WozAnon - NM

14 hours ago, Pinnacle said:

Yay! Congrats to you, @WozAnon - NM! I was looking forward to your update, so thanks for sharing. I'm glad your interview went well...the hardest part is over now. Earlier today I received a notification that my case was updated. Upon checking, I saw that the Oath ceremony was scheduled and a letter was mailed with the date, time, and location. It was about 3 hours before I could access the PDF (USCIS was having some technical issues), but upon reading it I saw that I'm scheduled to take the Oath on August 28th in Campbell. I was surprised by that but I'm glad you got some insight on what to expect from the IO today. Looks like we'll be having a big ceremony 🇺🇸

What is the address of the Campbell center that is on your Oath scheduling notification?

11 hours ago, AlenaNick said:

Congrats you two

 

im stuck at SF. Applied april 1st.

i wish I got san jose looking at yalls timeline haha

Thanks! I am sure your interview is around the corner as well since SFO is not too far off. Also, SFO has same day Oath. All the best!

32 minutes ago, Pinnacle said:

Yay! Congrats to you, @WozAnon - NM! I was looking forward to your update, so thanks for sharing. I'm glad your interview went well...the hardest part is over now. Earlier today I received a notification that my case was updated. Upon checking, I saw that the Oath ceremony was scheduled and a letter was mailed with the date, time, and location. It was about 3 hours before I could access the PDF (USCIS was having some technical issues), but upon reading it I saw that I'm scheduled to take the Oath on August 28th in Campbell. I was surprised by that but I'm glad you got some insight on what to expect from the IO today. Looks like we'll be having a big ceremony 🇺🇸

Thanks! Cool, I will also look out for a notification and expect to get the August 28th date then. See you there 🙂

41 minutes ago, Pinnacle said:

For @WozAnon - NM and anyone else following along, I had my interview at the San Jose office and it went well. I checked in 30 minutes before my appointment and the security guards were friendly and talkative. They then wished me good luck. I sat in the waiting room until roughly 10 minutes past my appointment time when the officer called my name at 1:15 pm. I noticed that other officers were checking applicants' IDs at the door when they called their names but my officer didn't choose to see my ID until we were seated in his office. During the walk to his office, he asked how I was, etc. He told me to remain standing and then had me swear under oath that I would tell the truth. Afterward, he did a lot of small talk and we delved into a bit of world history and geography. He's Chinese (I didn't get his name) and he told me about the love he had for air travel when he was a little boy. He had two miniature planes on one of his shelves and I remarked that I have about 4 miniature planes as well, although different carriers than the 2 he had. He spoke about his son who is going into his last year of college and how he wishes his son would cook at home and save money from eating out, lol. Not long afterward, he asked me if I was ready for my history test. I told him that I was a bit nervous but he assured me that I would do well and it would be easy for me since I love history. 

 

The first question was who wrote the Declaration of Independence? When I answered it correctly, the officer said, "yay!" He did that with most if not all of the answers that I gave. I don't remember all of the questions but I got them correct. One state that borders Mexico? Which war was Eisenhower in? When do we vote for President?

 

I had to write on the iPad "Lincoln was the president during the Civil War." I don't remember what I had to read 😵‍💫 😂

 

After signing my name on the iPad for the n400 form, the officer asked me a few of the yes/no questions. The ones he asked were about military groups, whether I ever said or wrote that I was a citizen of the USA, if I would bear arms if required by the government, if I was arrested for treason etc, and if I would abide by the Constitution. 

 

In the end, he told me that I passed and that I should be receiving a notice for my oath date in the mail in about 2 weeks. Two hours later, I had 2 notices in my account: Recommended for approval...submitted for quality review, and oath ceremony will be scheduled. 

 

I believe I'll take the oath in August since my green card anniversary date isn't until the end of July. I'm looking forward to it and hope to be able to cast a vote in this upcoming election. 

 

Best wishes to all of you on your journey! You're next @WozAnon - NM

Great and hearty congratulations buddy! I was eagerly waiting to hear your experience. Thank you so much for taking the time. I guess we may see each other during the Oath since I also complete my anniversary late in July. Let me know once you get your date. I think the next Oath in August is expected on the 9th if I am not mistaken.

