mam521

As long as you enter before your visa expires and your US spouse is either already in the US or is accompanying you, there should be no issues.

File at the end of March. You'll pay the smaller fees. It's just the filing, so until you have an interview and an oath, it's just that - an application. Chances are it will take a month or 2 before your case would be eligible for an interview, so hopefully the law will have passed. Even if you've passed your interview, you still have to have your naturalization ceremony to actually become a US citizen and that oath ceremony could potentially be rescheduled/delayed. As long as German parliament pushes the actual changes into effect in mid-April as anticipate, you should be good to go.

If it's ACTUALLY urgent that she travel, she can get an urgent passport in 2 days. She will have to be prepared to attend any passport office in the US and waste 2 days sitting there, but it can be done. She will require proof of travel and will have to call the Department of State to get said appointment. I had to do this when I naturalized early last year, but that was when passports were still taking 4 months and I had work travel booked before I even applied for my naturalization. I would imagine it would be significantly more painful to sit at the Embassy and attempt to get a passport. The passport may very well end up flagged for becoming a citizen and instantaneously breaking the law by not leaving on the US passport. Could make future travel a headache and potentially make your wife ineligible for Global Entry or TSA Pre, since those are programs for low risk, law abiding travellers. Irrespective of your personal beliefs on enforcement of leaving/returning on a US passport, it is the law and CBP can decide to enforce it if they like. A great way to make sure they always enforce it is to do something non-compliant so they flag it and always check for compliance from that moment onwards.

You'd have to look up the code for 427, but LEW is for Lewiston, NY. Guessing they are potentially land crossings. You guys will know better. Edit to add - looks like 427 is Niagara Falls.

Just bring the Affidavit. Update it if there's been an update. You don't want to be handed a 221g to submit an updated I-864 if you can prevent it. If you have copies of her tax transcrips, that's even better than her returns - the transcripts prove the return was sent and reviewed by the IRS. They want the passport because it proves she's a US citizen. State ID can be issued to nearly anyone. She has petitioned you as a US citizen and they need proof of that. Your marriage certificate will show her maiden name. Don't stress about that. Proof of domicile - pay stubs for work, bills sent to the address - just something showing she's actually in the US. Are you likely to need it? No. But again, overprepare in case you're asked. Evidence - it's whatever you submitted for your original application. Chances are they won't look at it, but they can ask. It is all redundant. But, you submitted online before, they need to verify the physical copies of the documents. It always seems that much more ridiculously redundant when you're in a legitimate relationship, but legitimate relationships take for granted how much fraud there is out there. One bad apple spoils it for the rest of us who are legit!

Just a heads up for when you guys do finally clear security and can rejoin your loved ones - as a permanent resident, you will not have an I-94 record to rely on. Once you become an LPR, the US no longer has to worry about your status and overstays. That said, if you plan to apply for citizenship under the 3 or 5 year rule, depending which you choose, you will have to provide travel history. I highly recommend getting into the habit of filling out a spreadsheet to track this information so you're not stuck rifling through your airline's app and credit card statements to rebuild this history and even worse - if you cross by land, trying to track that information down. For those of you who may be perusing the forum and weren't aware but are on work visas, especially those on TN's, ALWAYS pull your I-94 record to verify you've been statused correctly by CBP. Many people have been in a situation where they should have been statused as a TN and CBP entered B. You're not legally entitled to work when you're on a B visa. This has to be fixed. Additionally, people don't pay attention to the expiration because their visa is supposedly good for 3 years (depending on type), but the I-94 will be for less. This is often tied to the expiration of the visa holder's passport. The visa holder needs to get a new passport and present it to CBP prior to the expiration listed on the I-94. The officer will then extend the I-94 expiration to match the visa expiration. Both the incorrect status and the I-94 corrected extension can be done at a Deferred Inspection site.

Technically, they cannot deny him the right to work. It's considered immigration discrimination. If he showed his passport with valid I-551, it's a List A proof. He could have filed a claim with the Department of Justice. I realize in this case, it turned out not to be a big deal because he got his social right away, but it's a violation of civil rights and is important for other LPR's entering the US to know. https://www.justice.gov/crt/iers-frequently-asked-questions-faqs

US Citizens, including dual nationals, are required to leave and enter the US on a US passport. US passports are not delayed like they were last year. They are back to reasonable processing times of a couple of weeks. Expedited processing is even faster. Is there an urgent NEED for her to have a US passport or are you thinking you just want it sooner than later? As mentioned above, your wife will be applying for a NEW passport, not a renewal.

