N-400 Tampa Timeline/Approval and Experience

[LDoraB 0]

Hi folks. I thought it would be helpful if I shared my recent experience. Please forgive me not updating my timeline as a lot of the info you're asking for apart from this most recent filing is well over a decade old in my case.

 

QUICK TIMELINE

ARRIVAL IN US ON K-1 - 2007

REMOVAL OF CONDITIONS - 2011

APPLICATION FOR CITIZENSHIP - SEPTEMBER 20TH 2020

INTERVIEW SCHEDULED FOR CITIZENSHIP - APRIL 25TH 2022

INTERVIEW FOR CITIZENSHIP/APPROVAL - JUNE 13TH 2022

 

Some background: I immigrated to the US from Canada in 2007 on a K1-Visa. My husband is a US citizen. We were married in October of 2007, and we're still married now. Neither of us has been married before, we have no children, I have not been outside the US since I've come here, and we've lived in the same house (which we own) for almost fifteen years.

 

My Green Card was due to expire December 2021, and after a lot of thought, instead of renewing it as we had originally planned for me to do my husband and I decided I would file for citizenship. This was September 20th, 2020. Notably, I was also including a request to have my name changed to reflect my married name.

 

I filed online, filling out the forms myself, and received a notice of receipt that same week. I opted to upload:

My 1099s from the previous three years

My W-2 from my current job for that year

 

The next update I received was January 10th, 2021, for a Notice of Biometric Re-Use.

 

I didn't hear anything after that for over a year. In June of 2021, I sent a message through USCIS' online portal asking for an update and expressing concern regarding my expiring Green Card. I received a reply July 2021 informing me I was still within their expected timeline, and advising me to file for a I-90 replacement of my Green Card, which I did on July 20th, 2021 - this still displays as being "actively reviewed", which is the only update on the case, and was applied the same day it was received.

 

While applying for the renewal automatically extended my Green Card for another year, I was still concerned about the slow processing times. Based on their projection (15-17 months) they insisted I was still within their processing time until February 17th, 2022. I also opted to upload my W-2 for 2021.

 

I contacted them again on the above date, and received a message March 10th, 2022 indicating that I was still within their expected time frame, BUT using the date I filed my I-90, NOT my N-400. Meaning, the person who had sent this response from me was looking at the incorrect case file.

 

I waited a bit, then responded April 11th, 2022, clarifying their mistake and asking for an update. Later that same month, however, on April 25th, 2022 I received a notification that my interview had been scheduled for June 13th, 2022, at our Tampa office, at 8:10AM. (USCIS online did not reply to my April 11th query until April 28th, haha)

 

Arriving about a half hour early, there was already a line forming at the door. Masks were required. They took my appointment letter, verified it against a list, and sent me inside. After passing through a metal detector, I checked in at the front desk and was given a number that would be called and told to wait in a large waiting room nearby. I brought with me a folder containing the following:

 

THINGS THEY ASKED FOR:

•  My appointment notice
•  My expired passport from my original entry 15 years ago
• My ID (driver's license)
•  My (currently) expired green card

 

THINGS MY ANXIETY TOLD ME TO BRING BECAUSE WHO KNOWS:

•  Six years of tax transcripts
•  A copy of my birth certificate
•  A copy of my husband's birth certificate
•  Tax forms from my current job for the last three years
•  A printout of my job, pay, and duties from our payment system
•  Two character references from my manager and our CEO
•  Several photos of my husband and I together
•  Bank statements from several years
•  The title for my car with my address
•  Proof of car insurance with my name and address
•  Proof of health insurance with my name and my address (and my husband as he's covered on my insurance)
•  Miscellaneous documents that also included my name and address to establish residence (vet bills, pet adoption papers, etc)

 

I was called in for my interview around 9:15AM. (I heard other people also talking and this seemed like it was a standard wait time for that day.) They had me remain standing and pledge to tell the truth, and then sat down. I handed over my ID, my passport, and my green card. The interviewer verified my information in the system, and took my photo using a web cam. Then he had me read a sentence from an electronic display, and then write a sentence he dictated on my device. Then he asked me the first six questions from the citizenship test - I got all six right, and he opted to stop there.

 

Next we briefly chatted about my life and work - how long I'd lived in my current place, what my job was and what it's like (I'm a director for a video game publishing company). He had a HUGE (h u g e) file in front of him that contained all of my case so far. He said I had been extremely meticulous in all of my communication, and all of my filing and uploads. He told me he was recommending me for approval, and then said that because I was opting for a name change, the oath ceremony would be at a later date with an official on hand to take care of the name change as well. 

 

He asked me if there was anything in my folder of many many many extra documents I wanted him to look at, and I said not really if he felt good about his decision - I was embarrassed to have brought so much but said I'd rather bring it and not need it, than need it and not have it, which he agreed with. He escorted me to the waiting room, congratulated me, and said I'd receive a notice when the oath had been scheduled. The entire interview was probably less than 20 minutes.

 

By the time I got home an hour later, my USCIS account had updated me from Recommended for Approval to Oath Ceremony Will be Scheduled. And that's where I'm currently at, waiting for that notice!

 

I'll provide another update when that has been scheduled and gone through. I hope this was useful for some folks - I just wanted to share with some details and context because I know everything has been weird and delayed everywhere it seems with COVID, and I thought it might be helpful. Good luck!