’t  do anything as he didn’t have I751 with him. He told me he would try to get the documents and to approve me until May 22nd, when was the scheduled Oath date for Los Angeles area, to “squeeze” me into that Oath. He mentioned that I751 cases usually have interview, but that he would waive that in my favor and put me straight to Oath, because my case is so clean. 

 

I had high hopes, but nothing happened. Earlier, before interview, I applied for driving license. They didn’t issue it, because Uscis didn’t “clear” me. 

I called USCIS asking about my I751 several times, and I wrote letters online after interview, but the answer was always “your case is still pending within the processing time up to 19 months”. 

Then I requested to talk to Tier2, because I couldn’t get my driving license. They called me back the same day. She was kinda rude, but in the end she scheduled my infopass appointment in the office to get I-551 stamp for one more year. (Btw this is the only way to get infopass appointment). 

 

I went there (at this time, it was a month after the N400 interview and no news), and at the “check-in” desk, lady was so annoyed with me (chewing gum and answering me with “mmm-hmmm”), and she gave me waiting number, so I would be called. 

Luckily, I got super nice guy. 

After he listened my story, he took a close look into my case on his computer. He told me “I can see your I751 was requested from CSC two times by our office, but they didn’t reply at all. It states that your case was/is part of some project in CSC, with this lady colleague leading the project.”

 

I was shocked. First, nobody replied AT ALL to the field office, and second: My case is part of some project??!!! 

He went to the another floor where they hold interviews, and checked with another officers, they confirmed that my I751 was requested, but nobody replied. He tried to call that project lady on the phone, no one answered. He wrote an e-mail, requesting my I751. 

 

He stamped my passport with I-551 for another year. 

 

I thanked him him for all his effort and kindness and I went home.

 

I wrote message again from MyUscis account and I got reply that this issue is out of their online service and that I should call that one number they have. 

 I called again and I requested tier2. She was nice. She sent an email , putting all my story inside, and told me I would get answer in 7-10 business days. 

On USCIS Login “Case history” showed that my request for “administrative error” was reviewed and completed. As I had no idea what it

meant, I called them today afternoon. Tier 1 couldn’t answer this (even with a help of her supervisor) and she told me to call again tomorrow morning to talk to Tier2. I asked if I can talk to one now, or schedule the call back , she told me they have a very high number of calls at the moment. 

So I’m calling them again tomorrow. 

 

I just don’t know what to do when I751 becomes overdue on  July 6th completing max 19 months  of processing time. 

 

So unlucky. 

[BaconBait 11]

last resource to contact your congressman office, i guess

[mo0 6]

17 hours ago, karensita said:

Hi guys!

I wanted to write in this post to advice everyone in my situation. 

I have my I-751 pending from May 2018 and I applied to N400 on October 2018.

While my I-751 had no updates (only a transfer to a different office) my N400 was going smooth and they scheduled my interview today.

I was super excited to be almost at the end of this journey, but when they call my number the officer told me that I won't be having my interview today because they didn't scheduled a Combo-Interview and he wasn't able to do it, so now I have to wait for a letter with a Combo-interview 😪

So, Advice: if you've already applied for the N400 and they scheduled and interview, make sure (100% sure) that it is a combo-interview. Don't waste your PTO and your time 

So sad...

Sorry for that, I hope they schedule another interview soon. But how could I know if it's combo or not??

[LeoFromBR 15]

Hi all, today I became a US citizen. In fact, I just arrived from the Oath Ceremony. But I'm not here for the "congratulations". Instead, in the spirit of the thread for the I751/N400 combo process, I wanted to share my interview experience, which actually happened last month. Honestly, a lot of it was disturbing, some of it almost dystopian... In fact, my wife and I left the interview angry and annoyed. But lo and behold, a month later, we received approval notices, plus the green card. So here's what happened...

 

First off, our N400 interview appointment noticed made no mention of I751, which I understand is standard. Nevertheless, thanks to this forum, it was clear to me that bringing my wife was a good idea, so we go together. We were scheduled at 3:15pm. But we arrive there very early at 2:30pm. I approach the front desk and report to the lady, "I'm here early." She takes a look at my notice and says, "Yes, you are. Come back at 2:45, so I can check you in". I said "okay, thanks" and take a seat at one of the chairs in a waiting area that is half full of applicants (about 20 people waiting). So I pull out my cell phone to play a game with my wife (to ease our nerves while waiting). But a short 5 minutes later, an IO comes out and calls my name. My mind melts (%$#&! we didn't even check in!). My wife and I scramble to get up, putting our belongings away. Both of us proceed toward the IO when she starts shouting at my wife: "Not you! Not you!" My wife hangs back and I go in alone.

