N-400 Seattle (Part 2)

[Southern_Belle07 146]

In my receipt notice, there is no priority date. Is that normal?

[Nkrish83 65]

3 hours ago, Southern_Belle07 said:

In my receipt notice, there is no priority date. Is that normal?

Naturalization applications wont have one. There is no annual numerical limit for N400 apps. It's just processed based on date of submission. 

[Southern_Belle07 146]

1 hour ago, Nkrish83 said:

Naturalization applications wont have one. There is no annual numerical limit for N400 apps. It's just processed based on date of submission. 

Thank you!

[UCT 3]

I have completed my interview and oath today. I found it is very helpful to read other people's experience. So I am here to share mine.

 

To summarize, I have name change in my N-400 application. I want to share how I got same day oath with the name change.

 

When I submit the N-400 application, I stated that I would like to change my name. But I learned from other people's experience, oath day won't be the same day if you would like to change your name. As soon as I received the interview notice, I went to Bellevue district court to change my name. I paid $301 for the name change at court. It was very easy. Just appear in front of judge and answer a few simple questions. It only took 5 minutes for the hearing. I then brought the court order to the interview.

 

My interview was at 9:45. I arrived at 9:18. After passed the security check, there was a line for checking-in. There were about 15 people in front of me. It took 15 mins to check-in. After checked-in I was instructed to go upstairs and wait in the waiting room. There is no sign in the waiting room. The staff would come out and call your number.

 

In the waiting room, there were many people (30~40 people). But I only waited for 3 minute. Staff came out and called my number, then walked me to a cubicle. I can see my wife is right behind me doing her interview (she was called 2 minutes before me, even thought I checked in first). The interview was virtual.

 

The lady who interviewed me was very very nice. She made some jokes when asking the civil test questions. She started with civil test, then went through every question in the N400 application. When she asked my name, I told her I actually went to court and changed my name already. She said that's good because they can't do name change here. And because I had my name changed at court already, I can have same day oath today. My wife's name is changed as well. So I let her know when we got to the session of my wife's name. She was able update all the names without any problem. It only took me 15 minutes to finish the interview. (my wife's interview took ~15 minutes as well). After interview, staffs congratulated me and told me to wait downstairs for the oath ceremony.

 

There was a line in oath ceremony entrance. I gave the staff my green card at the entrance. There were about 50 people in the oath room. The oath was fast, 15 minutes later, I received my certificate of naturalization. Total exactly 1 hour from leave my car to return my car.

 

The next step is to get my passport. For urgent travel (within 14 days), you can call the service center to get your passport faster. The normal passport can take 4-6 weeks (expedited) or 7-10 weeks (normal). I will travel in 2 months. The problem is it takes time to schedule application in the  passport acceptance facility (e.g. USPS). You can only make appointment within 4 weeks at USPS but there is no any date available. To get a slot, you would need to make appointment before 6am to book the date just opened 4 weeks later.  I counted the date and book the passport appointment before my interview 4 weeks ago. So my application appointment is later this week. 

 

Hope this helps. Good luck, everyone.

 

[TheLastMile 13]

1 hour ago, UCT said:

I have completed my interview and oath today. I found it is very helpful to read other people's experience. So I am here to share mine.

 

To summarize, I have name change in my N-400 application. I want to share how I got same day oath with the name change.

 

When I submit the N-400 application, I stated that I would like to change my name. But I learned from other people's experience, oath day won't be the same day if you would like to change your name. As soon as I received the interview notice, I went to Bellevue district court to change my name. I paid $301 for the name change at court. It was very easy. Just appear in front of judge and answer a few simple questions. It only took 5 minutes for the hearing. I then brought the court order to the interview.

 

My interview was at 9:45. I arrived at 9:18. After passed the security check, there was a line for checking-in. There were about 15 people in front of me. It took 15 mins to check-in. After checked-in I was instructed to go upstairs and wait in the waiting room. There is no sign in the waiting room. The staff would come out and call your number.

 

In the waiting room, there were many people (30~40 people). But I only waited for 3 minute. Staff came out and called my number, then walked me to a cubicle. I can see my wife is right behind me doing her interview (she was called 2 minutes before me, even thought I checked in first). The interview was virtual.

 

The lady who interviewed me was very very nice. She made some jokes when asking the civil test questions. She started with civil test, then went through every question in the N400 application. When she asked my name, I told her I actually went to court and changed my name already. She said that's good because they can't do name change here. And because I had my name changed at court already, I can have same day oath today. My wife's name is changed as well. So I let her know when we got to the session of my wife's name. She was able update all the names without any problem. It only took me 15 minutes to finish the interview. (my wife's interview took ~15 minutes as well). After interview, staffs congratulated me and told me to wait downstairs for the oath ceremony.

 

There was a line in oath ceremony entrance. I gave the staff my green card at the entrance. There were about 50 people in the oath room. The oath was fast, 15 minutes later, I received my certificate of naturalization. Total exactly 1 hour from leave my car to return my car.

