Delay in additional doc review

P

pittbull

New Member
I was interviewed on 1/10/06 in Pittsburgh and cleared the english + civics tests. However the officer determined that I have to provide additional documents to establish continuance of residence for a time period in which I was away from US. I mailed the necessary docs in early feburary and have been waiting for a reply since then.

I went to the local office twice (using infopass) during the last four months but was told that the concerned officer is "swamped with work" and has not been able to review my application, called the 800 number several times, sent two letters addressed to that officer pleading him to adjudicate on my application but.........well you can guess.

I have not been through name check yet (given that happens after interview), I guess that could still be another hurdle.

Now I am evaluating the options that I have:

1. Sit on my ass and pray to the great god of the immigrants :o
2. contact my local representative
3. send a letter of intent to cis telling them I plan on filing 1447b petition and sue them if they dont do anything

I am leaning towards option 3, what do you folks think?
 
Hi pittbull!

I agree, take more serious action. If I may ask, for how long had you been away? Were you in posession of a Reentry Permit when you left?

Cheers,

Legal
 
no u r wrong in this...name check is initiated even before the interview...so ur name check should allready been initiated.
just sue them before they change the law.

pittbull said:
I was interviewed on 1/10/06 in Pittsburgh and cleared the english + civics tests. However the officer determined that I have to provide additional documents to establish continuance of residence for a time period in which I was away from US. I mailed the necessary docs in early feburary and have been waiting for a reply since then.

I went to the local office twice (using infopass) during the last four months but was told that the concerned officer is "swamped with work" and has not been able to review my application, called the 800 number several times, sent two letters addressed to that officer pleading him to adjudicate on my application but.........well you can guess.

I have not been through name check yet (given that happens after interview), I guess that could still be another hurdle.

Now I am evaluating the options that I have:

1. Sit on my ass and pray to the great god of the immigrants :o
2. contact my local representative
3. send a letter of intent to cis telling them I plan on filing 1447b petition and sue them if they dont do anything

I am leaning towards option 3, what do you folks think?
Click to expand...
 
Thanks for the info query11, if the namecheck is initiated before interview should i assume it is already done? I specifically asked information clerk during infopass appt whether delay is due to namecheck and she told me that is not the case, and it is just pending officer review.

legalalien, I applied on the basis of 4 years and 1 day rule. I was out of US for more than an year with a reentry permit after being here for a while. I spent more than 4 years after coming back before applying n400. The interviewing officer acknowledged that I can count 364 days spent outside the US towards the 5year requirement for naturliaztion, however he questioned if I can meet the continuance requirement and asked me to submit documents that support that.
 
i applied the same rule while applying for naturalization,i was out of country for 2 yrs...
Your namecheck definitely would have been initiated before ur interview,but no one can say if u passed the name check,but tht really doesent matter go ahead and sue them.
what is ur d.o?

pittbull said:
Thanks for the info query11, if the namecheck is initiated before interview should i assume it is already done? I specifically asked information clerk during infopass appt whether delay is due to namecheck and she told me that is not the case, and it is just pending officer review.

legalalien, I applied on the basis of 4 years and 1 day rule. I was out of US for more than an year with a reentry permit after being here for a while. I spent more than 4 years after coming back before applying n400. The interviewing officer acknowledged that I can count 364 days spent outside the US towards the 5year requirement for naturliaztion, however he questioned if I can meet the continuance requirement and asked me to submit documents that support that.
Click to expand...
 
Hi Pittbull!

Interesting. Sounds like my case. I was outside the U.S. all of 2001 (on a Reentry Permit) and also applied under the "4 years and 1 day" rule. Hm...we will see how my interview goes. There seems to be a wide degree of latitude and discretion when it comes to naturalization interviews. What would not pose a problem at one DO might do so at another DO. For what kind of additional documents did the interviewing officer ask?

I will keep you posted how my stuff goes.... .

QUERY11: Did they give you a hard time during the interview because you had been gone for 2 years? Did they ask for additional documents? What kind of documentation did you haul to the interiew?

Cheers,
Legal

pittbull said:
Thanks for the info query11, if the namecheck is initiated before interview should i assume it is already done? I specifically asked information clerk during infopass appt whether delay is due to namecheck and she told me that is not the case, and it is just pending officer review.

legalalien, I applied on the basis of 4 years and 1 day rule. I was out of US for more than an year with a reentry permit after being here for a while. I spent more than 4 years after coming back before applying n400. The interviewing officer acknowledged that I can count 364 days spent outside the US towards the 5year requirement for naturliaztion, however he questioned if I can meet the continuance requirement and asked me to submit documents that support that.
Click to expand...
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Hi Pittbull!

This is straight from the guide to naturalization:

What if I was outside the United States
for 1 year or longer?

In almost all cases,
if you leave the United States for 1 year or
more, you have disrupted your “continuous
residence.” This is true even if you have a
Re-entry Permit.
If you leave the country for 1 year or
longer, you may be eligible to re-enter as a
Permanent Resident if you have a Re-entry
Permit. But none of the time you were in
the United States before you left the country
counts toward your time in “continuous
residence.”
Fortunately, if you return within 2 years,
some of your time out of the country does
count. In fact, the last 364 days of your
time out of the country (1 year minus 1
day) counts toward meeting your
“continuous residence” requirement.

So in your case an mine, there was no doubt that continuous residence was broken due to our longer absences. If that is so and the clock is reset from the time you reenter (4+1) why would he ask for proof of 'continuous residence' if the regulations clearly state that it is broken??