 

Before introducing herself, the IO immediately gives me a hard time for applying for naturalization before receiving my 10-year green card. She wants to know why I submitted the N400 without the green card in hands. Again, my brain melts, and I get more nervous. I stammer, eventually saying, "My paralegal told me to do it," which is true. Though part of me wish I had said, "I read the N400 instructions, and I read the Adjudicator's Field Manual, and I believe I followed proper procedure," which is also true, but anyway... The IO flat out says "Well, you shouldn't have done it." My inclination is to apologize, but instead I bite my tongue. During this exchange, she's making copies of some of my documents, but I can't remember which ones though. Then we go into her office.

 

(By the way, according to the Adjudicator's Field Manual, or AFM, interviews are not to be adversarial in nature. In fact, IOs should make applicants feel comfortable and welcomed. Therefore, starting with the IO screeching at my wife, I would say that she failed at this twice.)

 

In her office, she finally introduces herself and makes me swear to the tell the truth, and all that jazz. I forget the exact order of events here, but some of the expected things happened: she double checks my application, she receives all the many evidence I have, etc. Giving evidence was fairly straight forward, but she complains that I only brought my latest bank statement when I should have brought at least 3 statements, 1 for each previous year. I apologize saying I didn't know. (Later in the interview, I find copies of previous bank statements, while also explaining they had been submitted before at least 1 in 2017 for my I751 application, and 1 in 2018 for my N400 application, so I ask if she needs to take a look, but she says no, so I guess she was just playing hardball.)

 

By the way, I'm never sure if I'm doing  the combo interview or just the N400 portion since she was confrontational, so I didn't have the guts to ask. At some point, she asks a few things about my marriage. Lots of regular questions, like where we met, how long we've been together, when did we marry, etc. One answer that she didn't like is when I told her that my wife and I didn't want kids. The IO's 1950s brain explodes and tells me, "I can't tell if your marriage is truthful since one of the reasons people get married is to reproduce." I want to remind her that we live in 2019, but instead I bite my tongue and just nod.

 

Then at some point she prints out a questionnaire -- a paper form with three sheets and maybe 10-15 questions or so. She prints two copies of this and explains that my wife will answer the second copy, so the IO goes outside to hand my wife the questions. I was confused because I had never read anything about a questionnaire like this for what I start to suspect is the I751 interview. This is a questionnaire that is customized per case. I know this because the first version I received had lots of questions about Texas, but then she replaced those with questions about marriage and babies (to make sure wife and I are on the same page). Normally, I wouldn't complain about the questionnaire, except, since it's been edited live, it leaves room for confusing language and actually, many English mistakes. For instance, the question "Who attended your wedding?" I answered that with a list of names of our friends. But my wife answered saying, "Our parents didn't attend because [reasons]" (we only found this out later when we discussed the interview). Anyway, that was a little discrepancy that made us nervous, when ideally the IO would ask questions verbally, so she can clarify what she's actually looking for. 

 

We also take care of the N400 Civic questions, which honestly is the easiest part of this whole process. I ace everything and we move on.

 

At some point, she also asked about affiliation with Nazi and German groups, which many hours later dawns on me, this is a question from one of the applications. So after opening a few documents at home, I realize this is from I751 form... which is the only evidence I have that I had a combo interview since the IO never clearly stated it.

 

Another little something that I didn't expect was when she requested to see my I-20, which is a document for international F-1 students. In my case, they go all the way back to 2006. Luckily, I had brought them with me, but I really wasn't expecting she would need them. So she asks to see them and make copies. I have four I-20 documents, but the most recent of which did not have a USCIS stamp like the others. She asks why, and I pull a story out of my rear-end saying I decided not to travel that year.... because honestly I thought it was the truth. (A week later I found that in August 2012 there was a USCIS policy memorandum telling agents to stop stamping the I-20s, so that's why. Go figure. Her own agency's doing.)

