Hooraaaay!! Officially I am a US citizen now!
. There was very little info for Norfolk DO on this forum. However people on this board have been extremely helpful and I thought I should do my bit by at least posting a detailed review about my interview and oath experience at Norfolk, VA. A special thanks to Bob, WBH, Al, Jacko, abs, sanjo, RVAR, Which, TRC etc. and lots of others for answering mine and everyone's questions with patience.
My interview (along with my wife) was at 9.40 am and we arrived there at 8.35 am. We live in Richmond and started around 6.45. The 100+ mile drive to Norfolk took us less than 2 hours (there was only a minor slowdown before the tunnel for 10 minutes or so but nothing major en-route contrary to what some people had portrayed it to be (maybe because of the ailing economy). Took a detour for a coffee
at Starbucks (1.5 miles) and entered the USCIS building by 9.20. For some this information may be important but cell phones were allowed inside the building and a few other candidates also had their little ones accompanying them (the "perks" of being associated with a smaller 'DO' I suppose although we had arranged the logistics for our child). However I do recommend that you keep your cell phones and/or children on vibrate
and if you cannot do that then its best to leave them in the car and/or at baby sitter's (as appropriate) but wanted to let you know that at least the DO does have the flexibility. A couple of little ones were all too excited about the prospects of their parents becoming citizens (or perked up at giving up citizenship of their native countries)
and periodically let there enthusiasm/depression show thereby often embarrassing
the poor parents by their vocal rants.
I was called within 5 to 10 minutes of settling in. The IO was quite friendly and professional (I noticed a couple of other IO's as well and they too seemed quite jovial and friendly; another perk I suppose of a small DO). Was made to swear and IO immediately started with English and civics test (routine if you have read the book). IO writes down every answer that you give; so only worry about remembering and answering one part if the question requires one in the preparation material. Will not go into the specifics of the tests since there is enough information on this forum. After the tests the IO went line by line asking all the questions on the N-400 form. When the question about citation/arrest was asked I mentioned about a couple of general speeding tickets and offered to provide documentation that I had paid them off (I had taken my 11 year driving history record from DMV and also a printout from the web (or by calling the county court in one case) that gave details about the cases and that those were cleared off. The IO scrutinized these quite closely and then added to my N-400 and changed my responses to these from "No" to "Yes" and politely asked if the paperwork could be kept in my file. He/She moved on and subsequently asked me to sign at a couple of places and also on the photographs (the sharpie pen was available although I had carried one with me as well). I was told that I was approved
and IO gave me the N-652 form and asked me if there was any chance I could attend the oath at 2.00 pm that afternoon. I smiled and said that "I would be delighted to", to which the IO smiled and replied stating "that would be nice won't it". He gave me the oath letter and we chatted a little bit and cracked a couple more jokes about needing only the green card and the oath letter for the oath and that I would be glad to give up on my green card since I would get something "better"
. I asked if the IO had a lot more interviews scheduled for the day and the IO replied "X more to go today" and that he/she was also substituting for a colleague who had not come in. So he/she would soon be interviewing my wife after me. Chatted a bit more on the way out and at the door I shook hands and thanked (Thank You officer 'the name'). My suggestion though for everyone would be not to get too friendly and only proceed depending upon the IO and the situation and your level of comfort. Its best to be neutral and professional to start with.
Ditto experience for my wife and IO told her that she need not have mentioned her speeding ticket during the interview since the charge was "Dismissed" after taking "Traffic School". Nevertheless since she had produced it the IO kept the documentation and also added to the N-400.
Oath was at 2.00 and we went in at 1.35. I don't think one needs too much guidance on the oath process since he/she is already approved and it is a routine. You are allowed to take guests and remember to take your camera. There were in all 28 candidates who took oath; some from that day and some probably from previous days. You could see smiles and relief on everyone's face as well as on the face of the judge, employees etc. The reception itself is converted to the oath ceremony room.
There is no thumb rule for same day oaths in Norfolk but I suppose the criteria could be to have sufficient number of candidates on the day. And it appears that they try to schedule most interviews accordingly. So don't try to mess up and change your dates around. There was this guys who had scheduled an infopass and was loudly and desperately trying to change some date. The desk IO politely told him that they could NOT do it on Tuesday for which he kept insisting and almost seemed to be fighting
to get it on a Tuesday as he had to "work" the other days
. The desk IO finally agreed to schedule him on some Tuesday and gave him a choice of 3 times; 8.30 am, 12.55 and 2.00 and he picked 12.55. You can be assured that he will not get the same day oath (that is provided his is a citizenship case of course).
Overall a very smooth process at least if your case is a straight forward one. The lack of information for a smaller DO on this forum was more than adequately compensated by the friendly staff, behavior, efficiency and other positives at this DO. All the very best to the rest of you who are still waiting and you should not be concerned if your case is a routine one.
