Officer said NO to N400 after I751 combo interview

[MyNameIsEarl 13]

This post is regarding my friend's interview which happened today. He received interview notice for both i751 and n400. He and his wife went to the interview this morning with an attorney who was with them during the entire interview process. The officer came out and asked the wife to come with him and told my friend to sit right there and hand him his DL. He then interviewed his wife for 90 minutes. Asked her about her job, draw layout of their house, exact dates of their initial meetings, car models and colors, what is the exact rent amount, who buys grocery and how they share house expenses etc. Asked her if she knows her husband's ssn number etc. She answered well about her job, draw layout but didn't give him exact dates and she said she is not sure of car model, rent amount though she gave approximate amount. She said she doesn't know his ssn and the officer was like why not? He asked her to write her manager name, desk number etc in the office.

 

 Then he asked my friend why he married someone with low income, rent, car models and more about his financials. He filed a bankruptcy few years ago and he asked few questions regarding it and it lasted for 20 minutes. After that he said he has to review the case. When attorney asked about n400, he said he doesn't want to do that now and he has to review i751. Attorney asked about the timeline and he said he can't tell. Attorney says now it's just waiting game.

 

Is this common to interview the couple separately during combo interviews and refusing to do n400 interview? If not, he wants to prepare for different scenarios and talk to other lawyers as this attorney says there is nothing he can do except waiting. Please let me know if any of you seen something like this before?

 

Also, apologies for posting on behalf of my friend. He is not in the group and I used this group for suggestions through out my i751 and n400 process. So, wanted to post here.

[SteveInBostonI130 3,408]

Whose interview was this, your friend or your friend's wife?

 

Odd that the lawyer didn't get a firm decision date.  I believe I-751 have to be adjudicated within 180 days.  Most of us let it go because of the hassle of a WoM, but a lawyer should have pressed this issue.

 

Did the lawyer at any point raise questions of relevance, including the bankruptcy in the past?  Or did the lawyer just sit back and either stare in the distance or catch a few winks while the CO conducted the interview?

[Rocio0010 5,579]

Obviously the IO saw some red flags. 
Where is your friend from?

Any age difference?

What visa was he on when he adjusted status?

[MyNameIsEarl 13]

18 minutes ago, SteveInBostonI130 said:

Whose interview was this, your friend or your friend's wife?

 

Odd that the lawyer didn't get a firm decision date.  I believe I-751 have to be adjudicated within 180 days.  Most of us let it go because of the hassle of a WoM, but a lawyer should have pressed this issue.

 

Did the lawyer at any point raise questions of relevance, including the bankruptcy in the past?  Or did the lawyer just sit back and either stare in the distance or catch a few winks while the CO conducted the interview?

 

Hahaha. It's for my friend who went to school with me here. He married USC 4 years ago. From what he said, lawyer didn't involve during most of the interview. She only questioned the officer about the duration at the end as he has another interview to attend. In addition, asked the VO why he isn't doing n400 and if he need any additional documentation to which he replied he will let him know after the review.

[MyNameIsEarl 13]

12 minutes ago, Rocio0010 said:

Obviously the IO saw some red flags. 
Where is your friend from?

Any age difference?

What visa was he on when he adjusted status?

 

Kansas city, MO. His wife is 5 years older than him and he was on F1 visa before AOS. He is worried after the interview but his attorney says this is very common but he is worried because VO refused to do n400 interview and I think it's a red flag too.

[Rocio0010 5,579]

6 minutes ago, MyNameIsEarl said:

 

Kansas city, MO. His wife is 5 years older than him and he was on F1 visa before AOS. He is worried after the interview but his attorney says this is very common but he is worried because VO refused to do n400 interview and I think it's a red flag too.

His attorney should be fired, since he didn’t do anything at the interview, and he’s also saying this situation is “very common”. This is the first time I’ve ever heard of it. 
 

Where’s your friend originally from?

Did he finish his studies?

Has the wife ever filed for someone else?

Are they from the same background?

 

[Boiler 45,318]

This sounds like a case for Hacking.

 

Which Country is he from?

[Family 3,988]

13 minutes ago, MyNameIsEarl said:

Kansas city, MO. His wife is 5 years older than him and he was on F1 visa before AOS. He is worried after the interview but his attorney says this is very common but he is worried because VO refused to do n400 interview and I think it's a red flag too

When they separate the spouses it means they conducted a Stokes interview ( suspected fraud) ..quite clear also from the type of detailed questions. 
The USC petitioner /wife did NOT do well at all:

did not know exact rent $ , was fuzzy on household expenses, did not know type of car husband drives and couldn’t remember first encounter with husband.

Your friend ( if F-1 past) is degreed so BIG education gap between them.

 

There was nothing attorney could have done . Other than listen and get a sense of what she will face . 
Your fried will get a NOID …but I doubt it will be anytime soon. They will likely refer to FDNS ( fraud unit) and schedule on site visit to their home / work….nothing will happen fast and nothing your friend ( or new attorney): can do to speed it up.

 

Because it was a Stokes interview and it went poorly, there was no need to conduct N-400.

[SalishSea 17,746]

2 hours ago, MyNameIsEarl said:

This post is regarding my friend's interview which happened today. He received interview notice for both i751 and n400. He and his wife went to the interview this morning with an attorney who was with them during the entire interview process. The officer came out and asked the wife to come with him and told my friend to sit right there and hand him his DL. He then interviewed his wife for 90 minutes. Asked her about her job, draw layout of their house, exact dates of their initial meetings, car models and colors, what is the exact rent amount, who buys grocery and how they share house expenses etc. Asked her if she knows her husband's ssn number etc. She answered well about her job, draw layout but didn't give him exact dates and she said she is not sure of car model, rent amount though she gave approximate amount. She said she doesn't know his ssn and the officer was like why not? He asked her to write her manager name, desk number etc in the office.

