Passport - applying at oath ceremony vs post office

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maheshgajanan

Registered Users (C)
At the end of my interview, the examiner gave me a packet which has the passport application plus instructions on how to apply at the Oath Ceremony.


I have heard oath ceremonies are huge (sometimes 1000s of people in LA). With so many people there and many of them applying for passport, isn't there a concern of application getting lost? Would post office be better?

In other words, what are the benefit of applying at the oath ceremony instead of doing it a the post office or vice versa?

Thanks
Mahesh
 
One benefit is for sure - you won't have to stand in line! In February when I had my ceremony, the line for passport application was enormous...

Also, if you apply at the post office later you will get a chance to make a copy of your certificate before sending your passport application in...
 
maheshgajanan said:
At the end of my interview, the examiner gave me a packet which has the passport application plus instructions on how to apply at the Oath Ceremony.

Some people apply right after the oath ceremony for convenience (as passport offices open a booth at the oath ceremonies). If you want to make a copy of the certificate as backup, you may not be able to do that at the ceremony location
I have heard oath ceremonies are huge (sometimes 1000s of people in LA). With so many people there and many of them applying for passport, isn't there a concern of application getting lost? Would post office be better?

Some are large ceremonies. I personally left after the oath with the certificate, went to Kinko's made a backup copy, went to the county passport office and applied for the passport the same day
In other words, what are the benefit of applying at the oath ceremony instead of doing it a the post office or vice versa?

There is no real benefit one way or the other, it is just a matter of preference - you can apply right after oath or later go to a passport office or post office or passport agency by appt for travel emergencies
Thanks
Mahesh
Click to expand...
 
You cannot apply for passport at oath ceremony. go to the local post office or passport acceptance facility and apply
 
Thanks for your suggestions.
So one has to send the original certificate with the passport application?

If it is the original that one send, then how does one sponsor relatives (I-130,etc). Doesn't that process need the certificate too?

Mahesh
 
maheshgajanan said:
Thanks for your suggestions.
So one has to send the original certificate with the passport application?

If it is the original that one send, then how does one sponsor relatives (I-130,etc). Doesn't that process need the certificate too?

Mahesh
Click to expand...
You need a copy of certificate to sponsor a relative. That is also a reason not apply for a passport at oath time. The person at post office also told me to notarize the copy in case something happened to your cert.
 
Rahul Kumar said:
You cannot apply for passport at oath ceremony. go to the local post office or passport acceptance facility and apply
Click to expand...
I did. And I got my passport in 3 weeks. But I agree, it is important to make a copy of your certificate before filing, so the post office is a better choice.
 
I applied for passport after oath ceremony in post office and got my passport back in 8 days (expedite + overnight).
 
n400la said:
One benefit is for sure - you won't have to stand in line! In February when I had my ceremony, the line for passport application was enormous...

Also, if you apply at the post office later you will get a chance to make a copy of your certificate before sending your passport application in...
Click to expand...

Good point n400la, surely it would be safer to apply for the passport at a local post office.

Did you know that copying the Certificate of Naturalization without permission is a federal felony?
 
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Publicus said:
Did you know that copying the Certificate of Naturalization without permission is a federal felony?
Click to expand...

Are you sure?

Is it the same with photocopying a passport, Birth Certificate, Notice of birth to a US citizen abroad, etc.??

If so I am a serious felon....
Should I report that in my N-400? (By now I am just kidding)

Yalag
 
yalag said:
Are you sure?

Is it the same with photocopying a passport, Birth Certificate, Notice of birth to a US citizen abroad, etc.??

If so I am a serious felon....
Should I report that in my N-400? (By now I am just kidding)

Yalag
Click to expand...

I don't know but I read this on a notice in the county building where people apply for Police jobs. They were asking Naturalized citizens not to copy the certificate but simply provide their name and certificate #.
 
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When I visited the post office yesterday, the passport lady said eventhough it is written on the bottom of the cert. that you can't copy it, its OK to copy it since rules has been changed. You may will be informed about this during your Naturalization process.
And also when I was getting paperworks ready to sponsor my husband, they have asked me to attach a copy of the naturalization cert. So that is absolutely fine to copy it.
 
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