 

At some point, I go wait outside, while the IO interviews my wife.  One of the questions that rubbed my wife wrong is when the IO asked about what my wife's parents thought about her marrying a Brazilian. I'm not sure if the IO crossed a line, but her tone upset my wife.The IO also grills my wife about not wanting kids. (BTW, my wife and I were never in the room together with the IO. She interviewed each one of us separately.) 

 

So there you have... a roller coaster ride through the USCIS amusement park that made me and my wife nervous and nauseous but turned out to be fine. Honestly, I went home expecting to receive an RFE. In my worst moments while waiting, I would imagine myself going to immigration court and debating with the judge. In retrospect, these were silly thoughts, but the mind is known to do silly things under pressure.

 

If anybody has any questions, feel free to ask. Please quote at least a portion of this post so I can receive a notification.

 

This forum has been tremendously helpful through this whole process. What an awesome community indeed! I will check in every so often, but I suspect my experiences will soon become outdated, and then they will become irrelevant. But at least here is it, on the record, for history.

 

"Farewell and adieu to you, Spanish ladies /
Farewell and adieu to you, ladies of Spain"

 

L&S

Edited June 19, 2019 by LeoFromBR
Profanity censoring. Lol!

[mymercy 85]

@LeoFromBR congratulations (even though you mentioned you're not here for it but it's well deserved  ).

 

Thanks for sharing your experience with that IO ... some of them have heart while some of then don't ...

This is my first time of reading about questionnaire kinda interview for one's spouse ... well like they say, cases are different  ... the goodnews is that it ended well for you. 

[LeoFromBR 15]

7 hours ago, mymercy said:

@LeoFromBR congratulations (even though you mentioned you're not here for it but it's well deserved  ).

 

Thanks for sharing your experience with that IO ... some of them have heart while some of then don't ...

This is my first time of reading about questionnaire kinda interview for one's spouse ... well like they say, cases are different  ... the goodnews is that it ended well for you. 

Thank you. Yeah, that paper questionnaire was very weird. It honestly felt like a trap since some discrepancies are bound to happen. Ideally, the IO would have different questionnaires prepared in advance for different cases, but if she's rush-editing it DURING the interview, then English mistakes and confusing language end up in the form, and they just make the applicant more nervous. Thank you again!

[Nayda 28]

23 hours ago, LeoFromBR said:

Thank you. Yeah, that paper questionnaire was very weird. It honestly felt like a trap since some discrepancies are bound to happen. Ideally, the IO would have different questionnaires prepared in advance for different cases, but if she's rush-editing it DURING the interview, then English mistakes and confusing language end up in the form, and they just make the applicant more nervous. Thank you again!

Thank you for writing your experience at the interview! Congratulations! I wish I had it easy, we would have been at the same ceremony on Wednesday 😅

Wow, what a weird interview and she is a bit*h, basically. I sniff some racism too or something. I also heard long time ago that they are more strict with male applicants and the fact you don’t have kids make them ask for more proof for your marriage. But man, no need to be rude as she was! 

 My very first interview for conditional GC (I485), my husband and me were together in the room with IO and he asked if our families had something against our marriage, as we are from different cultures and backgrounds. 

 

See, I had VERY nice IO for my N400 interview. But no luck with I751! So you had tough one, but everything turned out to be great

 

[Central Park 2]

Hi guys, 

I had N-400 interview on 6/13/2019 in NJ. The interview and tests went well but I was not approved on spot because my I-751 is still pending. 

At the beginning, the IO (a very kind lady) told me she could do a combo interview but she couldn't find my I-751 folder, which never happened to her before.  However she still conducted the I-751 interview. I really appreciated it.  she printed out a questionnaire and wrote down all the answers I gave to her. After that, we went to the N-400 interview.  She said she would have approved both but she did not have my I-751 information at hand.  She told me to relax and she would find out what's going on for my I-751. She asked me to wait up to 2 weeks. 

I filed I-751 1/29/2018 and N-400 1/23/2019 to Vermont. "fingerprint review was completed" for my I-751 has not changed since April 4, 2018.

Hope she can find my I-751 info and give me approvals asap. Fingers crossed.