 

The next step is to get my passport. For urgent travel (within 14 days), you can call the service center to get your passport faster. The normal passport can take 4-6 weeks (expedited) or 7-10 weeks (normal). I will travel in 2 months. The problem is it takes time to schedule application in the  passport acceptance facility (e.g. USPS). You can only make appointment within 4 weeks at USPS but there is no any date available. To get a slot, you would need to make appointment before 6am to book the date just opened 4 weeks later.  I counted the date and book the passport appointment before my interview 4 weeks ago. So my application appointment is later this week. 

 

Hope this helps. Good luck, everyone.

 

Congratulations to you and your wife. If you don’t mind sharing - what date did you file and what date was your interview scheduled ?

[UCT 3]

31 minutes ago, TheLastMile said:

Congratulations to you and your wife. If you don’t mind sharing - what date did you file and what date was your interview scheduled ?

I filed on 4/7/2022 and interview today.

[Hamilton 511]

7 hours ago, UCT said:

I have completed my interview and oath today. I found it is very helpful to read other people's experience. So I am here to share mine.

 

To summarize, I have name change in my N-400 application. I want to share how I got same day oath with the name change.

 

When I submit the N-400 application, I stated that I would like to change my name. But I learned from other people's experience, oath day won't be the same day if you would like to change your name. As soon as I received the interview notice, I went to Bellevue district court to change my name. I paid $301 for the name change at court. It was very easy. Just appear in front of judge and answer a few simple questions. It only took 5 minutes for the hearing. I then brought the court order to the interview.

 

My interview was at 9:45. I arrived at 9:18. After passed the security check, there was a line for checking-in. There were about 15 people in front of me. It took 15 mins to check-in. After checked-in I was instructed to go upstairs and wait in the waiting room. There is no sign in the waiting room. The staff would come out and call your number.

 

In the waiting room, there were many people (30~40 people). But I only waited for 3 minute. Staff came out and called my number, then walked me to a cubicle. I can see my wife is right behind me doing her interview (she was called 2 minutes before me, even thought I checked in first). The interview was virtual.

 

The lady who interviewed me was very very nice. She made some jokes when asking the civil test questions. She started with civil test, then went through every question in the N400 application. When she asked my name, I told her I actually went to court and changed my name already. She said that's good because they can't do name change here. And because I had my name changed at court already, I can have same day oath today. My wife's name is changed as well. So I let her know when we got to the session of my wife's name. She was able update all the names without any problem. It only took me 15 minutes to finish the interview. (my wife's interview took ~15 minutes as well). After interview, staffs congratulated me and told me to wait downstairs for the oath ceremony.

 

There was a line in oath ceremony entrance. I gave the staff my green card at the entrance. There were about 50 people in the oath room. The oath was fast, 15 minutes later, I received my certificate of naturalization. Total exactly 1 hour from leave my car to return my car.

 

The next step is to get my passport. For urgent travel (within 14 days), you can call the service center to get your passport faster. The normal passport can take 4-6 weeks (expedited) or 7-10 weeks (normal). I will travel in 2 months. The problem is it takes time to schedule application in the  passport acceptance facility (e.g. USPS). You can only make appointment within 4 weeks at USPS but there is no any date available. To get a slot, you would need to make appointment before 6am to book the date just opened 4 weeks later.  I counted the date and book the passport appointment before my interview 4 weeks ago. So my application appointment is later this week. 

 

Hope this helps. Good luck, everyone.

 

Congrats!! Also if it helps - I expedited my passport application last month and got the passport within 3 weeks of the USPS appointment. 

[Southern_Belle07 146]

6 hours ago, Hamilton said:

Congrats!! Also if it helps - I expedited my passport application last month and got the passport within 3 weeks of the USPS appointment. 

If I may ask, where did you set up the appointment and what are the requirements?

[asdfzxcvqweasdfzx 0]

Hi everyone! I need some advice and help. I interviewed for my N-400 on Oct 19th at Tukwilla center. At the time of the interview, my I-751 data file was not in system and needed to be transferred from Nebraska. So the officer gave me a slip of paper that basically shows I have passed the written and writing test for N-400 but decision cannot be made yet. On Oct 23rd, my I-751 case was transferred and on Oct 26th the case was approved. However, now my N400 is still showing "Interview is scheduled". I have no way of getting in touch via Emma. I've tried twice contacting Emma and they just closed my inquiries. 

 

I have an international travel coming up on Nov 23rd, which I need to apply for a new passport for. Seattle typically takes 2 weeks to process an expedited passport case.

In addition, I plan to petition for my mom'f greencard once I become a citizen. Her current visa status is expiring on Nov 17th. 

 

How can I move my case? I'm so distraught.

