Naturalization (N400) + Civil Case

[bhadau12]

Hello everyone, I have a few questions about the N400 process that I would like to clarify with the community.

I will be eligibile to apply for Naturalization in the next 6 months and have begun planning. I plan to hire an attorney just to be on the safer side. In the mean time, I have these questions.

1. AR-11, how important are these? I have moved to a couple of new places in the past year or so but forgot to submit the AR-11. Will this come back to haunt me?

2. Civil cases: I received a ticket on the NYC subway (By the Transit Adjudication Bureau) and paid the fine. Will Civil cases show up on background checks done for Naturalization? Will this be an issue?

3. I do have a small thing that's bothering me about the Subway ticket. I actually got this ticket before I filed for my GC (about 6 years ago). Due to my lack of knowledge of the process at that time and since I had a lawyer (again since I didn't have much knowledge to do everything myself), my lawyer handled all the paperwork and the forms etc. I believe at the time, we might not have mentioned this subway ticket on the I-485 and nothing came up at the interview. Now it's bothering me to some extent if this will be an issue when I apply for Naturalization.

Questions:
a. How big of an issue will this be for me (that I didn't mention this on the I-485 and if I do mention it on the N400)?
b. Should I mention this on my N400 for the question where it asks if you are cited? The ticket received was a summons by the Transit Adjudication Bureau and I didn't fight it and simply paid the fine.​

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

[Jackolantern]

1. File the AR-11 ASAP and you'll be OK. Once your latest one is filed to reflect your current address they're not going to hunt you down about the old ones.

2. If you weren't arrested for it, it probably won't show up on their background checks and it's too trivial to affect your naturalization whether they know about it or not.

3. The I-485 question about arrests etc. specifically says "excluding traffic violations". I don't exactly know if a subway ticket qualifies as a traffic violation, but it's close enough that you can use that as an explanation for why you didn't list it on the I-485.

 

[bhadau12]

Thank you so much for your reply. As per your point no 3, I could try and defend it that way but since this might be so trivial and there wasn't any arrest for it or anything like that, should I even bother mentioning it on the N400?

1. File the AR-11 ASAP and you'll be OK. Once your latest one is filed to reflect your current address they're not going to hunt you down about the old ones.

2. If you weren't arrested for it, it probably won't show up on their background checks and it's too trivial to affect your naturalization whether they know about it or not.

3. The I-485 question about arrests etc. specifically says "excluding traffic violations". I don't exactly know if a subway ticket qualifies as a traffic violation, but it's close enough that you can use that as an explanation for why you didn't list it on the I-485.

 

[chracatoa]

Hmm, I don't remember if I sent my AR-11. Is there an easy way to check that?
If not, can I send a new one even if the address is already correct?

 

[bhadau12]

I don't think you need to send them the AR (unless you fill the paper one). In the past I have filled it out online and saved a local copy for my records. I will be doing the same for my new address for which I forgot to file AR-11.

Hmm, I don't remember if I sent my AR-11. Is there an easy way to check that?
If not, can I send a new one even if the address is already correct?

 

[NJN400]

I don't think you need to send them the AR (unless you fill the paper one). In the past I have filled it out online and saved a local copy for my records. I will be doing the same for my new address for which I forgot to file AR-11.

Please keep us updated on your case. I have a similar ticket from NYC. I want to know what happens.