top_secret

My wife heavily used the YouTube videos and found them incredibly helpful. They have hundreds of both civics question quizzes and full mock interviews covering a variety of scenarios. Another useful study aid is the vocabulary words for the English writing test if she wants to practice her spelling. https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/guides/writing_vocab.pdf

There are enough anecdotal reports to suspect there might be more strict enforcement against LPRs at the borders lately. It mostly seems to involve LPRs with criminal history in the US. Persons fitting that profile might have legitimate cause to worry and probably shouldn't travel. There might also be more strict enforcement against LPR's that might be suspected of abandoning their LPR status. But for normal law abiding LPRs it seems business as usual. Nothing to worry about.

Just that and a brief explanation in the description field that they had just naturalized and needed their citizenship and passport updated and green card removed.

Today my wife and stepdaughter recieved seperate e-mails saying that their citizenship had been updated in their Global Entry accounts. Checking online it does now include ther new US passports and their old green cards have been removed. So it seems all is updated correctly. So final timeline updating Global Entry online was... 2/25/2025 Submitted online 2/27/2025 Received emails that the cases were escalated 3/24/2025 Received emails that the citizenship and passport had been updated. So not the fastest way to update Global Entry but certainly easy if you aren't traveling for a month or so. https://www.help.cbp.gov/s/questions?language=en_US

Biometric Reuse notice under Documents tab dated today 03/19/2025.

We just had a similar(-ish) case involving a German woman that got some media attention here locally in San Diego. Whether what she planned to do is technically "working" or not is a fair question. However, IMO she should have either been bounced back to Mexico which would probably be no big deal, or else, allowed to voluntarily depart the US at her own expense in the immediate short-term future, which she seemed willing to do. Her spending weeks in detention at very exorbitant taxpayer expense is just idiotic and stupid. Whoever made that decision should have their judgement reevaluated. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/mar/11/german-tourists-ordeal-reportedly-ending-returned-from-us-detention

So, we finally got around to filing N600 for my 12 y/o stepdaughter. Mom naturalized last November and we got her and her daughters US Passports the very next day so the N600 has not been a priority. Our rationale for paying the ridiculous N-600 filing fee is that passports do expire and constantly need renewed. While we got her passport easily, it was not trouble free since the agent at the Passport Agency said our evidence of actual physical custody was not adequate and he was quite insistent we provide additional school enrolment records. Since our next stop was dropping her off at school after her passport appointment anyways, it was incredibly simple to get what they asked for and email it in. But I could very much envision that that might be some sort of major crisis if a lost passport needed replaced overseas 30 years from now and she had the misfortune to get an ill-tempered consular agent. $1355 is ridiculous but we want the forever Certificate that never expires and is 'almost' unchallengeable. Since it is a one-shot deal and the current political environment is.... mistake averse, I figured it was better to take our time, be cautious and make sure every detail was as correct as it could be. We filed online. While I am a big proponent of online filing, it is worth noting that the online N600 has a number of major discrepancies and ambiguities so anyone going that route should very carefully compare the resulting pdf copy of the N600 with what they answered in the online form. Go through filling the entire online form, then before filing download the resulting pdf, AND the N600 instructions sheet, and go back through the whole entire thing, line by line, like about three or four more times until it all makes sense. We used USCIS's own Policy Manual https://www.uscis.gov/policy-manual/volume-12-part-h-chapter-4 as almost a direct check list and guide book for the submission. We went straight down their list of evidence one by one in every category except for the notarized affidavits which we omitted. The USCIS policy Manual actually seems like the best N600 guide I found anywhere. In any case we filed online March 14, 2025. Mysteriously she received two identical pdf receipt notices under the documents tab within an hour of filing. They are addressed to "mother c/o daughter" so maybe they are going to mail a copy to each(??). No immediate notice for reuse or scheduling of biometrics. Online our local USCIS Field Office (San Diego) lists 13 months processing time for N600 though I have seen some people report much faster results. No rush anyways because she has her passport already. So now we wait.

I am literally totally on board with that..... EXCEPT...... there needs to be a very high level of control over the quality and exactly which immigrants should be increasing US population. Immigrants literally made America great in the past and are America's greatest hope for the future. The floodgates should be open..... with careful control. I am hopeful the current administration's inelegant approach is tilting towards that worthy goal.

We just filed this for our daughter. We interpreted this as a simple check "yes", because it is an indisputable fact that she has left and returned to the US on short trips since she first arrived. All follow-up dates, times, entries, exits, and other circumstances are left blank because she is not claiming U.S. citizenship at the time of birth and was not born before October 10, 1952.

If I were wagering I would bet most likely not from USCIS but you never know until you make a trip to the post office. Personally, I always lose a night's sleep fearing the IRS if I receive notice of signature required certified mail. Though, one time I received notice of signature required certified mail and spent the whole weekend fretting over what it might be only to show up at the post office first thing Monday morning to find an overseas airline for some inexplicable reason sent me a promotional frequent flyer membership card by international certified mail.

