check to INS/BCIS

C

chanakya101

Registered Users (C)
Guide to Naturalization (latest available on BCIS web site) states that

"You must pay this fee with a check or money order drawn on a US bank
Payable to the 'Immigration and Naturalization Service'. INS does not accept cash"

But it seems to be updated in 2000.

Could someone clarify the following please?
1. This is from latest instructions for n-400. Do we have to use INS or BCIS?
2. Is the check to be certified by a bank? I remember doing it for my I-140 and I-485
3. I am completing 5 years on 9/25/2003. I am planning to send the application form after July 1, 2003.

Can I take the check now (If it has to be certified) or it should be dated less than 90 days from 5 years?
 
Hi,

I have filed my wifes papers after my citizenship last month, BCIS returned my application because I sent checks. DO NOT send Check, BCIS accept only Cashiers check or money order by name of "BCIS" since March 03. Some how they did not update the information, I have wated one week because of this.

SV
 
Yes, I am very sure, they returned my application with in two days and highlighted in Fee discrepancies and mentioned that "Since Mar 03, BCIS no longer accepts personal Checks" Only money order and Cashier's check.
I have applied on May 24 but application returned on mat 27. I have sent back with Money order and waiting for receipt. Yes I sent checks based on the information from the WEB, But It looks like they did not correct or update.

This my experience..

SV
 
certified bank check

Certified bank check means, you take your check to the bank and bank puts its stamp on it. Normally they take $1 for that. Bank certifies that the account has the money to cover the check and that money is locked (not available for other purposes) for that check. This way
the checks (a) will not bounce (b). The check is genuine.

I remember my attorney specifically asking for this during my GC
 
BTW, I have applied in Dallas BCIS. I have filed for the Spouse adjustment of Status package ( Forms 485, 130, 325, 764,865 ..) after my Citizenship. I am very sure they returned because of "Personal Check" . I field my N400 last year Aug with personal check, there was no issues, but this time they returned saying that "BCIS no longer accepts personal checks since mar 03". I would suggest not to take chance. Just send as money order or cashier's check. I think they did not update the web site.

SV
 
Re: Re: Just send Postal Money Order.

Originally posted by JoeF
I don't think sending a money order is such a great idea.
Not that I'm overly suspicious, but a money order is like cash. Some data entry clerk could just take it.
Click to expand...

Money order from post office has space to write payee's name.
 
best

Best way is to send "Cashier's Check" to BCIS

and do not forget to send the whole application through "certified mail" & keep the receipt.

From my experience, I sent regular personal check to BCIS & they accepted it. Now the rule changed.

Why some BCIS service centers are still accepting personal checks and some are not. The reason is this:

-- depends on supervisor who is dealing with your application that time. If you work in an office , you will see that different supervisor follows different rules in some matters.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
JoeF

" Where did you get this from? Unless you have a link to some lawyer site, this just doesn't make sense. They have to follow what the law says. BCIS is not a "normal" office."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

From my experience,I know that if you talk to BCIS for specific complicated matter, you will get different answers.
Theoratically, BCIS supposed to deliver same answer,but practically it does not.


Same thing about the immigration lawyers.
If you ask for any complicated & specific matter about the immigration rule to 15/16 lawyers, you will get 3/4 different answers on same topic/rule. Finally, client/applicant has to decide which answer you like.
 
I am surprised

I am surprised that you think only private carries provide the proof of delivery. USPS has so many ways (and lot cheaper) to know that the letter received the addressee. There are acknowledgments, registered, express mail etc.
More details at: http://www.usps.com/
 
I am surprised

I am surprised that you think only private carries provide the proof of delivery. USPS has so many ways (and lot cheaper) to know that the letter received the addressee. There are acknowledgments, registered, express mail etc.
More details at: http://www.usps.com/
 
I am surprised that you think only private carries provide the
proof of delivery. USPS has so many ways (and lot cheaper)
to know that the letter received the addressee. There are acknowledgments,
registered, express mail etc.
More details at: http://www.usps.com/
 
JoeF,

Believe me. I have seen and used the mail systems in several countries in Europe, Asia and North America.
USPS is probably the best in the world. I never had a problem with it in more than 7 years. It is also one of the cheapest mode of communication (at least in USA).
 
Aristotle

Re: =================
No, you won't. If you don't provide all the details, you get different answers, because everybody has different assumptions for the things you left out.
In my profession, we have a term for that: GIGO (garbage in, garbage out). If you provide all the data, you get a meaningful answer, if you don't provide all the data or mangled data, you get a useless answer.
================
"It is the mark of an instructed mind to remain satisfied with the precision allowed by the nature to that subject and not to ask for exactness when an approximation of truth alone is possible"
---- Aristotle

Immigration is certainly not an exact science. There are no Black and White answers for most of the questions in the world. Even in
computers 2 + 2 is not always four (if you use double precession) :)
 
USPS

Most of the Law Firms in USA use "certified mail" & "Delivery Confirmation" via USPS.

It is cheaper & reliable- believe it or not

***USPS covers most of the location, but private carriers are not.

Private carriers can not deliver to P.O.Box
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Two big branches in computer science deal with such things.

(1). Artificial intelligence: How to make meaningful decisions even when the data is incomplete and inaccurate (where we don't have all the input) and where we don't have time to process the data completely (chess playing, traveling salesman problem). The NP complete problems are generally solved (in an optimal way) using heuristics.

(2). Numerical methods where we need to get acceptable results even when the precession of input and computation is less than perfect. For example first thing they taught is never to use a == b if they are real numbers.
 
AI, Chess Playing, NP hard, NP complete, Optimal Solutions, Analog Computers and more

1. Chess is not just number crunching. There are possible 10^100 possible moves.
2. Expert systems use uncertain knowledge and data to come at meaningful conclusions. Expert systems are AI.
3. Optimal in the sense: Optimal in the cost of solution and cost of the effort needed for getting that solution.
4. The accuracy of analog computers, their applications are not even toys compared to modern digital computers.
5. NP complete and NP hard are of more interest to theoretical computer scientists. As my pure mathematician colleague tells me " there are engineering solutions" for almost any problem.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top