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Dallas N400 Experience
USCIS Timeline. Dallas, TX 'paper' Filer. Dallas field office
Long post, but sometimes the details matter!
Took advantage of the early filing clause (3 months prior to your 5-year period) based on a family member application case.
Eligible to apply for Naturalization: 02/25/17(Resident since 05/25/12)
Application sent: 04/03/17 (I was lazy, should've sent it earlier)
Priority Date: 04/07/17
Finger Print/Biometrics letter: 04/18/17 for 05/01/17
Walked in for Biometrics: 04/27/17
Case status changed from "We scheduled you for a fingerprint appointment." to "We are scheduling your Form N-400....for an interview.": 05/04/17
THIS
WAIT
HERE
WAS BRUTAL!
Literally 15 months since the application was sent. Although this wait seems to be less for anyone without a Dallas or Houston field office.
Case status changed to "Interview Was Scheduled": 07/11/18
Interview Letter: came in a few days later with interview date for 08/15/18
Interview: 08/15/18, result: "Decision cannot be made"(see explanation below)
Case Status changed to "Oath Ceremony Notice Was Mailed": 08/27/18
Oath Letter: got a call the next day (08/28/18), went for oath the day after (08/29/18)
Passport Emergency Appointment: 08/30/18
Passport: 09/04/18 (Based on Travel date for 09/05/18)
Helpful Notes:
I set up automatic email & text notifications from USCIS so I'd get notified as soon as there was an update on my application. I also travelled out of the country a lot during the entire application process. I wasn't going to put my life on hold for a whole year, this is where I think those text/email notifications as well as this forum helped a lot. For example, I was sipping cocktails in Europe when a text came in telling me my interview was scheduled. I was scheduled to be in Europe for 2 weeks so I panicked at first. But looking at other timeline experiences here, it was fairly obvious interviews were normally scheduled a month after you receive the notification. So I continued my trip and returned 2 weeks after to find the interview was scheduled for roughly a month after the notification.
Another note, name changes seem to delay applications dramatically as other people have said. It's probably easier to do the name change after you've gotten your passport.
Biometrics: 04/27/17
I was going to be away for my initial Biometrics appointment and didn't want to risk rescheduling so I just showed up to the place when I got the letter, explained my situation, and the security guard told me to come towards end of day when they're less busy and they'll let me do my biometrics. So technically, even if your biometrics is scheduled a month out, you can show up earlier and arguably expedite your application for what it's worth.
The interview: 10.45AM 08/15/18 USCIS 6500 Campus Circle Drive West, Irving (Same for Oath Ceremony & Info pass appointments in Dallas)
First things first, I found out that google maps was pointing to an old location nearby(not sure this if this for security purposes). I spent about 10mins trying to find the actual office. Basically, once you get to the wrong address, they have signs on the road that point you to the right building. When you walk in, you need to go through security, I'd recommend leaving laptops etc in the car, just bring the printed files you need. The place was packed when I walked in, spent about an hour before my number was called. Interviewing officer called me up and led me to his office and had me do the statement of oath while standing. Interview was relaxed, we spent half the time talking about random stuff. He basically went through my entire form and asked me every question from there. He gave me the 6 civics question which are randomized for each person. Then proceeded with the english test by asking me to read & write "We pay taxes in the United States".
In general, interview went great, passed everything, the only thing that came up was I'd moved apartments within the past year which I also updated on the USCIS website. After the interview, he said everything was good but he'd ticked the "Decision cannot be made" box. I proceeded to inquire, and he said he just needed to verify my current address and the date I moved in etc. He explained if he put an approval on it, there would be no way for him to access my application again, and if they got the wrong address he'd be locked out of the system to change it. One other thing to note is; I really wanted to get the same day oath ceremony as I had to travel on the first week of Sept. He said they were completely booked out for oath ceremonies and mine would most likely be scheduled towards the end of Sept.
Oath Ceremony: 1.30PM 08/29/18
Even though I had set my mind for going to an oath towards the end of Sept like the IO told me, my status changed to "Oath Ceremony Notice Was Mailed" on 08/27/18. The very next day, I missed a call from a strange number, I did a reverse-lookup and it was from USCIS. So I came on this forum to find out they had been calling a few people in Dallas to show up for their Oath Ceremony the very next day. Tried to call the number back but it was a scrambled line, knowing there was no way I'd miss this chance, I went straight to the USCIS office and told them I'd received a call saying to show up for my ceremony. The security guard took my green card and went to go look me up, he later came back and said I was indeed scheduled for Oath the next day at 1.15pm, he also said I didn't need the oath letter which still hadn't shown up. Showed up to oath the next day 45mins early(this was a waste of time as they didn't call us in until 1.20pm in no particular order). We lined up, filled out a basic form asking if you'd been out the country, committed a crime since interview etc, then they took our green cards and sat us down for the ceremony. After that, they played a few videos, one from the current president, and then handed us out Naturalization certificate, done! As soon as I finished, there were people giving out forms for voting registration, I went straight there and registered because this was one of my top priorities.
Passport Appointment: 11AM 08/30/18
I scheduled my passport appointment as soon as I had a concrete Oath ceremony date. I called National Passport Information Center at 1-877-487-2778, and told them I needed to travel within 2 weeks(Sept 5th) and they gave me the earliest appointment available in my jurisdiction. Had to show proof of travel, 1 passport photo, Naturalization Cert(inc photocopies), ID(in photocopies). The lady told me they process expedited passports based on travel dates, so technically I could get it the same day if it was needed.
Happy to answer any questions, as this forum gave me a lot of insight. Also, good luck to everyone else. IMHO, just keep an eye on this forum and go about your normal day lives while waiting for an update.
