Bluegrass Lass

Hi all,

Our AOS interview is coming up next week, on the 11th, and of course we're going through "what-ifs" and so forth. So we have some questions concerning addresses.

When I relocated for my job 18 months ago, I moved into Address A. Address A is still on my drivers license.

By the time hubby got his license we had moved into Address B, which is on his license.

We are currently living in Address C (recently moved 1 month ago), but neither of us have this address on our license. Hubby did not file an AR-11 since we knew almost immediately after moving here that we would be moving again (don't ask, it's a long story).

We are getting ready to relocate back to my hometown in a few weeks due to major employment changes, and will have a temporary address. We plan on using my mother's address as a mailing/temporary address until we find our own place in my hometown. Should we worry that our licenses have different addresses on them?? Should we try to take more time off from work to get our addresses updated to Address C, even though we plan on moving again so soon (I don't want to waste the $$ now and again later on)?? Or should we get our addresses updated to my mother's address before we actually relocate there? If we did that, then at least our addresses would match, but we would not have any evidence (i.e. lease, utility bills) that we have moved in with her.

We have our current and past leases to prove we live together, so would that be sufficient, or should we still try to make to the license office (who close way too damn early) to get our licenses updated?? Also, will they know if he has not filed an AR-11? Should we go ahead and send that form off even tho we're moving again??

See how this is rather complicated, or are we making mountains out of mole-hills?

Thanks for any advice!
~Jamie

corneydavid

My advice would be to file the AR-11. It does not cost anything and it creates a paper trail. Having just had my AOS interview I can tell you that paper trails are what the interviewers are looking for. If you have leases in both your names that will be a big help. I cannot read the mind of the person that will interview you, but the fact that the address on your driving licenses are still catching up with your rapid relocations does not sound like grounds for refusing you AOS. The immigration officials are human beings and are able to make judgment calls on the information they are given. Be honest with these people and you will get a fair hearing.

By the way, the interview takes about 30 minutes. I collected all the paperwork and filed into 3 catagories; "mine", "my wife's" and "both". It worked really well when the officer was asking me for pieces of paper. I could pull out the relevant item he was asking for. I suspect it also shows you are organized. Take photos as well. At the very least they will go in your file and may be useful later. I just printed them out from the computer.

Good luck and don't get too worried.

ian-mstm

As I recall from my AOS interview, I wasn't even asked for my D/L. It's probably a good idea to file the AR-11 just to CYA, but I seriously doubt this will be an issue for you considering your other evidence.

Breathe deeply... cleansing breaths... cleansing breaths!

Ian

sphyrapicus

Hi Jamie,

I'm not sure what the Kentucky DMV rules are but most states require you to change the address on your license within 30 days. Since 18 months has gone by, I can hardly imagine that this is kosher with the KY DMV. I'd get both of your licenses updated if I were you, regardless of the upcoming interview.

The law requires that you file an AR-11 if the move is to a permanent address. Temporary address changes do not require an AR-11. It is unclear from your message whether your current address is one of a permanent nature or not. It does not sound like you are returning to your former address so I would assume it is not temporary (in the sense you are returning to a former address as opposed to one that you are only going to be at for a short period - there is a semantic difference and one that you need to be aware of).

On both counts - the DL and the AR-11 it sounds like you are not adhering to the letter of the law. I would correct both issues pronto, regardless of the upcoming interview. If your hubby is stopped by the police, he could have his license suspended or worse. That might put a damper on the employment situation and it will also need to be reported if he decides to file an N400 down the line. I'd avoid these ugly "what if" scenarios by taking care of issues that the law requires you to take care of (again, regardless of whether you have an upcoming AOS or not).

Sphy

Bluegrass Lass

I understand this reasonsing Sphy. I would have had this updated awhile ago but I had to work unholy hours at work for the past 2 mo and couldn't get things updated. My question would then be, which address do we update our licenses too? Our current address, even tho we will be moving again in less than a month? Or my mother's address which we will be using while in the 'limbo' state of finding a place to live in the city we are moving to??

