Hi All!
Just wanted to post my interview experience in Garden City on 5/20/04. My interview notice said to be there no more than 30 minutes earlier than my appointment time (7:00 A.M.).
I got there by about 6:35 A.M. and had no problem with parking. The building wasn't open yet and there was a small line forming. Around 6:55 A.M., we all got herded inside for a security check. Relatives/Friends of applicants were asked to wait in the large waiting room on the first floor and all applicants were asked to go to the smaller second floor waiting room.
Once we got upstairs, we were asked to drop our notice letter in a basket and take a seat. Take something to read or some music to listen to. Once you are seated, 5-6 interviewing officers will come by, pick up notice letters at random and call out names in an equally random fashion. Don't worry if people who came after you are called before you - there is no apparent pattern to the way people are called in for their interview.
At about 8:20 A.M., an officer called my name and we went into the office.
In case people don't remember or know from my previous posts, I had lived in India from 1995 to 1998. I had a reentry permit for the first two years. In the end of 1997, I went in for my first citizenship interview and was rejected due to lack of physical presence. In 1998, I was supposed to return to the USA but delays in my college exams in India resulted in me flying back and forth in 1998 in order to maintain my GC while I tried to finish up my commitments in India. I reentered the United States permanently in Feb 1999.
To compound this situation, one of my trips in 1998 was not stamped in my passport. The only proof I had was the itinerary that my travel agent was able to scrounge up for me.
In order to prove I had maintained ties to the USA during my stay in India, I had made copies of my parents' tax returns and had a 1722 letter ready.
1) The officer asked me to stand and swear to tell the truth. He asked me for my greencard and passport and looked at them for a few seconds before returning it to me. I also gave him a color photocopy of my greencard because I had received a notice that the photocopy I had sent in with my application was not clear.
2) He then asked me if I wanted to change my name (which I did not).
3) He asked me if I was married, had any children, had any arrests or pending deportation proceedings against me.
4) He looked at my trips briefly and mentioned that he saw in my file that I was rejected in 1997 due to excessive time away from the USA. He asked me if I had travelled anywhere since I filed my application (I had not). He did not ask me for the 1722's I had or anything about my trips in 1998.
5) He asked me if I still lived at the address which I had put on the application and still worked at the company listed in my application.
6) He asked me to sign (not print) my first name and last name on both photographs.
7) He asked me the following history questions:
Who is the President of the USA?
How long do we elect a President for?
What ship did the Pilgrims come on?
What is our date of Independence?
Who did we gain Independence from?
Who are the two senators of your state?
How long do we elect a senator for?
What are the first 10 amendments of the constitution called?
What are the colors on the flag?
What do the 13 stripes on the flag represent?
8) He asked me to write the following statements:
I like food.
It is cold today.
I just answered some questions.
9) He asked me to read a few sentences already printed out about the Civil War.
10) I signed my name on the question sheet as well as my original N-400 application.
11) He had a computer in front of him that said IBIS. He tapped on it for a few minutes and printed some stuff out.
12) He said "Congratulations, you have been approved" and asked me to wait downstairs in the first floor waiting area for my Oath letter (YES on the same day!)
13) At about 10:15 A.M., someone came into the waiting room, called my name, asked to see my greencard for verification and gave me my Oath letter. My Oath ceremony is scheduled for June 4th, 2004 at 8:00 A.M. in Brooklyn. I will post my Oath experience as well.
All in all, I can't believe how relieved I am that this whole thing is over. Next step is to start worrying about my fiance's AOS!
Ratrat
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