N-400 September 2024 filers

[bestofluck 129]

On 11/12/2024 at 12:09 PM, bestofluck said:

Today is the day! 
Smooth process for N400 interview.

Arrived and seated in the waiting area 10 mins before appt time. I waited for 15-20 minutes and got called by the IO. Started with an oath and handed over the appointment letter, passport, GC, and DL. Followed by civics tests. After that, he asked me a few questions on the N400 form, like your work, address(Yes, you do need to remember the company address even tho you work remotely or freelance), and duration of the work, if I have been abroad for over 6 months(he didn't ask how many times and how many days), and Yes and No questions.

After all that, he handed me the same day's oath ceremony paper. I headed downstairs for the oath ceremony, waited 30 minutes, and had the ceremony with around 15 other new citizens. That's it! They gave us the naturalization certificate on the spot and briefed us on how to apply for a passport.

I guess that's it for the USCIS journey. It's been a rollercoaster, but once you're on the other side, everything seems just fine. 

I got my passport over Thanksgiving weekend on November 30th. On November 13th, I applied for an expedited process and expedited shipping. Took 17 days to arrive. Good luck to everyone! And happy holidays! 

[Adventine 3,201]

15 minutes ago, OldUser said:

Congrats! Same day oath or different day?

Different day Waiting for the oath schedule now.

[Ninars95 2]

I just checked my status online and the estimated time until case decision showed 4 weeks. Last time I checked about two weeks ago it said 4 months. 

 

I filed September 4th at the San Antonio office. 

[OldUser 6,959]

27 minutes ago, Ninars95 said:

I just checked my status online and the estimated time until case decision showed 4 weeks. Last time I checked about two weeks ago it said 4 months.

Tomorrow it can show 2 days and day after tomorrow - 10 months.

 

It's really inaccurate meaningless estimate.

[kittycat 33]

New Update-

 

Just received an email that action was taken on my case and interview has been scheduled for January. Awaiting physical notice in the mail. I guess now is a good time to start studying for the test.   

[daru 11]

5 hours ago, Ninars95 said:

I just checked my status online and the estimated time until case decision showed 4 weeks. Last time I checked about two weeks ago it said 4 months. 

 

I filed September 4th at the San Antonio office. 

If you check tomorrow you might find out that you had your oath ceremony yesterday 🙃

[am2352 22]

On 12/6/2024 at 9:02 AM, Ninars95 said:

I just checked my status online and the estimated time until case decision showed 4 weeks. Last time I checked about two weeks ago it said 4 months. 

 

I filed September 4th at the San Antonio office. 

I too had the same thing. 3 months -> 5 weeks -> 4 weeks. Its perhaps because our field office is San Antonio. How reliable it is -- I guess we will both find out it in 4 weeks 🤪

Edited December 8 by am2352

[Steve7700 2]

Just received an update today. Interview scheduled.🥳

applied 09/24/24. Dallas TX.

can I request for same day oath ? 

[OldUser 6,959]

19 minutes ago, Steve7700 said:

Just received an update today. Interview scheduled.🥳

applied 09/24/24. Dallas TX.

can I request for same day oath ? 

Typically officer decides whether there is capacity and offers same day oath based on that. It also depends whether your interview is conducted earlier in the day or not. Some offices cannot provide same day oath.

 

Essentially, you won't know until the day of interview.

Edited December 10 by OldUser

[daru 11]

15 minutes ago, OldUser said:

Typically officer decides whether there is capacity and offers same day oath based on that. It also depends whether your interview is conducted earlier in the day or not. Some offices cannot provide same day oath.

 

Essentially, you won't know until the day of interview.

Also, the answer is always no if you requested a name change as only federal judges can adjudicate name changes.

[H24601 4]

On 10/8/2024 at 12:46 PM, Skyman said:

We filed online 18 Sep and on 19 Sep, notified of 7 Nov interview date but I think we're some kind of anomaly. 

You mean that USCIS scheduled your interview the very next day after you filed N400 ?  Lighting speed ! 

[daru 11]

People, including like adjudicators on Reddit and elsewhere, have been saying that the estimate is completely unreliable and meaningless (but they're lawyers, not engineers nor mathematicians, so they don't know how it's calculated or how much relevant data is being used to compute it).

However, it obviously was based on /something/.

 

The formula seems to have changed a few weeks ago so I'm hopeful that it's now more reliable.

Maybe the estimate was based on all N-400 rules rather than specifically the one we selected, and/or was nationwide rather than specific to our field office.

Also, maybe the estimate was based on the average processing speed of the last 12 or 24 months. The longer the period the smoother and stabler it is.

If it's based on the last few weeks for instance, then the estimate is gonna very greatly within weeks if the amount of resources focused on processing this form varies.