On 6/11/2024 at 2:56 PM, Pinnacle said:

I applied online on April 28th under the 3 yr rule and my biometrics were reused. This morning I received notification that action was taken on my case. My interview was scheduled for July 18th, San Jose, CA. 

@Pinnacle Wishing you the very best. Please share a detailed account. I am up next on the 19th 😁

2 hours ago, Duggu said:

 

I am officially a US Citizen now.  Had my oath ceremony in the morning today at San Jose, CA .  Got the naturalization certificate with the name updated.

 

Received my passport as well in the afternoon from San Francisco Passport Agency ( no questions asked ). 

 

Thank you all for the help during this journey. 

 

 

Tracker Update 

User Name                 Date applied       Interview date         Oath date

🇺🇸 Lanzoni                   01/29/24       -     04/04/24 ✅          05/08/24 ✅

Sahar1122                    01/30/24       -     05/15/24 ✅           06/21/24             

🇺🇸 Laure&Colin          02/01/24       -     05/14/24 ✅           Same-day oath✅       

Youssuf                        02/01/24       -      Pending (rescheduled due to C-section)

Chelleyandaaron     02/01/24       -      06/04/24 ✅          Pending

🇺🇸 Winbig                    02/01/24       -      05/08/24 ✅          06/03/24✅

USAUAinCZ                02/02/24

thedtayl                        02/02/24     -      07/24/24

🇺🇸 Wisconsinbly      05/02/24      -     03/27/24 ✅           05/09/24✅

CollegeDropOut       02/07/24      -     05/17/24 ✅            07/10/24

🇺🇸 Duggu                    02/07/24      -     06/26/24✅            06/28/24✅

MrsOli                           02/14/24      -      06/13/24 ✅            07/19/24

🇺🇸 Tommy2000       02/14/24      -      04/10/24 ✅            05/02/24✅ 

BlackPearl9                02/14/24     -      07/16/24

🇺🇸 PhoenixNiro         02/15/24      -      05/29/24 ✅            06/17/24 ✅

YellowDuneBuggy   02/15/24      -      06/13/24 ✅            07/01/24

Elethiomel                  02/15/24       -      04/09/24 ✅           06/20/24 

Tunes                           02/16/24

alt blank                      02/16/24        -     06/20/24 ✅          07/18/24

CassJ                           02/16/24        -     05/30/24 ✅           Pending  

Woodpecker07        02/17/24        -     05/22/24 ✅            07/11/24

🇺🇸 ctrlplm                   02/17/24        -     05/22/24 ✅            Same-day oath✅

ctrlplm (spouse)     02/17/24

zen_nj                          02/17/24       -      07/13/24

Aur0ra                         02/18/24

🇺🇸 Brazibride            02/19/24       -       06/13/24 ✅          06/21/24 ✅

Minivatreni                02/20/24      -       06/10/24  ✅         07/15/24

mmv_1                          02/20/24      -       05/28/24 ✅          07/04/24   

🇺🇸 AndrewSeattle  02/21/24       -      05/21/24 ✅          Same-day oath✅

🇺🇸 Vamphog             02/22/24       -      05/29/24 ✅         06/17/24 ✅

koski                            02/22/24      -       05/21/24

johndott                     02/22/24      -       07/22/24 

tcolema3USA        02/23/24      -       06/05/24 ✅          07/10/24     

🇺🇸 Valmabe              02/24/24      -       04/18/24 ✅           05/13/24✅

Haydnator                 02/24/24

Jish&Abt                    02/24/24      -       05/23/24 ✅          Pending I-751 approval

🇺🇸 Jm06                     02/25/24      -      04/10/24 ✅           05/17/24 ✅

RmSean                      02/25/24

Theredcomet           02/27/24      -      07/22/24

Seiya-pegasus        02/27/24

Mr W & I                      02/28/24       -     04/18/24 ✅             05/06/24

famozna_lavanda   02/28/24       -     06/25/24 

Endless desire         02/29/24      -      07/23/24

Music_en                   02/29/24

 

 

Congratulations, all done now! Would you know if they conduct the Oath on a Friday or any other day in August at San Jose?