The way I see it, IOs - in cases such as ours - should be concerned with physical presence & continuous residence within the 4+1 time frame. For those who take advantage of 4+1 (gone for 1 year plus) the law I think is clear: Continuous residence is broken and this assumption cannot be overcome, unless you also have an approved N-470 in lieu of a reentry permit.

The temporary nature of the absence for those under 4+1 derives from the explanations on the application for a Permit to Reenter (where it ask for the specific duration & reason for the absence). So I would say, in case it comes up during an interview, it should be sufficient to document the reasons for which one had applied for the reentry permit.

Just my two cents.... .

Cheers,
Legal
 
Hi Pittbull!

The fact that you were gone for a year on a reentry permit is irrelevant for naturalization purposes according to the "Immigration and Nationality Act". Relevant for folks like us is what happened during the 4 years + 1 day which is the statutory requirement. From what the law said, what happened during the 364 prior to your eligiblity for N-400 filing is completely irrelevant. Here you go:

The absence for a continuous period of one year or more which causes a break in the continuity of residence must be one that falls entirely within the statutory period. Continuity of residence or a break therein outside the statutory period is not relevant to the residence requirements for naturalization. (Added)


Consider, for example, a lawful admission for permanent residence on June 1, 1953, a five-year statutory period extending from January 3, 1956, to January 3, 1961 (when the petition is filed), and a continuous absence from January 1, 1954, to January 1, 1957. While the petitioner has been absent continuously for three years, his absence during the statutory period has been for less than one year (i.e., January 3, 1956, to January 1, 1957). Consequently, no break in the continuity of residence has occurred, the petitioner's continuous residence is regarded as having begun on June 1, 1953, the date of his lawful admission for permanent residence, and he is eligible to file the petition on January 3, 1961.



On the other hand, assuming that the above petitioner had been continuously absent from January 1, 1954 to February 1, 1957, his absence during the statutory period would have been for more than one year (i.e., January 3, 1956, to February 1, 1957), the continuity of his residence would have been broken, and his continuous residence for naturalization purposes would be regarded as having begun on the date of his return, February 1, 1957. This does not mean, however, that the petitioner must accumulate a full five-year period of continuous residence beginning on February 1, 1957, before he can file his petition; rather, since he can be continuously absent for as much as 364 days during the statutory period without breaking the continuity of his residence, he may file the petition four years and one day following his return on February 1, 1957. Similarly, where the case is one involving a three-year statutory period, the petition may be filed two years and one day from the date of the reentry, after the extended, breaching absence.
 
Contact your Congressman and Senator's office and ask for their help and intervention. You may also send a letter to the District Director or the head of the local DO.
 
LegalAlien99 said:
Hi Pittbull!

The fact that you were gone for a year on a reentry permit is irrelevant for naturalization purposes according to the "Immigration and Nationality Act". Relevant for folks like us is what happened during the 4 years + 1 day which is the statutory requirement. From what the law said, what happened during the 364 prior to your eligiblity for N-400 filing is completely irrelevant. Here you go:

The absence for a continuous period of one year or more which causes a break in the continuity of residence must be one that falls entirely within the statutory period. Continuity of residence or a break therein outside the statutory period is not relevant to the residence requirements for naturalization. (Added)

Consider, for example, a lawful admission for permanent residence on June 1, 1953, a five-year statutory period extending from January 3, 1956, to January 3, 1961 (when the petition is filed), and a continuous absence from January 1, 1954, to January 1, 1957. While the petitioner has been absent continuously for three years, his absence during the statutory period has been for less than one year (i.e., January 3, 1956, to January 1, 1957). Consequently, no break in the continuity of residence has occurred, the petitioner's continuous residence is regarded as having begun on June 1, 1953, the date of his lawful admission for permanent residence, and he is eligible to file the petition on January 3, 1961.

On the other hand, assuming that the above petitioner had been continuously absent from January 1, 1954 to February 1, 1957, his absence during the statutory period would have been for more than one year (i.e., January 3, 1956, to February 1, 1957), the continuity of his residence would have been broken, and his continuous residence for naturalization purposes would be regarded as having begun on the date of his return, February 1, 1957. This does not mean, however, that the petitioner must accumulate a full five-year period of continuous residence beginning on February 1, 1957, before he can file his petition; rather, since he can be continuously absent for as much as 364 days during the statutory period without breaking the continuity of his residence, he may file the petition four years and one day following his return on February 1, 1957. Similarly, where the case is one involving a three-year statutory period, the petition may be filed two years and one day from the date of the reentry, after the extended, breaching absence.
Click to expand...

thanks legalalien. in my case the officer was concerned that I did not establish continous residence before leaving US for the extended trip. I was in the US for about 15days before leaving to finish my college and got back as soon I got my degree. His stance was that since you did not establish residence in the US before leaving you can not benefit from the 4year 1 day rule as that applies when a person comes back to US to 'resume' his/her residence.
 
sorry for the delay,
No questions asked,the only reference to india in my interview was when she said i know indians love their gc a lot :D ..............
btw i had been to india twice on rep...96/98(for school).
LegalAlien99 said:
Hi Pittbull!

Interesting. Sounds like my case. I was outside the U.S. all of 2001 (on a Reentry Permit) and also applied under the "4 years and 1 day" rule. Hm...we will see how my interview goes. There seems to be a wide degree of latitude and discretion when it comes to naturalization interviews. What would not pose a problem at one DO might do so at another DO. For what kind of additional documents did the interviewing officer ask?

I will keep you posted how my stuff goes.... .

QUERY11: Did they give you a hard time during the interview because you had been gone for 2 years? Did they ask for additional documents? What kind of documentation did you haul to the interiew?

Cheers,
Legal
Click to expand...
 
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