 

I've read on the overall Processing Times public page that 80% of the cases ending up at my field office were completed within like 6.5mo iirc.

I filed in mid-September, and it's now telling me the case decision will be in 3mo. That sounds fairly accurate to me.

A week or so ago, before the formula change, it was telling me something like 25 days.

I imagine that it was either a median (50% of cases filed on my filing date rather than 80%), and/or based on the 5y rule, and/or based on everybody...

[sea062018 3]

23 minutes ago, daru said:

People, including like adjudicators on Reddit and elsewhere, have been saying that the estimate is completely unreliable and meaningless (but they're lawyers, not engineers nor mathematicians, so they don't know how it's calculated or how much relevant data is being used to compute it).

However, it obviously was based on /something/.

 

The formula seems to have changed a few weeks ago so I'm hopeful that it's now more reliable.

Maybe the estimate was based on all N-400 rules rather than specifically the one we selected, and/or was nationwide rather than specific to our field office.

Also, maybe the estimate was based on the average processing speed of the last 12 or 24 months. The longer the period the smoother and stabler it is.

If it's based on the last few weeks for instance, then the estimate is gonna very greatly within weeks if the amount of resources focused on processing this form varies.

 

I've read on the overall Processing Times public page that 80% of the cases ending up at my field office were completed within like 6.5mo iirc.

I filed in mid-September, and it's now telling me the case decision will be in 3mo. That sounds fairly accurate to me.

A week or so ago, before the formula change, it was telling me something like 25 days.

I imagine that it was either a median (50% of cases filed on my filing date rather than 80%), and/or based on the 5y rule, and/or based on everybody...

👏👏👏 Thanks for that. I think the same about it. There’s some logic behind it, but as with every data and analysis, it won’t be 100% accurate because it’s based on estimates and averages that usually fluctuate.
 

I’ve been following different n400 threads here, and it is so frustrating to see a new update and then see the same long and repetitive complaint over and over again about how the estimates are inaccurate.

[OldUser 6,959]

2 hours ago, daru said:

People, including like adjudicators on Reddit and elsewhere, have been saying that the estimate is completely unreliable and meaningless (but they're lawyers, not engineers nor mathematicians, so they don't know how it's calculated or how much relevant data is being used to compute it).

However, it obviously was based on /something/.

 

The formula seems to have changed a few weeks ago so I'm hopeful that it's now more reliable.

Maybe the estimate was based on all N-400 rules rather than specifically the one we selected, and/or was nationwide rather than specific to our field office.

Also, maybe the estimate was based on the average processing speed of the last 12 or 24 months. The longer the period the smoother and stabler it is.

If it's based on the last few weeks for instance, then the estimate is gonna very greatly within weeks if the amount of resources focused on processing this form varies.

 

I've read on the overall Processing Times public page that 80% of the cases ending up at my field office were completed within like 6.5mo iirc.

I filed in mid-September, and it's now telling me the case decision will be in 3mo. That sounds fairly accurate to me.

A week or so ago, before the formula change, it was telling me something like 25 days.

I imagine that it was either a median (50% of cases filed on my filing date rather than 80%), and/or based on the 5y rule, and/or based on everybody...

The problem is, there's too many variables in the process.

 

The algorithm doesn't know or doesn't take into account whether initial submission has everything that's needed for adjudication. If there's something missing - there would be RFE issued, and obviously this results in a delay which wasn't included in estimate.

 

It most likely doesn't account for any specifics of applicant's case. Say one applicant is from high risk country. Other agencies who help USCIS perform background check, may not have information or can take longer to perform their job. Say one applicant had 5 marriages including divorces oversees vs somebody who had no divorces. Things like that...

 

Algorithm most likely ignores seasonal holidays, or how fast your adjudicator is in making decision. I'm sure there are adjudicators who decide 5 cases an hour, and there are those deciding 2.

 

It cannot take into account any management decisions. USCIS is known to shift priorities swiftly. Overnight, they may decide that I-485 is more important than N-400 etc. We've seen this with last election cycle, where resources were used to process naturalizations but taken away from adjustmemt of status, removal of conditions etc.

 

Don't forget, USCIS doesn't know upfront how many applications will be submitted, but that number affects how fast things will be adjudicated. Say, in June there were 50000 applicants for N-400, but in July 65000. Plus cases are not processed strictly on First In First Out basis.

 

Each case is unique, I doubt we'll ever have a good estimate. But let's see.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 10 by OldUser

[Skyman 327]

On 12/9/2024 at 10:21 PM, H24601 said:

You mean that USCIS scheduled your interview the very next day after you filed N400 ?  Lighting speed ! 

Yes, probably less than 24 hours. App, bio reuse, interview scheduled. Just waiting on the oath but that was delayed because we moved.