 

This week, I got a regular email from USCIS saying that "We last took action on your case on May 21, 2019. After I logged on to my USCIS account, I did not see any updates on May 21 on both my I-751 and N-400 accounts.  The last action they took is that they schedule an interview for my N-400 on May 8th. I don't know what action they took on May 21. They may have send my I-751 file to the local office for a combo interview. But my IO did not receive my I-751 documents. What happened? Any one have the same experience? It's really frustrating! 

 

Edited June 22, 2019 by Central Park

[I-751 filler 3]

On 7/3/2018 at 8:06 AM, Zombie69 said:

Thank you. No, I did the 400 interview alone because my husband was very sick. I had to prove to the officer why he could not join the possible 751 interview by submitting a packet of dr's letters and medical records. 3 days later. He passed away sadly. I had to convert my 751 into a widower waiver application by submitting his death certificate 10 days later when it was ready. It got a bit complicated. My interview was on 3/26. My 751 was approved on 4/26. Oath letter recieved on 5/2. Naturalized in 5/23.

 

On 7/3/2018 at 7:25 AM, Russ&Caro said:

If you've had a case pending for a few months, I suggest calling the USCIS support number. They won't tell you anything of value and they'll repeat the info about waiting 20 months. However, your call will likely be logged and that might trigger someone to look at your case. The day after I called USCIS, they assigned an interview for my wife. Maybe it was coincidence that this happened so close to my call, but maybe not.

 

EDIT: By the way, there was no notice of reassignment of our case to NBC or anything like that. Just out of the blue we were scheduled for an interview.

Hello every one I have been a silent reader in this group and to be honest this group have inspired me so much.it sucks what we all go through during this process and I want to also say thank you to every body who have shared there story and encourage others through their hard times.i am in a difficult situation in my life right now and I don’t know which part to take.i have a pending I-751 which have been in processing for about 7 months now.my N-400 bracket will be opened by November when I can file N-400.but here is the thing,earlier this year I got into an fight with my u.s citizens spouse who ended getting his son to asulting me.he was arrested for it(found guilty) and my wife went and told the cops that she felt like I am here to get my citizenship(which is a total lie.she always take advantage of my status.) so when I got a copy of the police report I saw all the lies she told the cops including what I just she told the cops.i am concerned about this situation as I want to fill for my citizenship by November.please advice me guys.

[Tar999 13]

2 hours ago, Bima100 said:

 

Hello every one I have been a silent reader in this group and to be honest this group have inspired me so much.it sucks what we all go through during this process and I want to also say thank you to every body who have shared there story and encourage others through their hard times.i am in a difficult situation in my life right now and I don’t know which part to take.i have a pending I-751 which have been in processing for about 7 months now.my N-400 bracket will be opened by November when I can file N-400.but here is the thing,earlier this year I got into an fight with my u.s citizens spouse who ended getting his son to asulting me.he was arrested for it(found guilty) and my wife went and told the cops that she felt like I am here to get my citizenship(which is a total lie.she always take advantage of my status.) so when I got a copy of the police report I saw all the lies she told the cops including what I just she told the cops.i am concerned about this situation as I want to fill for my citizenship by November.please advice me guys.

I would strongly suggest to not file your N400 until the I751 is approved.

[I-751 filler 3]

Hello every one I have been a silent reader in this group and to be honest this group have inspired me so much.it sucks what we all go through during this process and I want to also say thank you to every body who have shared there story and encourage others through their hard times.i am in a difficult situation in my life right now and I don’t know which part to take.i have a pending I-751 which have been in processing for about 7 months now.my N-400 bracket will be opened by November when I can file N-400.but here is the thing,earlier this year I got into an fight with my u.s citizens spouse who endedgetting his son to asulting me.he was arrested for it(found guilty) and my wife went and told the cops that she felt like I am here to get my citizenship(which is a total lie.she always take advantage of my status.) so when I got a copy of the police report I saw all the lies she told the cops including what I just she told the cops.i am concerned about this situation as I want to fill formy citizenship by November.please advice me guys.

 

[edpa 20]

Our N400 Interview is Scheduled! Still waiting to see day / time - but it looks like the end is nearing.

  

Did anyone find out beforehand if it was a combo interview? (our 751 is still pending)... Wondering if there's any way to check? 

[А&А 4]

Hello, I am just joining the thread due to my recent submission of N400 while I-751 is still pending. I guess it is a silly question but still: is it possible for I-751 get approval while N400 still pending? Or it has to be both at the same time?