My N-400 application gone wrong under 3-year marriage USC. What do I do now?

[Sobedude]

I have been a lawful Permanent Resident for 6 1/2 years and want to apply for n-400 citizenship, but:

I applied for citizenship at the end of 2010 under the 3 year US citizen marriage rule and case went weird. My date of PR is July 2007. I went to interview without wife and interviewer thought that to be not good. Interviewer got nasty and said she wanted more proof of a bonafide marriage. FYI I already had then my conditions removed, and I had 10-y green card and my I-751 approval letter. The interviewer asked me to send proof of bills, etc. I mailed all of it.

My marriage started having trouble more than year after this interview and I kept waiting. We decided to get divorced.
I never heard back from the USCIS again until I received a letter to renew my fingerprints in Feb 2012 (such letter said I-751 application and not N-400 which is super weird). However, coincidentally I was in the process of divorcing my wife after five years of marriage the month before I received that letter. After I received that biometrics paper I wrote a letter and asked them to close the application since I was getting divorced, explained the reasons for it and left it there.

I do travel lots for work out of the US and I have never had a issue while entering the country. I decided to apply again for the N-400 but this time under the 5-year residency rule. But I decided to check USCIS online and my past case still shows "waiting for an interview." What the heck! I'm lost here.

What should I do? Should I go ahead and send my new N-400? Should I contact a lawyer and open that can of possible worms again? I'd suppose that everything is fine since my 10-year Green Card has not given any trouble. I even applied for Global Entry and got approved without any questions whatsoever. Will that pending application waiting for interview will make trouble for my new N-400 application? I'm so worried that I just want this resolve and not create more unnecessary trouble if I can.

Please help.

 

[Jackolantern]

But I decided to check USCIS online and my past case still shows "waiting for an interview." What the heck! I'm lost here.

They are not reliable at updating the online status, especially after the case is closed. Many people still have a status like that or some other pre-completion status even after they've completed the oath and received their naturalization certificate.

Go ahead and send the new N-400, however if you did not receive any confirmation of them closing your old case, attach a cover letter mentioning that you previously applied and withdrew it. Include the old receipt number in the letter so they can quickly look it up they want to.

Too bad you didn't file 1447(b) back in 2011. If your case is pending for more than 120 days after the interview, 1447(b) would enable you to get the court to force them to decide your case in a timely manner (or the court itself can decide your case).

 

[Sobedude]

They are not reliable at updating the online status, especially after the case is closed. Many people still have a status like that or some other pre-completion status even after they've completed the oath and received their naturalization certificate.

Go ahead and send the new N-400, however if you did not receive any confirmation of them closing your old case, attach a cover letter mentioning that you previously applied and withdrew it. Include the old receipt number in the letter so they can quickly look it up they want to.

Too bad you didn't file 1447(b) back in 2011. If your case is pending for more than 120 days after the interview, 1447(b) would enable you to get the court to force them to decide your case in a timely manner (or the court itself can decide your case).

Thank You Jackolantern. I guess my concern is that my new application would get all messed up because of my old application on the 3rd year rule with USC marriage rule being still open or in the system. I hope with my new N-400 I don't have to go back and have to prove my bonafide marriage since that was what the interviewer told me she wanted to do even though my conditions were already removed then. Even though I'm still friends with my ex, I'm already divorced as of jan 2012 and don't have any paperwork to submit.