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Some advice from New Citizen
Yesterday I was naturalized and now that my journey is over I want to share some useful information.
1-Lawyer. If your case is straightforward (no arrests and no complications) you don’t need a lawyer. I had one and he did little except answering my questions and perhaps easing my stress. A friend of mine did it herself online and she was called for the interview way ahead of me.
2-Paper versus online. My lawyer insisted that it had to be paper filing. I think it had to do with the December 2016 USCIS online system disaster. However, keep in mind two things: a) paper applications get scanned and uploaded; b) the online system now seems to work better (as I said my friend did it and it was smooth). So, if you don’t have a lawyer, do it yourself online. You fill out the online form, scan your GC etc, pay with CC and you are done.
3-Travel before and after the interview. You can travel abroad as much as you want as far as you continue to maintained the residency requirements (30 months for the 5 years and 18 months for the 3 years) and don’t stay abroad more than 6 months straight (and even that you can argue about). I went abroad after the biometrics and before the interview. At the interview, I reported it. No problem. My friend went abroad after the interview and asked that her oath be postponed by months. No problem there either. Obviously, you need to have somebody checking your mail. Having a lawyer in that case is useful since they get copies of all your notices.
4-Expedite. Yes, believe me, you can expedite your N-400 application if you have a good enough reason. I did and when I had lost all hope to be done in time for my new job abroad I was given an interview. It was a lot on mental work and my lawyer did zero. First, I wrote to my congressman inquiring about the status of my application and the possibility of doing something about it. In a couple of days, they wrote back and said that my application was still at NBC and that expedite could only be done if I had exceptional circumstances which they didn’t think I had. Luckily, they listed the info, which I report here-below.
“Exceptional Circumstances for Expedited Handling: We recognize that exceptional circumstances can require special handling of a case. All requests for expedited handling are reviewed case-by-case and, when circumstances warrant, are granted at the discretion of the Director, USCIS. The criteria are as follows: 1 - Severe financial loss to company or individual; 2 - Extreme emergency situation; 3- Humanitarian situation; 4 - Nonprofit status of requesting organization in furtherance of the cultural and social interests of the United States; 5 - Department of Defense National Interest Situation (Note: Request must come from an official U.S. Government entity and state that delay will be detrimental to our Government.); 6 - Potential loss of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits; 7- USCIS error; 8- Compelling interest of USCIS.”
NB They say: “If your case is at a local office at the time you need to make your emergency request, please go to the local office in person to make your request. Please be sure to take all supporting documentation with you. If your case is at one of our Service Centers or the National Benefits Center, please call Customer Service at 1-800-375- 5283 to receive further instructions on where and how to send your request.”
However I took a different route.
Having determined that I might qualify under two of these criteria, I made and infopass appointment at my field office and wrote a letter to the director of that field office explaining my situation and appending all the documentation. I did not have much faith that it would work, but at the infopass they were very nice and said that it appeared that I had a case. They also wondered why I had not asked for it earlier, at the time of application (that is the question I would like to ask my lawyer). They asked me to paper mail the letter and docs. I did and I also emailed my congressman the same documentation asking them to intervene on the expedite. Then, I contacted my employer and asked them to support it by calling their congressman to call my congressman (different districts). Lo and behold, three days later the congressman office contacts me to say that my interview had been scheduled! The wisdom is that your congressman/woman and the infopass are your best friends.
5.Congressman/woman. They are a great resource and they have offices especially dedicated to immigration matter. Remember that as a resident you are a constituent and you have the right to petition the government (one of the questions in the civics). Take advantage of this right and opportunity.
Good luck to all
1-Lawyer. If your case is straightforward (no arrests and no complications) you don’t need a lawyer. I had one and he did little except answering my questions and perhaps easing my stress. A friend of mine did it herself online and she was called for the interview way ahead of me.
2-Paper versus online. My lawyer insisted that it had to be paper filing. I think it had to do with the December 2016 USCIS online system disaster. However, keep in mind two things: a) paper applications get scanned and uploaded; b) the online system now seems to work better (as I said my friend did it and it was smooth). So, if you don’t have a lawyer, do it yourself online. You fill out the online form, scan your GC etc, pay with CC and you are done.
3-Travel before and after the interview. You can travel abroad as much as you want as far as you continue to maintained the residency requirements (30 months for the 5 years and 18 months for the 3 years) and don’t stay abroad more than 6 months straight (and even that you can argue about). I went abroad after the biometrics and before the interview. At the interview, I reported it. No problem. My friend went abroad after the interview and asked that her oath be postponed by months. No problem there either. Obviously, you need to have somebody checking your mail. Having a lawyer in that case is useful since they get copies of all your notices.
4-Expedite. Yes, believe me, you can expedite your N-400 application if you have a good enough reason. I did and when I had lost all hope to be done in time for my new job abroad I was given an interview. It was a lot on mental work and my lawyer did zero. First, I wrote to my congressman inquiring about the status of my application and the possibility of doing something about it. In a couple of days, they wrote back and said that my application was still at NBC and that expedite could only be done if I had exceptional circumstances which they didn’t think I had. Luckily, they listed the info, which I report here-below.
“Exceptional Circumstances for Expedited Handling: We recognize that exceptional circumstances can require special handling of a case. All requests for expedited handling are reviewed case-by-case and, when circumstances warrant, are granted at the discretion of the Director, USCIS. The criteria are as follows: 1 - Severe financial loss to company or individual; 2 - Extreme emergency situation; 3- Humanitarian situation; 4 - Nonprofit status of requesting organization in furtherance of the cultural and social interests of the United States; 5 - Department of Defense National Interest Situation (Note: Request must come from an official U.S. Government entity and state that delay will be detrimental to our Government.); 6 - Potential loss of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits; 7- USCIS error; 8- Compelling interest of USCIS.”
NB They say: “If your case is at a local office at the time you need to make your emergency request, please go to the local office in person to make your request. Please be sure to take all supporting documentation with you. If your case is at one of our Service Centers or the National Benefits Center, please call Customer Service at 1-800-375- 5283 to receive further instructions on where and how to send your request.”
However I took a different route.
Having determined that I might qualify under two of these criteria, I made and infopass appointment at my field office and wrote a letter to the director of that field office explaining my situation and appending all the documentation. I did not have much faith that it would work, but at the infopass they were very nice and said that it appeared that I had a case. They also wondered why I had not asked for it earlier, at the time of application (that is the question I would like to ask my lawyer). They asked me to paper mail the letter and docs. I did and I also emailed my congressman the same documentation asking them to intervene on the expedite. Then, I contacted my employer and asked them to support it by calling their congressman to call my congressman (different districts). Lo and behold, three days later the congressman office contacts me to say that my interview had been scheduled! The wisdom is that your congressman/woman and the infopass are your best friends.
5.Congressman/woman. They are a great resource and they have offices especially dedicated to immigration matter. Remember that as a resident you are a constituent and you have the right to petition the government (one of the questions in the civics). Take advantage of this right and opportunity.
Good luck to all
All Replies (5)
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