Okay, so here it goes.
Well, I had my interview at 7:00am, the morning of September 13, 2006 at the Garden City offices in New York. I was so nervous, words cannot even express the anxiety I have experienced over the last few months. I have been putting this entire ordeal off for sometime now. It was only because of my parents (who filed their N-400’s in Feb 5, 2006 and were naturalized on May 26, 2006) and because I will be graduating college, I decided that
hey maybe it’s time you get around to doing this. I am going to be a detailed as much as possible. If you have any questions just ask, and I want to thank all the people here who have answered my questions and those who have sent me positive PM’s I really appreciated it. First off, I am 22, I am a woman, I applied as a LPR and I requested a name change.
Okay, back to the date of the interview. On my way, I was actually shaking, my father drove, there was no way that I could drive. I got there at 6:40 am, there is a huge parking lot and there was a short line maybe 20 people and there were there for all sorts of immigration related matters, there were a lot of lawyers, some who even cut the line. I got into the building and was finished with security clearance etc. at about 7:05. I didn’t wear a belt, or heels or a watch because I didn’t want anything to set off the metal detectors (Security was very rude). I went to a separate floor which handles the naturalization interviews, I put my letter in the basket (there were no other letters in the basket) and had to walk around this circular corridor to get the waiting room and by the time I got there and sat down, my name was called. I didn’t even get the chance to overlook the civic questions and there were only two other people in the waiting room. The computer systems were down, I don’t know what this means for me, but my interview was conducted as scheduled.
I was interviewed at about 7:11 and I know I was out of there by 7:40. I carried a lot of documents(letters from employers, letters from court...etc., police documents, pay stubs, tax transcripts, birth certificate, tuition bills, college transcript, bank statements, copies of ticket, another application, passport photos. DMV records),
NONE of which were asked for, except my Green Card and Passport and 1 page from the extra application. There were no other people in the interview room, which was one large room divided by cubicles.
I was very nervous and my Interview officer was very nice, he smiled, he joked, and he made small talk. He was the nicest person that I have ever dealt with at USCIS. I was expecting the biggest cantankerous, asshole because in the past I have somehow managed to always get those kinds, but I was very happy. He asked me several Civic Questions, I was expecting 5 or 6, but he kept going on: Who is the president? What happens if the both the president and the vice president die? Who makes the laws? What does the Supreme Court do? How many stars are there in the US Flag and what do they represent? What do the lines represent? What is the national anthem? Who wrote it? Why did the pilgrims come to America? Who helped them? What is the constitution? Can you change the constitution? What is the Bill of Rights? How many changes have been made? What was the last Amendment? I was like,
"What the …?” caught me off guard.
Anyhow, I believe that my application was pretty straight forward, I basically grew up here, and I came to the US when I was 9 years old. I only left the country for a total of 20 days for the last 10 years. I don’t have a husband or any children, but I do have an arrest (More about my arrest above) and that was the cause of my anxiety. Even though it occurred when I was a minor and was sealed I felt it would be best if I were honest and disclose that information, so I noted it on my original application and I sent all the documents that I had. So he went through every single question on my N-400, from the start to finish and checked it off with his red pen. I brought a gel ink pen, a ball point pen and a pencil, but he had pens too. The only change I had to make was that I filled in the Oath section, which I was not supposed to, so I took out the page from my extra application which I had in my folder and that, was that. He was impressed that I had an extra, but I only did that because I read it on this site.
Okay so my arrest, he asked what happened and I wrote up this long page about the events surround the entire incident, but all I managed to say was less than a minute long and straight to the point, and he seemed content with what I told him. Every chance I could get, I would glance over at my folder that he had on his desk. It was very thin by the way, thinner that my own folder that I brought with me. Later on in the interviewed I saw they had my GC application and other immigration documents and I saw pictures of me at like 10 years old, a bit nostalgic.
I had to sign all documents with my new name and I signed the Oath sections, my photos (which he said did not look like me, but left it alone). But I cannot use my new name yet, officially. At this point, I do not have any name check pending or any background checks pending. I can safely say that I am the only person who has ever lived with my name; it is very unique, so unique that people always have a hard time with it and I want to change it because of that. My arrest does not even show up on FBI records (based on my own search) or New Your State criminal records databases(DCJS) the NYPD does not even have a record of my arrest- I guess that’s what sealed is good for. But the DA’s office acknowledged that it does exist. But I do not know if USCIS was able to find out anything about the arrest on their own, the IO did not say anything and I did not dare to ask. Everything went so well I did not want to say anything that might change that.
So I received the Form N-652, he dated it, checked off “You passed the tests of English and US history and government,” and “A. Congratulations! Your application has been recommended for approval.” (I don’t like that it says “recommended” and “If final approval is granted” because I am like, “They can still take this away from you”
). He said that it was nice meeting me and I said the same, he didn’t shake my hand or anything and then I left, still feeling slightly less worried than when I came in, at least I was not shaking. He said he could not give me an oath letter because the systems were down and that I would receive it in the mail. Since I will be changing my name I must be sworn in at a NYC district court (sometime really soon, I hope).
All in all, I am glad the interview is over, I am a little relieved, but I am still not content yet, I will not be until I have the Naturalization certificate in my hand. I have heard so many horror stories (many of them right on the web site) so I know I am not in the clear. So now, I will impatiently wait for the Oath Letter (my parents got their Oath Letters the same day as the interview) that should come in the mail sometime soon, I hope
.
*Sidenote: I consulted with an attorney regarding the circumstances of my arrest, I am a college student and I could not afford the full lawyer package so most of the work I did on my own. I filled out the N-400 alone, and the forms that I sent to USCIS from the courts/law enforcment I got it on my own. I researched laws on my own. I went to my interview alone (expect for my father who was there for moral support and he waited in the waiting room). So for those of you with criminal records etc, try to see what you can do first, consult with an attorney yes, but don't hire one unless you can afford it or if it is your absolute last resort. I also waited five years after the incident.
