n- 400 5 year rule/ lots of questions

[evapaula 230]

for the travel history, CBP actually helps:

https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/spotlights/arrivaldeparture-history-now-available-i-94-webpage

 

And the online form will automatically calculate the time spent outside the US. 

[yrc 6]

On 7/11/2018 at 6:09 PM, Going through said:

Don't feel bad.  I waited over 12 years.

At my oath ceremony, I met a fellow who'd been a LPR for over 30 years.  He said he finally got tired of paying fees.

That would be someone like me! I got my LPR in 1993 and finally put in my N400 last August.  Got fed up with the 11.5 months it took for them to process the replacement card and the exorbitant fees.  But I have a question re something you said earlier in the thread. Earlier you said “There is no requirement for you to be employed when applying for the N400 under the 3 or 5 year rule.  Again, if you apply under the 5-year residency rule, your marital status is irrelevant to your application so no marriage docs are required with your application.”

 

i applied under the 5 year rule and submitted copies of certificate of 1st marriage, copies of divorce decree and documents about current marriage of 18 years.  I got my LPR due to first marriage, which ended at the same time as the INS (predecessor of USCIS) was reviewing my ROC petition. INS was provided documents pertaining to the divorce and it approved the ROC.  Reason for divorce was different career trajectories....first wife wanted to pursue life and career in the UK.  I did not want to move to the UK.  Should I have a copy of all documents submitted for the 1997 ROC ready for the naturalization interview?  I do have them. I know there is no predicting what an IO will ask for, but want to be prepared. 

[Going through 5,670]

7 minutes ago, yrc said:

That would be someone like me! I got my LPR in 1993 and finally put in my N400 last August.  Got fed up with the 11.5 months it took for them to process the replacement card and the exorbitant fees.  But I have a question re something you said earlier in the thread. Earlier you said “There is no requirement for you to be employed when applying for the N400 under the 3 or 5 year rule.  Again, if you apply under the 5-year residency rule, your marital status is irrelevant to your application so no marriage docs are required with your application.”

 

i applied under the 5 year rule and submitted copies of certificate of 1st marriage, copies of divorce decree and documents about current marriage of 18 years.  I got my LPR due to first marriage, which ended at the same time as the INS (predecessor of USCIS) was reviewing my ROC petition. INS was provided documents pertaining to the divorce and it approved the ROC.  Reason for divorce was different career trajectories....first wife wanted to pursue life and career in the UK.  I did not want to move to the UK.  Should I have a copy of all documents submitted for the 1997 ROC ready for the naturalization interview?  I do have them. I know there is no predicting what an IO will ask for, but want to be prepared. 

Now I feel old.  I started my journey during the "INS" days too....

 

Your marital status is irrelevant when applying under the 5-year rule.  That's not to say the IO won't ask any questions about your first marriage (and how you acquired your green card), usually as a last-ditch effort to ensure the initial GC was approved appropriately.  How I got my green card was questioned during my N400 interview...mostly just a confirmation of things, nothing indepth and answered/asked in less than 2 minutes out of the entire interview.  "Marital status is irrelevant" means that your marital status is not a determining factor in an approval/denial for 5-year filers since you are eligible based on your US residency---not your marriage to a USC.

 

They will have your entire immigration file infront of them during your interview.  The IO will have already reviewed your previous documents pertaining to how you got your GC when beginning to adjudicate your N400...you won't need copies of documents submitted with your 1997 ROC....they already have them on file, and that file right on their desk during your interview.

[yrc 6]

Good to know that they review before adjudicating.  Of course, the whole business of marriage/divorce as a criterion for judging the moral worth of individuals in our hyper modern world of unions of all permutations is utterly puzzling to me!

[Going through 5,670]

27 minutes ago, yrc said:

 Of course, the whole business of marriage/divorce as a criterion for judging the moral worth of individuals in our hyper modern world of unions of all permutations is utterly puzzling to me!

They don't care about people getting divorced.  They care about people getting married and then divorcing quickly after a 2-year GC is received, as it's presumed to have been a marriage purely for immigration benefit if in addition with other red flags.  Which happens a lot, unfortunately.

[Kan777 2]

On 7/11/2018 at 6:48 PM, Going through said:

It's more streamlined (and less evidence needed) if you apply under the 5-year eligibility rule.  

 

  Again, if you apply under the 5-year residency rule, your marital status is irrelevant to your application so no marriage docs are required with your application.

