Questions about travel choices

[LisLouis 0]

Good evening, My wife filed for citizenship on Feb. 3, 2023 and had her biometrics on Feb. 24.  We are teachers, so summer is our time to visit family. It is seeming that she might get an interview in May, but also in June or July. How long in advance do they let you know about this interview? Should we be careful about our travel plans, or can we visit family and postpone an interview if it comes up when we are out of the country? We are in the Denver area and it says the estimated decision time is 8 months on USCIS.

[Allaboutwaiting 2,503]

In our experience, you receive a letter a month prior the interview, so I wound plan based on that. 

 

I personally would not postpone/ reschedule interview, though if it happens when you're traveling, you might have no choice. 

[LisLouis 0]

Thank you, Allaboutwaiting.

 

Would it be a problem if we postponed the interview? We are trying to finalize some travel plans for the summer while tickets are cheaper. If it just means a slightly longer wait, I think my wife is fine with that. She wants to buy our tickets, but I said wait until we see how this might impact things.

[Allaboutwaiting 2,503]

Not that I want to scare you - and the cases I'm talking about were not for naturalization- but there have been members whose cases were denied after rescheduling because in the system it appeared as if they did not attend the interview.

 

Of course, those are the ones that post in the forum because they had an issue. Many must reschedule and everything is fine. 

 

My point is that one should do everything to minimize the risks. 

 

For instance: we are still waiting for an interview to be scheduled and we definitely don't want to reschedule, so we book two week vacations, two weeks in advance. 

Edited April 4, 2023 by Allaboutwaiting

[LisLouis 0]

We thank you for your help, but are looking also for a response from someone who has gotten the citizen interview date and possibly had to change it. The part about getting the notice/letter a month prior is very helpful, but more than anything, we'd like something more certain about problems if we have to reschedule. Rules may be different at that point. We're both looking forward to seeing family and would like to maximize that visiting time as much as possible, as it is limited by work.

[beloved_dingo 1,976]

Interviews are typically 4-6 weeks following the interview notice. For us, the interview date is 5.5 weeks from the day we got the interview notice.

 

I was also a little worried the we might be traveling during the time our interview was scheduled because we will be out of town a week in May and a week in August. We lucked out and the interview is exactly 2 weeks prior to our trip in May. 

 

Personally, I would buy refundable tickets and make refundable reservations so that you can work around the interview date on the small chance it gets scheduled on a date you planned to be out of town. 

[LisLouis 0]

Thank you. We have mileage trips, so it's easy to change.

 

Our question or thought then, you're recommending accept the date and that trying to change the date would damage our chances.

 

Your timeline gives us hope as we filed online soon after you. 

 

And thank you for your response. I hope your interview goes in your favor. Again, many thanks.