GiannaGigi

Just got my citizenship in Yakima yesterday (I moved over a month ago). If anyone is considering a move, I can certify that it does speed things up

wondering how long it actually takes to get passports - has anyone paid for expedited processing? Did you actually get it within 4-6 weeks? How long did it take if you did not pay for it to be expedited? Does it help to bring a plane ticket, or does that only help if you do the emergency 72-hour before travel visit?

Congrats @MGMAand @Lilmama!

to answer your question first, I looked at the documents tab and saw my letter with the interview date.

I have a question to ask, too. How soon should my flight tickets be if I opt for expedited service? We will be applying for passports for the entire family at once and are thinking of having plane tickets first. Will that help them be processed sooner? Would 3-4 weeks be safe or is there a chance the passports won’t be ready? I have moved across the state and now live too far to come to Seattle for the super expedited service (3 weeks or less).

@MGMA just wanting to add, Dec/Jan/Feb applicants are left out. I’m early Feb and left out.

@MGMA I applied several years after I was eligible to apply and am still waiting. Perhaps the others waited much longer though.

@seahawk24 I ran into the same issue until someone here told me to say “info pass” and it worked. Good luck!

57 minutes ago, MGMA said:

@GiannaGigi You must have an interview by now. Let us know if you got any notice. 

@MGMA sadly, no sign of an interview yet. I’ve been wondering if they process applicants from different areas of the world at a different time?

My countdown view went away - anyone else? Is this just a glitch in my account?

@AlienLife congratulations! Mine hasn’t changed, but your news is encouraging!

@Kam🇺🇸 Let me know when you get yours! Mine says 28 days... but no interview letter is on my profile. I wonder if this means they’ll send the interview letter out in 28 days?

3 hours ago, abccba said:

I called the local SSA office. The staff said the turn-around time to receive the documents back is about 6 to 8 weeks. It doesn't sound feasible for me to do the name change on social secure card before the naturalization interview.

They give you a letter you can use until you have your new card. 

@abccba I can answer that you don’t need to change your name on your green card before the interview. The social security administration will probably accept the certificate along with your green card. After getting married I went to change my name with my green card in my maiden name and the marriage certificate and they changed my name, no problem.

2 minutes ago, abccba said:

I applied for N-400 on 11/24/2019 and got the notice for interview on 03/31/2021. The interview is scheduled at the end of April.

 

I'm considering name change but didn't request for it as part of the original N-400 application. What would be the best option? I seem to have two options, go to a district court before the interview or after. I haven't followed the discussion about name change closely in this forum. Could someone help summarize the steps? Thanks!

Congratulations! Do you mind letting us know What day your interview was scheduled in April?

I will let someone else summarize who knows better about name changes.

4 hours ago, Orm said:

I already want to congratulate you, because if you’ll be appointed to the Spokane USCIS field office, processing time for your N400 will drop from 18-21 months in Seattle to just 7-11 months in Spokane. Hopefully this information will made your day;) Good luck!

Thanks, I am excited but truthfully by the time we do end up moving it may be too late for it to make a difference. I am hoping to interview in mid to late June in Seattle and my application was submitted 14 months ago. I wonder once I move how quickly they would send me an interview letter though. It would be nice to just get it done and over with sooner.

3 minutes ago, mbalih said:

Oh, that's interesting..Are you moving out of state?

No, I am just moving to Eastern Washington. Was hoping I could move to that field office early so I wouldn’t get my interview letter here just before leaving or something. Unfortunately that’s not possible.

49 minutes ago, AlienLife said:

Say "Infopass" when you call. The automated system connected me to a Tier 1 agent after I said that word.

You are a lifesaver! That did the trick. 
 

To summarize, if you are moving soon you cannot change field offices until after you’ve submitted your new residence to uscis. Unfortunately that can be after you’ve already received your interview notice, in which case they cancel it and reschedule at your new field office  

However, you can claim your new place as your residence even if you are still in the process of moving everything over and are residing there only part time. Just in case anyone else was wondering

How do you get a hold of someone at uscis? I’ve been trying to call and the automated line hangs up on me and won’t connect me to anyone. It’s the most aggravating experience. I feel stumped! Any magic words that’ll get me through?

@MGMA it was February 5, 2020. Thank you!

@AlienLife it will be interesting to see if we get the interview letter on the same day, too. I would assume so.

3 hours ago, CdnRN said:

I applied July 31, 2020 and I’d agree with Jan/Feb ‘22 - at least that’s my mental preparation.

 

That said, my original completion date on USCIS was Oct/Nov ‘21 - this shortened to May ‘21 in January. I’m rather skeptical though. My money is on ‘22. 

Interesting, I applied in Feb 2020 and they had my timeline ending in April ‘21 but it got shifted to May ‘21. Based on the spreadsheet we have going here it looks like people who applied in Oct ‘19 waited 530-545 days, and so far those who applied in early November waited around 520-530 days. It may keep speeding up, who knows. Based on this calculation you’d be getting yours in December. I’m expecting mine in June-July if I stay in this field office area.

I applied in early February 2020, just now my timeline countdown got from “1 day” to “it’s taking longer than expected.” Based on what I’m seeing here it looks like they are processing early November 2019 applications, so I’ll probably have to wait another 3 months before getting an interview letter.

We are getting ready to move and would like to move closer to family in mid or eastern Washington. If I moved there my understanding is that they would transfer my case to the Yakima or Spokane field office, depending on where I moved to. What happens then? Could my application get processed sooner? They have already given citizenship to people who applied in February 2020 over there.