Im in the process of applying and Ive been a GC holder for 39 years. I chose the 5 year route (as recommended) and it most certainly did ask for a copy of my marriage license which I uploaded. Married 38 of those 39 years btw. Even to the same American lol!

 

On 7/11/2018 at 6:48 PM, Going through said:

 

 

 

 

 

Edited July 25, 2018 by Kan777
details

[Kan777 2]

30 minutes ago, Kan777 said:

Im in the process of applying and Ive been a GC holder for 39 years. I chose the 5 year route (as recommended) and it most certainly did ask for a copy of my marriage license which I uploaded. Married 38 of those 39 years btw. Even to the same American lol!

 

 

Wanted to add that (as I posted recently on this site but cant recall which sub forum). I am of the opinion that when doing the online filing the actual questions may change dependant on your response to an earlier ones. Why did they ask for my marriage cert? Not sure but perhaps because I also posted some unemployment info? Who cares. If it asked I did it. As I said in the other forum Im no I.T. expert but it seems reasonable that their program can respond with different questions (or order of questions) depending on what you answer. Maybe it beneficial to us online applicants to reduce the number of requests for additional documents for the interview or worse causing a denial of citizenship pending the additional info?

[yrc 6]

8 hours ago, Kan777 said:

Wanted to add that (as I posted recently on this site but cant recall which sub forum). I am of the opinion that when doing the online filing the actual questions may change dependant on your response to an earlier ones. Why did they ask for my marriage cert? Not sure but perhaps because I also posted some unemployment info? Who cares. If it asked I did it. As I said in the other forum Im no I.T. expert but it seems reasonable that their program can respond with different questions (or order of questions) depending on what you answer. Maybe it beneficial to us online applicants to reduce the number of requests for additional documents for the interview or worse causing a denial of citizenship pending the additional info?

I filed on paper and understood instructions as requiring submission of copies of marriage license, divorce decrees etc, with the form.  I read Going through as saying that even if they ask for these documents, under the 5 year rule, questions about marriage/divorce only become crucial in case the IO suspects that the marriage was not genuine.  At least that is how I interpreted Going through’s replies to the OP that began this thread.

[Going through 5,670]

In my signature below is a link to my naturalization interview---if you want, you can read that to see what questions were asked about my marriage (I am a 5 year filer, filed the N400 more than a decade after receiving my GC).  Questions were asked about my parents too, even though neither of them ever lived in the US or applied to live in the US.

[Kan777 2]

1 hour ago, yrc said:

I filed on paper and understood instructions as requiring submission of copies of marriage license, divorce decrees etc, with the form.  I read Going through as saying that even if they ask for these documents, under the 5 year rule, questions about marriage/divorce only become crucial in case the IO suspects that the marriage was not genuine.  At least that is how I interpreted Going through’s replies to the OP that began this thread.

I'm sure if I had elected to file the paper method I would have done exactly what you did based on the information on the intructions plus what I have read here. Best wishes to you. 

[watashi 24]

17 hours ago, yrc said:

Good to know that they review before adjudicating.  Of course, the whole business of marriage/divorce as a criterion for judging the moral worth of individuals in our hyper modern world of unions of all permutations is utterly puzzling to me!

It is for your benefit, though. They're checking one last time in detail that your GC was obtained under valid circumstances and there's nothing in your marital history that retroactively invalidates your LPR status, e,g, not remaining married through the required duration, and also that your GMC requirement is clear so that there's no future risk of denaturalization under some regime, e.g. alleged polygamy due to overlap in marriage information, lack of child support etc.. 

 

I applied under 5-year category since mine was an employment based GC anyway. They still asked about my wife and child at my N400 interview. Nothing crazy - just to state basic details already in the application. I too am someone who didn't bother to apply as soon as I was eligible because... I was in no hurry, and didn't bother until it was time to renew 10-year GC and I decided I might as well get this over with. Personally I don't get the point of applying right upon eligibility. I paid for a 10 year GC, so I might as well utilize it for 10 years, is how I thought. 

[marriedtomrg 141]

On 7/11/2018 at 8:09 PM, Going through said:

Don't feel bad.  I waited over 12 years.

At my oath ceremony, I met a fellow who'd been a LPR for over 30 years.  He said he finally got tired of paying fees.

There were a couple of folks at my naturalization ceremony who were green card holders for 30 and 50+ years. Now they are happy to have "the official right to complain." lol