Long post, but sometimes the details matter!
Took advantage of the early filing clause (3 months prior to your 5-year period) based on a family member application case.
Eligible to apply for Naturalization: 02/25/17(Resident since 05/25/12)
Application sent: 04/03/17 (I was lazy, should've sent it earlier)
Priority Date: 04/07/17
Finger Print/Biometrics letter: 04/18/17 for 05/01/17
Walked in for Biometrics: 04/27/17
Case status changed from "We scheduled you for a fingerprint appointment." to "We are scheduling your Form N-400....for an interview.": 05/04/17
THIS
WAIT
HERE
WAS BRUTAL!
Literally 15 months since the application was sent. Although this wait seems to be less for anyone without a Dallas or Houston field office.
Case status changed to "Interview Was Scheduled": 07/11/18
Interview Letter: came in a few days later with interview date for 08/15/18
Interview: 08/15/18, result: "Decision cannot be made"(see explanation below)
Case Status changed to "Oath Ceremony Notice Was Mailed": 08/27/18
Oath Letter: got a call the next day (08/28/18), went for oath the day after (08/29/18)
Passport Emergency Appointment: 08/30/18
Passport: 09/04/18 (Based on Travel date for 09/05/18)
Helpful Notes:
I set up automatic email & text notifications from USCIS so I'd get notified as soon as there was an update on my application. I also travelled out of the country a lot during the entire application process. I wasn't going to put my life on hold for a whole year, this is where I think those text/email notifications as well as this forum helped a lot. For example, I was sipping cocktails in Europe when a text came in telling me my interview was scheduled. I was scheduled to be in Europe for 2 weeks so I panicked at first. But looking at other timeline experiences here, it was fairly obvious interviews were normally scheduled a month after you receive the notification. So I continued my trip and returned 2 weeks after to find the interview was scheduled for roughly a month after the notification.
Another note, name changes seem to delay applications dramatically as other people have said. It's probably easier to do the name change after you've gotten your passport.
Biometrics: 04/27/17
I was going to be away for my initial Biometrics appointment and didn't want to risk rescheduling so I just showed up to the place when I got the letter, explained my situation, and the security guard told me to come towards end of day when they're less busy and they'll let me do my biometrics. So technically, even if your biometrics is scheduled a month out, you can show up earlier and arguably expedite your application for what it's worth.
The interview: 10.45AM 08/15/18 USCIS 6500 Campus Circle Drive West, Irving (Same for Oath Ceremony & Info pass appointments in Dallas)
First things first, I found out that google maps was pointing to an old location nearby(not sure this if this for security purposes). I spent about 10mins trying to find the actual office. Basically, once you get to the wrong address, they have signs on the road that point you to the right building. When you walk in, you need to go through security, I'd recommend leaving laptops etc in the car, just bring the printed files you need. The place was packed when I walked in, spent about an hour before my number was called. Interviewing officer called me up and led me to his office and had me do the statement of oath while standing. Interview was relaxed, we spent half the time talking about random stuff. He basically went through my entire form and asked me every question from there. He gave me the 6 civics question which are randomized for each person. Then proceeded with the english test by asking me to read & write "We pay taxes in the United States".
In general, interview went great, passed everything, the only thing that came up was I'd moved apartments within the past year which I also updated on the USCIS website. After the interview, he said everything was good but he'd ticked the "Decision cannot be made" box. I proceeded to inquire, and he said he just needed to verify my current address and the date I moved in etc. He explained if he put an approval on it, there would be no way for him to access my application again, and if they got the wrong address he'd be locked out of the system to change it. One other thing to note is; I really wanted to get the same day oath ceremony as I had to travel on the first week of Sept. He said they were completely booked out for oath ceremonies and mine would most likely be scheduled towards the end of Sept.
Oath Ceremony: 1.30PM 08/29/18
Even though I had set my mind for going to an oath towards the end of Sept like the IO told me, my status changed to "Oath Ceremony Notice Was Mailed" on 08/27/18. The very next day, I missed a call from a strange number, I did a reverse-lookup and it was from USCIS. So I came on this forum to find out they had been calling a few people in Dallas to show up for their Oath Ceremony the very next day. Tried to call the number back but it was a scrambled line, knowing there was no way I'd miss this chance, I went straight to the USCIS office and told them I'd received a call saying to show up for my ceremony. The security guard took my green card and went to go look me up, he later came back and said I was indeed scheduled for Oath the next day at 1.15pm, he also said I didn't need the oath letter which still hadn't shown up. Showed up to oath the next day 45mins early(this was a waste of time as they didn't call us in until 1.20pm in no particular order). We lined up, filled out a basic form asking if you'd been out the country, committed a crime since interview etc, then they took our green cards and sat us down for the ceremony. After that, they played a few videos, one from the current president, and then handed us out Naturalization certificate, done! As soon as I finished, there were people giving out forms for voting registration, I went straight there and registered because this was one of my top priorities.
Passport Appointment: 11AM 08/30/18
I scheduled my passport appointment as soon as I had a concrete Oath ceremony date. I called National Passport Information Center at 1-877-487-2778, and told them I needed to travel within 2 weeks(Sept 5th) and they gave me the earliest appointment available in my jurisdiction. Had to show proof of travel, 1 passport photo, Naturalization Cert(inc photocopies), ID(in photocopies). The lady told me they process expedited passports based on travel dates, so technically I could get it the same day if it was needed.
Happy to answer any questions, as this forum gave me a lot of insight. Also, good luck to everyone else. IMHO, just keep an eye on this forum and go about your normal day lives while waiting for an update.
All Replies (11)
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