I-751 April 2023 Filers

[Flowerfame 57]

9 minutes ago, apellica said:

My wife and I are in the exact same position.  We have international travel planned and booked well before we got the letter for Naturalization.  Our trip is at risk since my wife's green card will become void after the Oath Ceremony.  At that point, she WILL need a US Passport to get back into the country.  Since it will most likely be cutting it close for us, I plan on setting up an appointment at the Passport Agency (in my case, Philadelphia) to help speed things up rather than relying on the mail system.  Also, I am not a big fan of her mailing out the "original" Naturalization certificate with the application.  So, we plan on going their in-person to avoid mailing out sensitive documents.

 

At least that is our plan......

 

13 minutes ago, OldUser said:

You can continue travelling with GC and extension letter. As long as your physical presense doesn't get affected of course. You will get asked about trips between interview and oath before your ceremony begins.

Thank you so much to you both. This is super helpful!!

Good luck and that sounds like a great plan, @apellica!

Edited August 5 by Flowerfame

[apellica 80]

Just now, OldUser said:

Travel between interview and oath is different to travel after oath and before getting US passport.

Ahh sorry.  I did misread that.  Thank you for clarifying.  Well then they only have two options....postpone the trip or have them reschedule the Oath Ceremony.  Everyone's situation is different and it depends on what is more important to them.  While I don't know the date yet to my wife's Oath Ceremony, we've already decided that we would postpone the trip if we had too.  Getting US Citizenship for her just takes precedence for us.

[A Polite Parrot 42]

The passport requirement is an excellent point, especially for those who travel frequently.

 

Regarding urgent US Passport appointments, how reliable are the two options offered?

• Applying for a US Passport in advance, then calling within 14 days of the travel departure to request the urgent appointment?
• Waiting until the 14 day from travel to schedule an urgent appointment?

[apellica 80]

6 hours ago, A Polite Parrot said:

The passport requirement is an excellent point, especially for those who travel frequently.

 

Regarding urgent US Passport appointments, how reliable are the two options offered?

• Applying for a US Passport in advance, then calling within 14 days of the travel departure to request the urgent appointment?
• Waiting until the 14 day from travel to schedule an urgent appointment?

Too be honest, I have no experience in either situation at this point.  However, if it was me, I would make the appointment as soon as I could and state my case directly at the passport agency.  I'm not a big fan of waiting to the last minute to see if they could help me...too stressful.  If they tell me to come back until 2 weeks prior to my trip for it to be considered "urgent", then so be it.

 

In a matter of fact, I literally called them the other day asking how fast it would be to make a passport for her if I provide them all the information they needed.  Their answer was "I can't tell you for sure, it depends".  I then asked could I get an average or ballpark figure since I would think this happens to people all the time.  Their answer again "I don't know".  Bad customer service and no accountability as you would expect from our public agencies....it's just sad.

 

Hoping other people with experience can chime in and offer better advice.

[Flowerfame 57]

Just submitted the N-400. Thanks everyone for keeping us posted about your cases--that pushed me to give it a shot myself. For me, it says "Estimated time until case decision: approx. 8 months." 

[Rearviewmirror 397]

On 8/6/2024 at 10:50 PM, Flowerfame said:

Just submitted the N-400. Thanks everyone for keeping us posted about your cases--that pushed me to give it a shot myself. For me, it says "Estimated time until case decision: approx. 8 months." 

It'll go faster

[OldUser 6,635]

On 8/6/2024 at 7:50 PM, Flowerfame said:

Just submitted the N-400. Thanks everyone for keeping us posted about your cases--that pushed me to give it a shot myself. For me, it says "Estimated time until case decision: approx. 8 months." 

I hope you're aware this estimation is worthless? It's totally made up and inaccurate. 

[Flowerfame 57]

1 hour ago, OldUser said:

I hope you're aware this estimation is worthless? It's totally made up and inaccurate. 

I am aware, no worries. I'm going to be checking the actual cases from this year's N-400 filers on VJ. Anyone that has gotten to this stage is very aware. We've all been told by USCIS that they were actively reviewing our case since the minute we filed...

Edited August 10 by Flowerfame

[sierradani 18]

On 7/10/2024 at 3:55 PM, OldUser said:

Make sure you go to his interview. Good luck!

Thanks! I went with him but they didn't need me. Better to be there and not be needed than to not have gone and be required in the interview. Was a great excuse to take the day off work. They told my husband they will approve the N-400 as soon as the I-751 is approved. I-751 was approved today! So excited that we are almost finished with this process. 

[OldUser 6,635]

13 minutes ago, sierradani said:

Thanks! I went with him but they didn't need me. Better to be there and not be needed than to not have gone and be required in the interview. Was a great excuse to take the day off work. They told my husband they will approve the N-400 as soon as the I-751 is approved. I-751 was approved today! So excited that we are almost finished with this process. 

Congratulations! Based on VJ I've seen the following:

 

- Brought the spouse -> spouse never asked to participate

- Didn't bring the spouse -> Asked where the spouse is

- Brought extra evidence -> Never asked for it

- Didn't bring new evidence -> Asked for evidence

 

So you did the right thing coming to USCIS field office with the spouse.

 

You're almost there!

 

[angelasspadaro 0]

On 5/29/2024 at 7:55 AM, MrsOli said:

Just received notification that an action was taken on hubby's case. His I-751 was approved. Now we just wait for his N-400 interview. 

 

What service center?