cafeconleche
Registered Users (C)
Ok guys, sorry for the delay in posting, but I've been busy. My interview wasn't that great, in short. They have yet to make a decision due to my physical presence, which is 907 days outside the US, and they are suspicious about me saying I didn't work abroad while I studied there because they want to know how I paid for my master's degree, so they will let me know their decision after review or ask for more evidence.
Long story. I got a Zip Car to go to my 11:20 appointment in Garden City. I picked it up at 9:00 in Park Slope and got there at 10, so I was around for a while. What a dump Garden City is. There's NOTHING there. Anyway, I was looking for a place to eat but there really isn't much so I had a McDonald's breakfast (yuck) and then entered the building at 10:40. There were so many people, and I eventually got called at 2! My Zip Car was rented until 2:30, so I had a late fee. What a waste. Officer Lawrence escorted me to her room, and I tried a little chit-chat to test her demeanor, and it was ok, but still a bit official. She was a caucasian (I think) woman with a Caribbean English accent. In the office, I took the oath, and then sat down in a tiny chair that set the mood for the whole interview. I was way lower than she was sitting, and it didn't feel good. She started with the speaking, writing and history tests. All perfect. Then we started with the application. For changes in address and jobs, she didn't want the new printouts I had, and just made changes. Then we came to travel, and she said that's a lot of days. She asked if I was studying abroad, and I said I did, but I was not back for good and didn't need to return there. She thought the cut-off was 900 days, and I said that I calculated 5 years' worth of days and divided it by 2 and got 913. I said it WAS close, which is why I retained all my boarding passes. I only had my most recent RP, but I had scanned my older ones and provided her with printouts of the entry and exit stamps that were there as well, but she said they didn't have my older RTDs, which surprised me. There were some kinds of copies in her file of some older RTDs, but they might have been copies I sent them. I don't know what the deal was. Then I spent 15 minutes explaining why I studied abroad (I am an International Relations major) and she asked for proof of everything to the point it was ridiculous. For example, I said that my professors at university here encouraged me to go abroad as it would be an asset for me back here, and she wanted proof that they said this. Unbelievable. I said I would do my best to contact them to see if they would vouch for me (I did this yesterday and my advisor sent me a letter immediately!). Then she asked how I could afford all this, and I said my family helped me pay for it. She might have found that hard to believe. I should have mentioned that I'm Indian, and we do support each other no matter how old one gets, am I right? Anyway, I said she was free to call my mom, who had written a notarized letter saying I was her dependent the whole time I was abroad. I also said I would send her some of my mom's bank statements showing she had enough saved up to help me. I will also get her to write another letter stating that my parents financed my education. Anyway, she was also asking me questions about where I went to high school and college here, and she wrote those down. She asked what I want to do for work, and we talked a bit about that. There was a hint of a smile when she spoke, but that came and went and it was in and out between a serious and a slightly casual tone. I felt I was being scrutinised no matter what. Anyway, I did my best to explain that I had checked with CIS before going, and that I complied with what they said I should do if I wanted to naturalise in 2010. Officer Lawrence wanted to verify things, including entry and exit records I guess. One thing I forgot to mention (and she didn't ask because we were so focused on other things) was that I had 2 trips to Canada adding up to just 2 days after I had submitted my application, and after my 5 year GC anniversary. So technically I'm at 909 days, but still, I completely forgot about it, so I'm worried about that. So, she said she'd have to verify things and let me know. I asked her to please contact me or my family if she needed information and before making a decision, and that I would do my best to send her some more documents based on what she said. I asked her flat out if she thought that I didn't qualify for citizenship at this point, but she didn't say I didn't. She said she just needed to go over this a little more, and she wasn't sure how long it would take because she had a lot of work to do. Finally, she went over the rest of the application, made me sign and date it and my photos, and gave me the form showing I was there, that I had passed everything, but that a decision could not be made. Huge bummer. I even forgot to remember her first name and title (something Adjudicator) and I should have asked her for a direct way to send her stuff or contact her. I left feeling really low, and I'm still down.
I'm not entirely surprised this was the way things went, though. I was a very close case, and I knew from the start that depending on who interviewed me, I could be in for a difficult ride, and there it was. I don't think she mentioned my continuous residence, though, which was interesting. Either that was ok, or there were other issues with my application that made mentioning my continuous residence unnecessary. By the way, I wrote a long letter explaining my reasoning behind studying abroad and had it notarised and I gave her that, which she gladly took. I am gathering documents now, including my mom's bank statements showing her savings, and her tax transcripts. I am also having her write that letter I mentioned. I will also include the letter from my professor saying he encouraged me to study abroad, and he is an ex-Ambassador of the US, and his letterhead says so, so maybe that's a plus? I don't know. I tried getting information from the Dutch Tax Service saying I never worked there and that I don't have a record with them, but contacting them is so damn hard. I'm thinking about contacting a lawyer and telling them my case to have them give me official advice on paper saying my reasoning was sound. I can send that to her too. I will also write another letter to do my best to convince her that I did my homework before doing all that I did.
In the end, I'm not sure where things stand with this. I'm frustrated, but it's both due to chance and my own actions, and I have to accept that responsibility and blame. I hope the IO was just being extra hard on me at the interview to catch me at something, and that she will review my case and a favourable outcome will result, but I don't know. I will send her more stuff (I gave her lots already, including all my financial ties to the US) and just hope for the best, and if it comes down to it, I might consult a lawyer and appeal later if necessary.