 

 Then he asked my friend why he married someone with low income, rent, car models and more about his financials. He filed a bankruptcy few years ago and he asked few questions regarding it and it lasted for 20 minutes. After that he said he has to review the case. When attorney asked about n400, he said he doesn't want to do that now and he has to review i751. Attorney asked about the timeline and he said he can't tell. Attorney says now it's just waiting game.

 

Is this common to interview the couple separately during combo interviews and refusing to do n400 interview? If not, he wants to prepare for different scenarios and talk to other lawyers as this attorney says there is nothing he can do except waiting. Please let me know if any of you seen something like this before?

 

Also, apologies for posting on behalf of my friend. He is not in the group and I used this group for suggestions through out my i751 and n400 process. So, wanted to post here.

No, not common at all.   They suspect fraud.

1 hour ago, MyNameIsEarl said:

 

Hahaha. It's for my friend who went to school with me here. He married USC 4 years ago. From what he said, lawyer didn't involve during most of the interview. She only questioned the officer about the duration at the end as he has another interview to attend. In addition, asked the VO why he isn't doing n400 and if he need any additional documentation to which he replied he will let him know after the review.

Why isn’t the “friend” here on his own behalf?   

[Cathi 5,742]

They suspect fraud. He AOS'd from a F-1 and it sounds to me like they don't believe they live together. It doesn't help at ALL that she didn't know how much the rent is, the cars models, when they met and a bunch of other things. Especially since she's the USC and petitioner. Even I have my doubts.

[jackiegringa 419]

10 minutes ago, Cathi said:

They suspect fraud. He AOS'd from a F-1 and it sounds to me like they don't believe they live together. It doesn't help at ALL that she didn't know how much the rent is, the cars models, when they met and a bunch of other things. Especially since she's the USC and petitioner. Even I have my doubts.

All of these questions are things the lawyer they hired should have explained that are important and briefly prepared them to answer the same thing.

 

I had a lawyer for support really, had a very straightforward case with plenty of evidence and one of the things I got from my lawyer was a list of things we need to know and get right about the relationship - prime example is different first date dates because one partner thinks of first encounter and the other think about the first official date.

 

Also, it is impossible to know but the lawyer could have said something during the interview to maybe steer it in a more positive direction - I had just opened a joint account but shared no credit cards and when the IO started to press a bit too much on that my lawyer interrupted to say that having credit cards wasn't mandatory and please look at the house deed, thank you. It's what they are there for!

[Family 3,988]

1 hour ago, jackiegringa said:

Also, it is impossible to know but the lawyer could have said something during the interview to maybe steer it in a more positive direction - I had just opened a joint account but shared no credit cards and when the IO started to press a bit too much on that my lawyer interrupted to say that having credit cards wasn't mandatory and please look at the house deed, thank you. It's what they are there for!

Good observation that the  Officers “flow “ can be at times diverted…if either attorney or one of the spouses thinks fast on their feet

 

. Example: when ISO asked husband why he married such a broke wife, he would say smiling “ But Sir, look at her, she’s drop dead gorgeous!” followed by “ fell head over heals in love ..then “ in my culture it’s man’s job to make $ and woman’s to make man happy..” 

 

[carmel34 3,611]

8 hours ago, MyNameIsEarl said:

Is this common to interview the couple separately during combo interviews and refusing to do n400 interview?

From what you have shared about your friend's experience, the I-751 interview was nearly 2 hours, which is unheard of and clearly shows that the officer does not think the marriage is bona fide.  The officer did not "refuse" to do the N-400 interview, it was simply not possible because I-751 has to be approved first per USCIS policy.  Advise your friend to hire a more experienced attorney.

[JeanneAdil 6,414]

1st  USCIS says this
 

When you need legal advice on immigration matters, make sure the person helping you is an attorney or an accredited representative working for a Department of Justice recognized organization. Nobody else is authorized to give you legal advice about immigration matters.

https://www.uscis.gov/scams-fraud-and-misconduct/avoid-scams

 

2nd Nolo law advises:

 

The lawyer can't stop USCIS from asking any of these questions, and can't answer the questions for you. In fact, you'll find that the lawyer has to sit quietly through much of the interview.

 

Moreover, the officer might have information about you from sources other than what you provided in your application. Assume that USCIS knows almost everything about you! If the officer has any questions about whether you should get citizenship, based on information you gave or information obtained from other sources, you will need to provide truthful answers at the interview.

 

https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/what-expect-your-naturalization-interview.html

 

And Hacking says:

So, the great benefit of having an immigration lawyer in your interview when you're trying to get a benefit is that the lawyer knows the law. The lawyer, most likely, and hopefully, knows the law better than the immigration officers. So if things go off the rails, the lawyer can stop the interview and ask for a supervisor. The lawyer can ask you to go outside and discuss something. You can go outside of the little office where you are with the officer

https://hackinglawpractice.com/bring-lawyer-to-uscis-interview/

 

the lawyer in this case did not  carefully go over what would be asked and what would happen in interview/  could be he took the money to represent but he,  himself ,  did not believe fully in the client(s)

[African Zealot 1,455]

It looks like the case is problematic by itself and nothing to do with the lawyer’s actions or inactions. Clearly they suspect fraud and they don’t typically suspect fraud for nothing although sometimes they’re unreasonable. His complete refusal to review the 400 indicates he’s very confident something is not kosher because that would only be an extra 20 minutes of his time.

 

Personally from the little third hand information we’re getting, I won’t blame the lawyer. Ultimately if the marriage is bonafide, it will be approved.

 

My $0.02!