N400 Interview Today - Washington DC Area
Apr 21st 2009, 5:52 pm
#1
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Thread Starter
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 53
N400 Interview Today - Washington DC Area
Applied N400 12 Dec 08
Interview 21 Apr 09
So I had the interview today and was approved. A couple of interesting points:
1. When I applied on 12 Dec 08 I had been out of the US for a total of 429 days within the last three years (18 months is 547 days). My reading of the manual led me to believe that it had to be less than 18 months cumulative at the time of application (for me 12 Dec).
Since applying I have spent another 107 days out of the US. I had documented it separately as someone here had mentioned that they were asked. The young officer interviewing me looks at this and says you have been out a total of 536 days, only 11 less than allowed. I informed her that I believed the count was at the time application, not interview. She handed it off to a supervisor and that person said ok as it is still less than 18 months - I don't think they knew if that limit applied at the time of application or at the time of interview.
2. At interview the officer informed me that they had an oath ceremony that day at 11:00 or 2:00, do I want to take the oath? Sure, lets take 2:00pm as it would give me time to get my wife and come back for the ceremony. The oath ceremony is in Fairfax Va. I turn up and they apologize profusely and say that we missed the fact that you reside in DC and therefore I have to take the oath there.
Now it does not really matter, but why would an oath that is "federal" in effect have to be taken in one court over another? But anyway, there it is.
Taking the oath would have put me in a difficult position as I need to go back overseas Thursday for my job and if I was a US citizen I would have been breaking the law if I travelled out of the US on anything but a US passport. You can expedite a US passport in 24 hours, but I cannot get the visas I need for work that quickly.
An interesting day - not bad service out at Fairfax BCIS office. All the interviewing officers seemed pretty chipper and friendly.
Regards,
Vince
Interview 21 Apr 09
So I had the interview today and was approved. A couple of interesting points:
1. When I applied on 12 Dec 08 I had been out of the US for a total of 429 days within the last three years (18 months is 547 days). My reading of the manual led me to believe that it had to be less than 18 months cumulative at the time of application (for me 12 Dec).
Since applying I have spent another 107 days out of the US. I had documented it separately as someone here had mentioned that they were asked. The young officer interviewing me looks at this and says you have been out a total of 536 days, only 11 less than allowed. I informed her that I believed the count was at the time application, not interview. She handed it off to a supervisor and that person said ok as it is still less than 18 months - I don't think they knew if that limit applied at the time of application or at the time of interview.
2. At interview the officer informed me that they had an oath ceremony that day at 11:00 or 2:00, do I want to take the oath? Sure, lets take 2:00pm as it would give me time to get my wife and come back for the ceremony. The oath ceremony is in Fairfax Va. I turn up and they apologize profusely and say that we missed the fact that you reside in DC and therefore I have to take the oath there.
Now it does not really matter, but why would an oath that is "federal" in effect have to be taken in one court over another? But anyway, there it is.
Taking the oath would have put me in a difficult position as I need to go back overseas Thursday for my job and if I was a US citizen I would have been breaking the law if I travelled out of the US on anything but a US passport. You can expedite a US passport in 24 hours, but I cannot get the visas I need for work that quickly.
An interesting day - not bad service out at Fairfax BCIS office. All the interviewing officers seemed pretty chipper and friendly.
Regards,
Vince
Apr 21st 2009, 7:19 pm
#3
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 35,082
Re: N400 Interview Today - Washington DC Area
Taking the oath would have put me in a difficult position as I need to go back overseas Thursday for my job and if I was a US citizen I would have been breaking the law if I travelled out of the US on anything but a US passport. You can expedite a US passport in 24 hours, but I cannot get the visas I need for work that quickly.
I dont' understand the part about the needed visas. What will you do *without* a US passport? And why couldn't you still do that if you did have a US passport? (ie travel out of the US on your new US pp, arrive wherever you're going the same way you are going to get there without a US pp).
Apr 21st 2009, 9:06 pm
#4
Member
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 14,049
Re: N400 Interview Today - Washington DC Area
V,
The oath ceremony notification letter that you're going to get comes with a set of questions to update your activities since your interveiw. One of the questions is "Have you traveled outside the Unitded States."
I do not know if that will once again update your time in v. time out calculation.
Regards, JEff
The oath ceremony notification letter that you're going to get comes with a set of questions to update your activities since your interveiw. One of the questions is "Have you traveled outside the Unitded States."
I do not know if that will once again update your time in v. time out calculation.
Regards, JEff
Applied N400 12 Dec 08
Interview 21 Apr 09
So I had the interview today and was approved. A couple of interesting points:
1. When I applied on 12 Dec 08 I had been out of the US for a total of 429 days within the last three years (18 months is 547 days). My reading of the manual led me to believe that it had to be less than 18 months cumulative at the time of application (for me 12 Dec).
Since applying I have spent another 107 days out of the US. I had documented it separately as someone here had mentioned that they were asked. The young officer interviewing me looks at this and says you have been out a total of 536 days, only 11 less than allowed. I informed her that I believed the count was at the time application, not interview. She handed it off to a supervisor and that person said ok as it is still less than 18 months - I don't think they knew if that limit applied at the time of application or at the time of interview.
...
Taking the oath would have put me in a difficult position as I need to go back overseas Thursday for my job ...
Regards,
Vince
Interview 21 Apr 09
So I had the interview today and was approved. A couple of interesting points:
1. When I applied on 12 Dec 08 I had been out of the US for a total of 429 days within the last three years (18 months is 547 days). My reading of the manual led me to believe that it had to be less than 18 months cumulative at the time of application (for me 12 Dec).
Since applying I have spent another 107 days out of the US. I had documented it separately as someone here had mentioned that they were asked. The young officer interviewing me looks at this and says you have been out a total of 536 days, only 11 less than allowed. I informed her that I believed the count was at the time application, not interview. She handed it off to a supervisor and that person said ok as it is still less than 18 months - I don't think they knew if that limit applied at the time of application or at the time of interview.
...
Taking the oath would have put me in a difficult position as I need to go back overseas Thursday for my job ...
Regards,
Vince
Apr 21st 2009, 9:14 pm
#5
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 53
Re: N400 Interview Today - Washington DC Area
Jeff,
I got the invite letter for the Fairfax Va oath ceremony (the one I ended up not attending) and saw that question and wondered the same thing.
It will be interesting to see if anyone here has the answer.
Vince
I got the invite letter for the Fairfax Va oath ceremony (the one I ended up not attending) and saw that question and wondered the same thing.
It will be interesting to see if anyone here has the answer.
Vince
Apr 21st 2009, 10:26 pm
#6
Account Closed
Joined: Aug 2002
Location: Kentucky
Posts: 38,865
Re: N400 Interview Today - Washington DC Area
The answer is they will recalculate your time in/out - since you must meet the requirements right up until the moment you take the Oath. If your time outside the US tips the balance the wrong way, you will not be allowed to take the Oath.
Ian
Ian
Apr 22nd 2009, 3:42 am
#7
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Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 1,131
Re: N400 Interview Today - Washington DC Area
Passport in 24 hours? I never heard of that. How much is the fee?
Apr 22nd 2009, 3:53 am
#8
MODERATOR
Joined: Apr 2003
Location: Phoenix, Arizona
Posts: 58,679
Re: N400 Interview Today - Washington DC Area
You have to go in person to one of the main passport offices in the USA for that kind of service. You can't do it everywhere, or by mail.
Not sure how much the fee is. You can try googling it.
Rene
Not sure how much the fee is. You can try googling it.
Rene