So there you have it...
Long story. I got a Zip Car to go to my 11:20 appointment in Garden City. I picked it up at 9:00 in Park Slope and got there at 10, so I was around for a while. What a dump Garden City is. There's NOTHING there. Anyway, I was looking for a place to eat but there really isn't much so I had a McDonald's breakfast (yuck) and then entered the building at 10:40. There were so many people, and I eventually got called at 2! My Zip Car was rented until 2:30, so I had a late fee. What a waste. Officer Lawrence escorted me to her room, and I tried a little chit-chat to test her demeanor, and it was ok, but still a bit official. She was a caucasian (I think) woman with a Caribbean English accent. In the office, I took the oath, and then sat down in a tiny chair that set the mood for the whole interview. I was way lower than she was sitting, and it didn't feel good. She started with the speaking, writing and history tests. All perfect. Then we started with the application. For changes in address and jobs, she didn't want the new printouts I had, and just made changes. Then we came to travel, and she said that's a lot of days. She asked if I was studying abroad, and I said I did, but I was not back for good and didn't need to return there. She thought the cut-off was 900 days, and I said that I calculated 5 years' worth of days and divided it by 2 and got 913. I said it WAS close, which is why I retained all my boarding passes. I only had my most recent RP, but I had scanned my older ones and provided her with printouts of the entry and exit stamps that were there as well, but she said they didn't have my older RTDs, which surprised me. There were some kinds of copies in her file of some older RTDs, but they might have been copies I sent them. I don't know what the deal was. Then I spent 15 minutes explaining why I studied abroad (I am an International Relations major) and she asked for proof of everything to the point it was ridiculous. For example, I said that my professors at university here encouraged me to go abroad as it would be an asset for me back here, and she wanted proof that they said this. Unbelievable. I said I would do my best to contact them to see if they would vouch for me (I did this yesterday and my advisor sent me a letter immediately!). Then she asked how I could afford all this, and I said my family helped me pay for it. She might have found that hard to believe. I should have mentioned that I'm Indian, and we do support each other no matter how old one gets, am I right? Anyway, I said she was free to call my mom, who had written a notarized letter saying I was her dependent the whole time I was abroad. I also said I would send her some of my mom's bank statements showing she had enough saved up to help me. I will also get her to write another letter stating that my parents financed my education. Anyway, she was also asking me questions about where I went to high school and college here, and she wrote those down. She asked what I want to do for work, and we talked a bit about that. There was a hint of a smile when she spoke, but that came and went and it was in and out between a serious and a slightly casual tone. I felt I was being scrutinised no matter what. Anyway, I did my best to explain that I had checked with CIS before going, and that I complied with what they said I should do if I wanted to naturalise in 2010. Officer Lawrence wanted to verify things, including entry and exit records I guess. One thing I forgot to mention (and she didn't ask because we were so focused on other things) was that I had 2 trips to Canada adding up to just 2 days after I had submitted my application, and after my 5 year GC anniversary. So technically I'm at 909 days, but still, I completely forgot about it, so I'm worried about that. So, she said she'd have to verify things and let me know. I asked her to please contact me or my family if she needed information and before making a decision, and that I would do my best to send her some more documents based on what she said. I asked her flat out if she thought that I didn't qualify for citizenship at this point, but she didn't say I didn't. She said she just needed to go over this a little more, and she wasn't sure how long it would take because she had a lot of work to do. Finally, she went over the rest of the application, made me sign and date it and my photos, and gave me the form showing I was there, that I had passed everything, but that a decision could not be made. Huge bummer. I even forgot to remember her first name and title (something Adjudicator) and I should have asked her for a direct way to send her stuff or contact her. I left feeling really low, and I'm still down.
I'm not entirely surprised this was the way things went, though. I was a very close case, and I knew from the start that depending on who interviewed me, I could be in for a difficult ride, and there it was. I don't think she mentioned my continuous residence, though, which was interesting. Either that was ok, or there were other issues with my application that made mentioning my continuous residence unnecessary. By the way, I wrote a long letter explaining my reasoning behind studying abroad and had it notarised and I gave her that, which she gladly took. I am gathering documents now, including my mom's bank statements showing her savings, and her tax transcripts. I am also having her write that letter I mentioned. I will also include the letter from my professor saying he encouraged me to study abroad, and he is an ex-Ambassador of the US, and his letterhead says so, so maybe that's a plus? I don't know. I tried getting information from the Dutch Tax Service saying I never worked there and that I don't have a record with them, but contacting them is so damn hard. I'm thinking about contacting a lawyer and telling them my case to have them give me official advice on paper saying my reasoning was sound. I can send that to her too. I will also write another letter to do my best to convince her that I did my homework before doing all that I did.
In the end, I'm not sure where things stand with this. I'm frustrated, but it's both due to chance and my own actions, and I have to accept that responsibility and blame. I hope the IO was just being extra hard on me at the interview to catch me at something, and that she will review my case and a favourable outcome will result, but I don't know. I will send her more stuff (I gave her lots already, including all my financial ties to the US) and just hope for the best, and if it comes down to it, I might consult a lawyer and appeal later if necessary.
So there you have it...