[Gaps0214 67]

1 hour ago, asdfzxcvqweasdfzx said:

Hi everyone! I need some advice and help. I interviewed for my N-400 on Oct 19th at Tukwilla center. At the time of the interview, my I-751 data file was not in system and needed to be transferred from Nebraska. So the officer gave me a slip of paper that basically shows I have passed the written and writing test for N-400 but decision cannot be made yet. On Oct 23rd, my I-751 case was transferred and on Oct 26th the case was approved. However, now my N400 is still showing "Interview is scheduled". I have no way of getting in touch via Emma. I've tried twice contacting Emma and they just closed my inquiries. 

 

I have an international travel coming up on Nov 23rd, which I need to apply for a new passport for. Seattle typically takes 2 weeks to process an expedited passport case.

In addition, I plan to petition for my mom'f greencard once I become a citizen. Her current visa status is expiring on Nov 17th. 

 

How can I move my case? I'm so distraught.

Hello there,

 

Congratulations on passing the N400 interview and the removal of our conditions.

I think you should give them a little more time to send you an invitation to the oath taking.

Do come back to give us an update how it goes.

 

Cheers,

G&A

[Hamilton 511]

8 hours ago, Southern_Belle07 said:

If I may ask, where did you set up the appointment and what are the requirements?

I scheduled the appointment on the USPS site, and all the document requirements are listed there too https://www.usps.com/international/passports.htm

[Hamilton 511]

2 hours ago, asdfzxcvqweasdfzx said:

Hi everyone! I need some advice and help. I interviewed for my N-400 on Oct 19th at Tukwilla center. At the time of the interview, my I-751 data file was not in system and needed to be transferred from Nebraska. So the officer gave me a slip of paper that basically shows I have passed the written and writing test for N-400 but decision cannot be made yet. On Oct 23rd, my I-751 case was transferred and on Oct 26th the case was approved. However, now my N400 is still showing "Interview is scheduled". I have no way of getting in touch via Emma. I've tried twice contacting Emma and they just closed my inquiries. 

 

I have an international travel coming up on Nov 23rd, which I need to apply for a new passport for. Seattle typically takes 2 weeks to process an expedited passport case.

In addition, I plan to petition for my mom'f greencard once I become a citizen. Her current visa status is expiring on Nov 17th. 

 

How can I move my case? I'm so distraught.

This seems like it's actually moving along quite quickly. They transferred the I-751 case only a couple of days after your N400 interview, and they approved it yesterday. So I think you're on track to hear about the oath ceremony soon. 

 

You could reach out to your senator/representative and ask them to inquire for you - that usually gets a case going. But your case seems to already be making its way through the system - it's just hard to predict if it'll be complete within the next two weeks. 

 

You may want to look into getting an emergency passport for your Nov 23 travel - I believe those can be done in a day or two. The expedited process is longer than 2 weeks right now. 

[asdfzxcvqweasdfzx 0]

55 minutes ago, Hamilton said:

This seems like it's actually moving along quite quickly. They transferred the I-751 case only a couple of days after your N400 interview, and they approved it yesterday. So I think you're on track to hear about the oath ceremony soon. 

 

You could reach out to your senator/representative and ask them to inquire for you - that usually gets a case going. But your case seems to already be making its way through the system - it's just hard to predict if it'll be complete within the next two weeks. 

 

You may want to look into getting an emergency passport for your Nov 23 travel - I believe those can be done in a day or two. The expedited process is longer than 2 weeks right now. 

Thank you Hamilton! What is an emergency passport? I don't have the citizenship certificate, how do I apply for the emergency passport?

[Hamilton 511]

1 minute ago, asdfzxcvqweasdfzx said:

Thank you Hamilton! What is an emergency passport? I don't have the citizenship certificate, how do I apply for the emergency passport?

You can only get a US passport after your oath ceremony, once you're a citizen with a naturalization certificate. But if your travel is very soon after the oath (i.e., not enough time to go through the expedited process), you can apply for an emergency/urgent passport. Details here - https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/get-fast/passport-agencies/seattle.htmlv

 

Some people in this thread have gone the urgent passport route, so if you scroll back some pages you'll be able to find info on it.

 

It's definitely still cutting it close to your travel in Nov because it's hard to predict how soon your oath ceremony will be scheduled.

[Mv125 14]

Update..

 

I had my N400 interview a couple of hours ago and I passed the test. However, they were not able to make a decision as the I751 is still pending. They told me that a decision will be made after they receive my A-file.
 

The interview took 15 minutes. I was asked about basic information (name, DOB, address..), then the civics test, and finally a few yes/no questions from the application. 

 

The following questions were asked for the civics test:

 

1. what does the Constitution do?

2. Name one branch or part of the government?

3. What ocean is on the East Coast of the United States?

4. What is one thing Benjamin Franklin is famous for?

6. How many U.S. senators are there?

 

I will post an update whenever I hear from them. Feel free to ask if you have questions.