The place we are living now was going to be permanent, until both my husband and I received job offers that would require us to re-locate. We received these offers almost immediately after moving to our current address so I figured we could maybe skip the AR-11 until we had moved into a more permanent location. It sounds like you are saying that we should file the AR-11 even tho we are only going to be here for a short period of time?

I suppose I was being too lax in adhering to address changes on the license. To me, getting an address changed just isn't a big deal, and not worth taking the time off from work to get it done. The local offices have no night or weekend hours, thus making it very difficult for us to get our licenses changed since we'd have to take several hours off from work due to us currently commuting about 50 miles to our current jobs. <sigh> Guess we'll have to manage to get the address changed the morning of interview and hope we can get into Louisviille (an 1hr 40min drive) before our appt. time.

Thanks,
~J

sphyrapicus

Hi Jamie,

I understand what you mean about making the time to get the DLs updated. My MO during this entire process has been to walk the straight and narrow. I've tried to avoid any situation that could get me in trouble (including with DMV). For me, the hassle of getting the DL changed over is more than enough to compensate the flip side - having my license suspended, etc that may cause trouble down the line for naturalization issues.

As for the interview itself, again I would make every effort to streamline any issues that may raise a red flag. Getting both driver's licenses to jibe with your current address may be a pain - but it makes it easier for the DAO to approve your AOS. What address to use is up to you - who really cares if you have to change again? The important issue is to have it all set up to the DAO's satisfaction. After that, you can get to it when you get to it. But, I'd avoid a situation where your hubby is put in a position where he is breaking the law (not filing a timely AR-11 or driving with an outdated license).

Don't forget to also file the I-865 (a requirement of you, the USC). You have 30 days to do that.

The bottom line is to eliminate any and all issues that might cause USCIS to flag your case now or in the future.

You are not the first person to have moved and tried to change a DL while working full time. We've all been there.

Good luck.

Sphy

Noorah101

Hi Jamie,

Just a thought...maybe your DMV allows you to do a change of address on line? Check out your DMV website.

Best Wishes,
Rene

Bluegrass Lass

We're well aware of that Sphy. Our main problem is that we would both have to lose several hours of work because we work so far from our county of residence. And we can only go to the DMV office in the county of residence to get the license changed. Neither of us want to get terminated for asking for too much time off.

There are no services available online unfortunately. This wouldn't be a big hassle if we weren't in Hicktown USA, where everything closes by 4:30 and no office is open on a weekend.

sphyrapicus

What about if your license is suspsended and you can't drive to work? Or if your hubby is denied AOS? Far worse than missing a few hours of work...

I haven't heard of missing too much work as an excuse to break the law before. Sorry to sound like a hard ass but I think you're making light of an important issue.

According to the KY DMV site you have 10 days to record an address change:

Name or Address Change

Anytime you change a name or address you must get a duplicate license at your Circuit Court Clerk's office within 10 days.
The cost of a duplicate is $6.00.
Proof of residency in Kentucky is required.
Proof of a name change is required. (Birth Certificate, Name Change Court Order, Marriage License, Divorce Decree, or other legal document)

http://transportation.ky.gov/drlic/general.htm

Bluegrass Lass

I've never, in all my years, met nor heard of anyone that have had their license revoked/suspended for not updating an address. I think there is far worse criminal activity that would dictate such a sentence. At most, a fine for not updating an address. Maybe there are far more stringent laws in the state your in, but I've not seen that here.

Given our proof, I'm truly not worried that Scott's AOS will be denied because he hasn't updated his address on his license, but I do want to create less hassles at the interview. Let's just say that we have our reasons for doing what we've done so far, Sphy, regardless of what the law says. Updating an address is not an important issue for a citizen, but I suppose when it comes to immigration maybe it is a little more important.

When you are employed by an inflexible company, you do what you can to make sure you aren't let go.