Interview in Chicago---Name Check problem

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danp

Registered Users (C)
I had my interview yesterday and they told me my name check is pending...
What is this new thing?

Why did they send the interview letter if the name check is still pending?

Please shed some light here...

I have also requested for name Change....

They said I have passed the history and English test...but no Congratulations!!!!

Anybody in the same boat?

Dan
 
We're in the same boat

I had my interview on May 12, 2005. Name check pending since then. I'm from Chicago. Do you have a common name cos i don't think my name is common.
 
same here

Had my interview in Chicago today. Cleared the interview, but background check
is still pending. No idea how long that might take.

PD: 3/11/05
FD: 4/29/05
Interview: 8/4/05
 
It could take few weeks, few months or few years. It depends on how lucky you are. I've been waiting for 3 months.
 
Another friend ...in the same boat

What is going on....Why do they send out the interview letters...when still some work is pending......When my friend asked...the lady said that everybody waits like this after the interview. Is this true?
 
Yes, that is true, and thanks god that you did the interview already because now you have a legal ground to get naturalized within 120 days after the interview.

If CIS change their procedure and mandate the name check to be completed before doing the interview, then your case could be delayed until the next decade and you can do nothing about it.

Look at the name check discussion for more information

Cheers
Steve
 
Any update?

Any update from anyone in Chicago waiting for their name check to clear? It's been more than 5 months since my interview in early August, and I haven't heard anything. I haven't made any enquiries either. Does it help to contact INS and/or a congressman, or is it that they can't really do much and one should just wait?
 
I am in the same situation (but I am in Virginia, not Chicago).

I think the way USCIS handles the background check situation is absurd and stupid. They should not interview a person until they have finished all their work, the interview should be the last step. This way, applicants can have reasonable expectations. What is the point of interviewing a person if the background check is still pending? But again, being reasonable is not the USCIS's strong suit.

Walter
 
I had my interview yesterday in Chicago and I think everything is okay. I passed the civic questions and so on. I then received a letter saying, "Congratulations, you are recommended for citizenship.....". I think that means that I am okay. Just keep pursing answers like Publicus did. That's the only way you are going to get anywhere with these people. I wish you the best of luck with everything.
 
Congrats Irishalien,
The "Congratulations, you are recommended for citizenship.....". wording in the form is the last step b4 the oath letter, but can you please share your interview experience?

Thanks
 
Foreverafter......it was very easy.
-They called me in about an hour late, but I was prepared with magazines.
-She called me name, I followed her to the office. Before I sat down, she gave me the, "Do you promise to tell the truth......".
-She told me to sit, and then asked for my Green Card and Drivers License.
-As I am getting those out, she start asking me the civic question. She asks 6, I presume I got them right.
-She then starts going through my application. (They had my wrong year of birth, but she says its no problem). She asks if I have ever been arrested, been part of a terrorist organization, would I defend my country etc...
-She then asks me to sign my photos and that was it.
-No more than 10 minutes I was in and out.

Don't fret my friend. It was a piece of cake. Good luck.
 
name check still pending

I had called the CIS 800 number a month ago to enquire about my application as I had not heard anything since my interview in early August. The lady on the phone took down all my information and said she will submit an enquiry and that I should get a reply in the mail in 30 days. Today I did receive a letter from the CIS Chicago office saying that my name check is still pending, and if I don't hear anything in another 6 months, I should call them again. :(
 
jow said:
I had called the CIS 800 number a month ago to enquire about my application as I had not heard anything since my interview in early August. The lady on the phone took down all my information and said she will submit an enquiry and that I should get a reply in the mail in 30 days. Today I did receive a letter from the CIS Chicago office saying that my name check is still pending, and if I don't hear anything in another 6 months, I should call them again. :(
Click to expand...

Sue them ;)
 
exactly in the same boat (but longer)

This is my experience with Chicago center (ongoing). I applied in October 2003, fingerprints - December 2003, interview scheduled for May 2004. Not bad, I thought. Much faster than I expected. The interview was no sweat. The questions are the same ones as in the study manual. Some questions about my application. Two questions about my desire to serve in the US Army if there is a need.

And then... The officer congratulates me on passing this part of the intervew, but unfortunately... um... the name check hasn't been cleared yet. So, it'll be two years this May. I hope it doesn't happen to you. And I do know several people, who didn't have any problems (also in Chicago), but actually got naturalized extremely fast. Hope this will be your case too.


This is what I've done to remedy (with no effect) my case:

1. got help from representative (Rahm Emmanuel). He was helpful, sent monthly inquiries to the INS, and they replied with automated letters - it's beyond their control, outside agencies are conducting the check and all that bull. The letters were the same every month, so I got to memorize them.

2. infopass interview. That was definitely time wasted. An official with an attitude read outloud THAT SAME LETTER to me, which I already knew by heart. The situation was absolutely ridiculous, as he was reading to me from the letter and refused to answer questions, for example:

Clerk: "Please, understand, that it may take more than 6 mohths to conduct your name check".
I: "But it has been a year. What do I do in this case?"
Clerk: "Like I said, PLEASE, understand that it may take more than 6 months to conduct your name check..."

You get the picture. Of course, he didn't answer a single question. It was like talking to a parrot in a cage, only this parrot had a lot of attitude, and I had no rights at all. He yelled "Next!", and that was my queue to leave.

That was pretty humiliating, and I, like many people, decided to wait with the hope that sooner or later the name check will be completed. But, judging by the posts on this site, in this particular case (name check pending) - waiting doesn't produce any results. If you don't press, NOTHING happens. Some people on this site have been waiting longer than I have.

Some suggest suing the INS. I'll read some more on this site before deciding what to do.

I wish we could combine forces and do something productive. Write a collective letter or something.
 
NameCheck! said:
I had my interview on May 12, 2005. Name check pending since then. I'm from Chicago. Do you have a common name cos i don't think my name is common.
Click to expand...
My lawyer said it happens to common names. But my name is very uncommon. The lawyer said: "It's just tough luck then."
 
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