9 hours ago, Duggu said:

 

My interview was scheduled for 12PM. I reached around 11.45 am. Waited for 40 mins and got called in around 12.25. Total interview lasted around 25 mins, starting with civics question followed by reading/writing. Then IO went over my application details / yes / no questions. I had a name change done through my local court, after i had filed n400 application, for which i provided him the court order of name change. He updated my name everywhere  (computer/physical file in front of us)which took most of the time otherwise it would have been done in 10 mins only. 

 

In the end he congratulated me and told me that oath ceremony will be scheduled for Friday ( unless i want to delay it for any reason) . 

 

He asked me to wait in the waiting area to get the physical oath letter in hand itself. It took another 15 mins after the interview.  Oath scheduled for friday morning. Online account got updated oath letter immediately. 
 

Let me know if you have any other specific questions. good luck:) 

 

 

That's perfect. Just what I was looking for, take care bro! Thanks for your wishes.

36 minutes ago, Duggu said:

It went as expected. Passed the interview . Oath ceremony scheduled for 06/28 morning . 

Congratulations! Can you share your experience other than the civics questions. I am also interviewing at San Jose next month. Thanks!

22 hours ago, theflyhigh said:

Congrats! Do you have a pending I-751 application and what's your field office?

Thanks! No it was under the 5-yr rule. I am at San Jose, CA.

I am a May filer too. Interview on 19th July.

7 hours ago, happydoctor said:

 

 Hi! Could you please explain step by step how to do that ? What city destination in Mexico to choose ? Let’s say a person has an Oath ceremony on 6/20. When does he needs to book a ticket , when make an appointment with a passport agency , and when to cancel the flight ? 
Thank you .

It is peak travel time now. Should we be concerned that if we game the system, folks with genuine travel/emergency needs would not get their passports on time?

On 6/1/2024 at 5:56 PM, thelimey said:

 

5 year green card anniversary is in late June 2024

 

Filed N400 in April per 90 day early filing.

 

Had N400 interview this week (late May 2024 - 8 weeks after applying, and technically the first day of my 60th month of permanent residence) and the IO sent me down the hallway for a same day oath ceremony.

 

I asked USCIS officer at ceremony check-in if it was ok to be getting naturalized a month ahead of the green card’s 5 year anniversary. He said “don’t worry about it, you’re good”

 

There was no cell service inside the Field Office so I wasn't googling anything in the hour I waited for the ceremony. I took them at their word that it was no problem and I assumed it was all part of the 90 day early eligibility deal and I was just lucky as things had moved very fast. 

 

Then I get home and hit Google and start reading about the 5 years being non negotiable as it's in the naturalization law wording. Hindsight being 20/20 I wish I'd asked them if I could come back in a month and take the oath, but I didn't. So, here I am naturalized, with a certificate saying I "complied in all respects with all of the applicable provisions of the naturalization laws of the United States". Though one can argue I didn't because 4 weeks short of 5 years is not meeting the 5 year provision. 

 

I'm assuming it's not as simple as calling them up and saying 'hey, how about you give me my green card back for a month and then we have a do over?" Giving back the certificate would be essentially denaturalizing (which would imply I'm a citizen in the first place in which case, just leave me be... we're talking 4 weeks and by the time the wheels of government moved I'd likely be eligible) which isn't quick or easy. Unless they could somehow claim it as meaningless and invalid... but an oath was involved. That's pretty binding under the law. 

 

Question is of course what to do?

 

I called 2 different lawyers. Both said if you’ve got your certificate you’re a citizen. Don’t worry about it unless if ever becomes a problem which is unlikely. On the other hand both said they’d never heard of this happening. Not like there’s precedent or they have experience in this situation. 

 

I understand that the only remedy would be denaturalization if a court deemed that it was illegally obtained by failing to meet an eligibility requirement. Then I’d be a LPR again and have to start citizenship all over again. Meanwhile if I’d had a US passport in the interim I’d be guilty of “claiming to be a us citizen”. 

 

This is so frustrating as I’ve been by the book my entire immigration journey and right at the end I’m concerned a clerical error by a tired overworked human has jeopardized things

 

The only thing that gives me confidence is that I asked a USCIS employee as noted above, my IO approved me, the file passed a “quality review”. That’s multiple human errors if that is the issue. Which is unlikely. 

