The archives tell me that there's been a brief discussion on the topic of traveling outside the US between citizenship interview & oath-taking, but I would like more specific info/advice from you gurus out there, esp. those who have gone through the citizenship process in Chicago. My interview date is at the end of September 2004. I have to travel out of the US on work 4 days after my interview. I'll be out of the country for 2 weeks. The previous discussion about this informs me that I will still have my green card and that it is given up only during the oath, so traveling itself should not be a problem, which is a relief. But would it pose a problem in terms of the timeline in Chicago between interview and oath? The citizenship office told me that generally the oath is about a month after the interview. Has that been most people's experience in Chicago? Is there a chance that I'd have to take the oath within 2-3 weeks, and thereby miss it by being out of the US?
I had initially thought of taking the oath on the day of the interview if given the option, but now I don't want to because it would seriously impede these travel plans that just came up today. My work-related trip is actually back to my home country. Even if I did manage to get a US passport within 2 days (which I understand is possible), I'd never be able to get a visa in that passport on time. So I'll stick to not taking the oath until later (though I really do not want to go through a ceremony)!
Thanks, all.
I had initially thought of taking the oath on the day of the interview if given the option, but now I don't want to because it would seriously impede these travel plans that just came up today. My work-related trip is actually back to my home country. Even if I did manage to get a US passport within 2 days (which I understand is possible), I'd never be able to get a visa in that passport on time. So I'll stick to not taking the oath until later (though I really do not want to go through a ceremony)!
Thanks, all.