Does anyone know if an N565 could be filed requesting the name on the existing naturalization certificate be changed based on the preexisting marriage certificate as the legal name change document rather than a new court name change????? I hadn't considered that and can't find an example of that but it would be a way cleaner solution if possible. The N565 requirements for name change asks for a marriage certificate and the date of the marriage but does not offer guidance if the date of the marriage could be before the naturalization.

If you are only changing the last name to married name, it can be done same day because the marriage certificate is the legal name change document and the USCIS officer only needs to acknowledge that. They just change the name the petition was filed under. (but based entirely on the discretion of the interviewing officer if they accept it or not) So same day is possible with a simple change to married name, but never guaranteed. If changing to a totally different name, a judge is required and it most likely means same day naturalization is not possible. My wife totally blew this particular point at her interview when the interviewing officer suggested to her it would somehow be simpler to keep the same name at naturalization and instead change it on her passport application. That is of course totally false and it won't fly with the passport agency but my wife did not know any better, is still stuck with her maiden name she wanted to change, and now there is no way to change it except in the California courts which is a months long process requiring yet another giant stack of paperwork and costing $500+. Plus, after that, another round of passport application, trip to SS office, DMV etc. So maybe it CAN be done same day. But if not, option 2 really sucks.

Generally in the Philippines, if the parents were married, the child will have their mother's surname as a "middle name", which is rather different than the US concept of middle names. On her Philippine passport is the mothers surname listed under the field, "middle name"? (a field which does not even exist on US passports) Middle names are generally treated rather loosely in the US and ether get lumped in as given names or even omitted without much consequences. Probably everything is fine but it might need explained at biometrics or at the pre interview document check if you used any nonstandard Philippine usage anywhere. Her Philippine passport usage would take precedence.

Yes, you should include any tax returns you submitted with the application and highly recommended to bring even if you didn't include tax returns with the application, but not a strict requirement unless you owe overdue taxes.

Tax returns aren't even a requirement at all for N400. More like something it's good to have just in case since sometimes they might ask for them. Printouts of downloaded transcripts are ideal.

Saint Luke's gives no consideration whatsoever to any TB diagnosis other than their own. If another doctor proclaimed "success" it is probably something Saint Luke's would want to double check.

That happened to us as well. We figured the "action" was just them sending the case to the local office, assigning it to a specific agent, or some similar boring behind the scene administrative task. Probably no real actual meaning, but it is probably an indication they are actually working on the case which is theoretically "good".

What is the basis of her diagnosis of latent TB? A positive IGRA test but clear chest X-ray or a finding on a chest X-ray but negative sputum testing? The quality of whatever testing she had is an unknown variable. Basically Saint Luke's will do their own testing and could care less what any other testing said. If it really is actual latent TB most likely Saint Luke's would find it on the IGRA test and follow up with a chest X-ray that would presumably be clear if it were actually latent and everything would be fine. But that's all just guessing. The other issue is that by merely starting treatment that might trigger other protocols at Saint Luke's. I don't know for certain but I think previously that anyone with a history of TB treatment automatically triggered sputum testing based just on the medical history. Starting treatment early might increase the odds of successfully passing sputum testing if there were active TB but might cause extra testing if it was truly latent.

Sometimes it takes a day or two for the PDF notice to show up in documents so if the status just changed to "interview scheduled" you will probably get the date very soon. If it goes a couple of week and you still don't have a date you can make an inquiry on "Ask Emma" live agent chat.

Is there a PDF interview notice in the documents tab of your online account?

Was it just latent TB found by IGRA testing but she had a clear X-ray and she started treatment on her own? Or did she fail the chest X-ray, sputum testing and get refered for DOT at Saint Luke's??? It's a very important detail to clarify. If only latent TB it may not be a problem at all, but the details are important. Did they send her for vaccines and give her completed medical paperwork???

If you married in Utah then you need a Utah marriage certificate. A PSA Report of Marriage is considered a marriage certificate in the Philippines but it has no legal value in the US. You can submit the PSA ROM as relationship evidence but the Utah marriage certificate is the only one that counts to in the US.

An endorsed IR-2 visa IS a temporary green card as soon as he enters the US with it. No need to wait for the actual card. File for his US passport with that, plus his birth certificate proving you have legal custody and evidence he is living with you in the US.

Today we received an email from CBP including a case number and saying the case had been escalated. It says the wait time is currently 3-8 weeks. If it's closer to the 3 weeks it's fine for us. If it's looking like it will be closer to the 8 weeks we may still do it in person. Next trip is in April.

The church can hold wedding-like ceremony celebrating and reaffirming the already existing civil marriage in front of friends and family. The church cannot and did not perform an actual second marriage.