People who don't have a US birth certificate or naturalization certificate can still be issued a passport by the Department of State, thanks to derivative citizenship. It doesn't mean that the information regarding their citizenship status has been communicated from DoS to USCIS. USCIS wants to see USCIS issued documentation or verifiable Vital Statistics documentation, as a result. Birth certificates are cheap and everyone should have one. Have your spouse order one before your interview. When you get your naturalization certificate, file it in a safe place. They definitely are not so cheap to replace. As for copies versus originals, you live with your spouse, correct? So why is it such a big deal to bring the originals? It's not like you're mailing them into the black hole of USCIS. You're presenting them to an adjudicating officer who will want to see the original. In an obscure way, it somewhat proves you are in a trusting relationship and there's no strange fraud going on when you present these originals.

Texas common law marriage is not going to fly for immigration purposes. It's "too married" for a K1 visa, but not married enough for a CR1 visa. Get fully MARRIED. Head to your local county clerks office, get a marriage certificate, wait your 72 hours and have an officiant marry you and file the marriage license with the State. It doesn't have to be big or fancy, just legal.

Once the visa is issued and the greencard fee is paid, you can specify when you pay the fee, where it needs to be sent. It's embarrassing that the process takes so long that you, the petitioner, could theoretically move a number of times before the visa is issued.

For you, it won't matter as the petitioner. For the beneficiary, if they haven't received their passport and crossed the border yet, they can update the address information when they activate their visa at the border. If they move after they have activated their visa, they are required, irrespective of whether they have documents in hand or not, to file form AR-11 within 10 days of moving. The AR-11 should also trigger those documents to be sent to the correct address, should being the operative here.

You learned exactly what USCIS warns - never book travel or get rid of a property until you have the visa in hand. I don't honestly think the CO's have any real idea of timelines. They're just along for the ride, like us laypeople. Fingers crossed your case gets tidied up under a truncated timeline!

On one of your NOA's, there should be a code. https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.uscis.gov%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2Fimages%2Ftopic-landing%2FUSCIS_File-Online_760%402x_0.jpg&tbnid=4f3k5UWWaD4psM&vet=12ahUKEwjW-LXO162EAxXAFt4AHU1vBgIQMygAegQIARBM..i&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.uscis.gov%2Ffile-online%2Fhow-to-create-a-uscis-online-account&docid=s_mrEG7u8A2HCM&w=1520&h=920&q=NOA code to add a case to myuscis&ved=2ahUKEwjW-LXO162EAxXAFt4AHU1vBgIQMygAegQIARBM

If there is updated information, then yes, bring updates to your interview.

Typically a mailroom receives documents on the specified dates, but it doesn't mean your CO has actually had the document cross their desk and deposit itself into your file, unfortunately. You can send an inquiry. I wouldn't panic yet. Montreal moves at the speed of sloth.

@HoneyBadger26 your husband can still begin work even without the SSN. Read the I-9 form. He can provide his passport with his endorsed I-551 which serves as a List A document demonstrating both identity and work authorization (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). The SSN can be updated in the near future as you work out the details on where the card actually went to. If his employer has questions, they can refer to the USCIS I-9 Central page. The HR team should have received updated training on this. @Shades8 you are correct. There are no I-94's for LPR's. The information @HoneyBadger26's spouse is being presented is for individuals with work visas, not permanent residents of the US. As for the greencard, @Shades8, MyUSCIS should have the information. Also, you can further track on Informed Delivery from USPS when it's mailed out.

If you've been an LPR for 16 years, you could have naturalized any time from 11 years ago onwards under the 5 year rule, irrespective of your spouse's status.

It's the Government and this particular division is funded by the fees you pay. Absolutely no canapes lol

We will, but our mortgage is dwindling down so less and less interest paid = less and less of a return!

It's shockingly informal, considering what it is. I was a bit surprised. The formality up to the Oath itself felt more like a date at the Driver's License office. You'd have thought it would feel a bit more important. I find a lot of American things are like that though. I'm Canadian and Remembrance Day is an important and solemn day. The US doesn't treat Veterans day in the same way.

Ha...should have been 30 months. Underlying point remains - gotta be physically present to apply!

Excellent news! Watch your MyUSCIS account - I had my oath ceremony instructions from there before they'd even sent the notice in the mail. Neither ceremony is super formal. Smart business casual is fine. Hubs did his at the auditorium and yes, it took like 4 hours. I did mine at Gears Rd and it only took about 1.5-2 hours. No one was super formal, but pretty much everyone were smartly dressed and not sloppy.

Agree with @OldUser - you have to be physically present in the U.S. for 18mo in the preceding 3 year period before applying. If you are out of country for more than 6 months, it will be presumed that you've broken the physical presence rule. If you plan to be gone for 10 straight months, I would highly recommend applying for a re-entry permit. You are going to have to build a stronger case for ties to the US and a strong marriage. Your current evidence, as you stated it, is pretty weak. You may want to reconsider applying under the 3 year rule and apply under the 5 year rule. You need 3 years (913 days) of physical presence under the 5 year rule and won't be required to prove your marriage is legitimate and strong in the same way you do for a 3 year filing.