 

But the uscis doesn’t make the law. They execute it. And the law is clear about 5 years. Unless they’re now counting 1 day into the 60th month as eligible. 

 

I wish I was blissfully ignorant of the small print and was just happy to have got my citizenship. But I can't unlearn what I've learned. 

 

I’d appreciate any advice, thoughts, similar anecdotes

Just curious, which field office was this at?

On 6/9/2024 at 8:41 PM, FrogLadyBug said:

I filed my n400 a few months ago based on 3 year rule, marriage to my US citizen husband. I officially became a LPR in late 2019 via K1 and AOS route, and simply didn’t file for citizenship sooner because it wasn’t on the top of my list of things to do at that time.

My questions are around the presence rule.

 

Right when Covid hit we had a baby, a week into the lockdown. Birth was traumatic, baby went to NICU. Child ended up in lots of therapies. I had postpartum depression. After not traveling for years, none of my family having met our child, I started traveling with our child in 2022 to meet family and spend time together. My husband never came on the trips with us because he couldn’t get so much time off of work. We agreed that I was to travel with our child alone. So my travel outside of the US looks like:

 

- 124 day trip in 2022
- 29 day trip in early 2023
- 130 day trip in late 2023 to early 2024

 

Upcoming travel around 100 days in 2024, that I would fly back in-between, or cut the trip short for an interview if I get one during that period. I want to do this trip now before our child starts kindergarten.

 

I know they will ask about updated travel at the interview so I’ve added all the days up with the upcoming travel, and I meet the 18 months out of 36 rule. I have never spent 180 or more consecutive days out of the US. I file US taxes as a resident jointly with my husband, we live together. I’ve been studying online throughout this time. 

 

I’m starting to overthink. Will they think it’s weird I travel without my husband? In reality I have a really supportive husband, but I’m worried the fact I travel without him is going to raise concern. Is my spending more than 180 days out of the US in 2024 (not consecutively) a problem? Can my husband attend the interview with me? And my 50th question, should have I not filed n400 given my amount of trips taken? 
 

Thank you for taking the time to read!

Sorry to hear about your challenging times. Here are my thoughts as a fellow applicant in this process, I did not see any issues but I am not a lawyer.
- Your travel record does not seem to be an issue - no trips over 6 months and you meet the physical presence criteria as well. In any case, prepare to show proof of residency. That is all they would ask you in addition to a typical marriage based application.
- Spending more than 180 days out of the US in 2024 calendar year does not seem to be an issue by itself due to the time between those trips. That said, I would be judicious when planning these as well.
- For a marriage based application, I think the spouse is allowed to attend, you may want to check your instructions when you get the notice
- You may soon become eligible to file under the 5 year rule as well (If I got the dates right) which is relatively straight forward
- If it helps, get a legal advice without having to spend much to help reduce a lot of your apprehensions
Be sincere and truthful as you come across here and all will be fine. Wishing you the very best!

15 hours ago, AlenaNick said:

SF next door and so slow 🤭

SF may seem like slow but it normally schedules you for same day Oath. 

On 5/26/2024 at 4:01 PM, FriendlyGuy said:

No idea! My case is still missing on the website...

Did you try adding the case back in by specifying the Receipt # under "My Account" => "Add a case to your account"? 

On 6/11/2024 at 2:56 PM, Pinnacle said:

I applied online on April 28th under the 3 yr rule and my biometrics were reused. This morning I received notification that action was taken on my case. My interview was scheduled for July 18th, San Jose, CA. 

Congratulations! I applied a few days later and have my interview at San Jose as well on the 19th. Looking forward to hear from your experience. All the best buddy!

3 year is related to GC based on marriage, otherwise it is 5 year.

14 hours ago, Iris1954 said:

My spouse in scheduled to have his interview mid next month.  The letter from Immigration mentioned a list of things he needs to bring.  It didn't say anything about tax transcripts.  He is applying under the five year rule.  I do have copies of the last 4 years but not the oldest year.   Does he actually even need to bring these?   The letter never mentioned them.  Anyone know?

If you are applying under 5 year/3 year rule, you are expected to take the tax transcripts for those. Check https://www.irs.gov/individuals/get-transcript website to request for them.