Philadelphia PA - N-400 Timeline
- Thread starter Rahul Kumar
- Start date
Kagemusha,
I was asked for no additional documents or had any surprise questions. All I needed was Green Card and my passport. IO printed out list of 10 questions which I had provided written responces to. 10 out of 10 were correct so IO said off you go wait for 4 more months.
Oh... and traffic tickets ... IO asked about DUIs, which I had none.
I passed interview.
I had my interview at Philly today (5/8) at 8:20. I only waited less than 10 minutes, and interview took less than 10 minutes. I just passed the interview (6 out of 10 questions corrected). The officer just went over the N-400 information with me, no any further documents asked. She asked if I had any citation. I said it had one or two speeding tickets, which I paid the fines, and nothing more. At the end, she congratuled me that I have passed the interview. I signed on my ywo photos, and was given a paper saying I passed interview. I didn't ask if I have any background/name check issue or not. She said I should recieve a letter regarding oath ceremony. She said there is one in June 7 in Wilmington, and next one will be in Sept. If June 7 one is all filled, then I have to wait to go to Sept. one. Does anyone know if June 7's ceremony is all filled or not? I guess if Wilmington court just had one this month, there should be a lot of space for June 7 ceremony. I asked if June 7 ceremnoy in Wilmington is all filled, can I move to Philly for ceremony. The answer is no. I have to get ceremony in Wilmington and wait to Sept. How can I find out if there are still space available in June 7 ceremony? Sept. is 4 months away. Too much waiting.
MichaelDE, sorry to hear you have to wait more. Good luck to you.
PD: 5/26/06
FP: 6/10/06
IL: 4/25/07
ID: 5/8/07 passed
Oath: 6/7/07 hopefully????????????
I had my interview at Philly today (5/8) at 8:20. I only waited less than 10 minutes, and interview took less than 10 minutes. I just passed the interview (6 out of 10 questions corrected). The officer just went over the N-400 information with me, no any further documents asked. She asked if I had any citation. I said it had one or two speeding tickets, which I paid the fines, and nothing more. At the end, she congratuled me that I have passed the interview. I signed on my ywo photos, and was given a paper saying I passed interview. I didn't ask if I have any background/name check issue or not. She said I should recieve a letter regarding oath ceremony. She said there is one in June 7 in Wilmington, and next one will be in Sept. If June 7 one is all filled, then I have to wait to go to Sept. one. Does anyone know if June 7's ceremony is all filled or not? I guess if Wilmington court just had one this month, there should be a lot of space for June 7 ceremony. I asked if June 7 ceremnoy in Wilmington is all filled, can I move to Philly for ceremony. The answer is no. I have to get ceremony in Wilmington and wait to Sept. How can I find out if there are still space available in June 7 ceremony? Sept. is 4 months away. Too much waiting.
MichaelDE, sorry to hear you have to wait more. Good luck to you.
PD: 5/26/06
FP: 6/10/06
IL: 4/25/07
ID: 5/8/07 passed
Oath: 6/7/07 hopefully????????????
Thanks Kenttina, and congratulations on successful interview. September 6th is accidently almost exactly 120 days from the interview date. And I agree it is too much waiting. Some places they do Oath the same day as interview.
As you are, I will keep June 7th open from any traveling plans (still hoping for the best), but for other purposes (visas etc) I will have to assume it is likely to be September 6th.
Oh, and I will take back all my comments about preferring to attend Wilmington's Ceremony over Philadelphia. I will take whichever comes first.
As you are, I will keep June 7th open from any traveling plans (still hoping for the best), but for other purposes (visas etc) I will have to assume it is likely to be September 6th.
Oh, and I will take back all my comments about preferring to attend Wilmington's Ceremony over Philadelphia. I will take whichever comes first.
Last edited by a moderator:
Wife had interview today - piece of cake. Took 12 min total.
She was told the same thing by the offcier and that she would verly likely not make the June oath, but would have to wait until September or longer for the oath.
Wife had interview today - piece of cake. Took 12 min total.
She was told the same thing by the offcier and that she would verly likely not make the June oath, but would have to wait until September or longer for the oath.
It seems that the waiting is never going to end. At least we are moving in the right directions. There are enough stories of people stuck in a namecheck forever.
Is the glass half full yet?
My experience
Hi Folks,
I am officially a US citizen now. At least, the approval stage is over. My case involved a name change and overall took me 20 mins to complete the process.
Officer: The officer was the nicest person I've ever met and was co-operative from beginning to the end. I hope everyone goes out of their way to help applicants like this lady officer.
Interview: The officer asked me to first raise my hand and agree to speak the truth and nothing but the truth. Interview started when she asked me if there'r any changes and I immediately asked about my name change.
Name Change:When asked about the name change, she immediately gave me a sticky notepad to write down the names as it should appear and updated my application. Please note that any name change is allowed. The only catch is no name can be initialized (S for Sam is not allowed). She Printed the change forms and gave me instructions to sign the paper with old and new names. She even checked her calendar and verified the court dates in Wilmington, DE for oath.
This is where we were casually talking and I took a chance to mention that my wife is expecting a letter and was curios to know the reason for the delay and if her FP is in trouble. She checked her computer and said that everything looks fine but there is a long queue.
Application: The officer also checked my application thoroughly and verified every single bit to confirm the accuracy. It is necessary for the applicants to know what they have filled. DOB, Address and duration of stay at the current address was checked. Simple questions like have you filed taxes last 5 years? and do you owe taxes? Then there was a barrage of questions on drug, DUI, convictions, felonies for which you need to be prepared to answer. Since the answers are mostly YES or NO, answering something wrongly or thinking too hard while answering *might* flag for something wrong. This is just my impression. She asked me to produce my GC, passport and DL. Verified and returned the same and asked me to sign on the photographs sent with the application.
Questionnaire: Standard printed questionnaire A was provided. She joked that I need not answer the question that asks to list the 13 states, if I don't have to. I joked back saying that I'll abbreviate and if that would be ok. She was impressed that all 10 were answered correctly.
Approval Notice: She handed me the printed N-652 "Naturalization Interview Letter" with details of my A#, interview results (Written 100% if you get all the 10 right) and circled a box that advices you to go to a scheduled oath ceremony. I asked if there's any acknowledgement/receipt for my name change and the answer was in the negative. According to her, expect form a few weeks to 3 months to recieve the oath letter. She adviced not to panic if I the notification wasn't recieved in a few weeks. She said there is further background check process which would take time. In my case, due to the name change, there is additional process to schedule around the court dates. So June is too close and September 6 is my only option.
Some logisitical tips:
1. Don't arrive too early.
2. There's plenty of public parking (2hr) on Callowhill between N15th and N17th. Take qtrs.
3. Security is a breeze if you don't carry unnecessary stuff. Just think on the same lines as air-travel and go prepared. I saw a couple haggling with the security to let them carry food inside. This increased others wait times.
4. Once you enter the 2 floor, just don't take a seat. First, head to the window and give them the notice of action. This is what starts the interview process. No instructions whatsoever for applicants regarding this. A few of them sat there for more than 15 mins not realizing this.
Overall this was a wonderful experience.
Good luck!
Hi Folks,
I am officially a US citizen now. At least, the approval stage is over. My case involved a name change and overall took me 20 mins to complete the process.
Officer: The officer was the nicest person I've ever met and was co-operative from beginning to the end. I hope everyone goes out of their way to help applicants like this lady officer.
Interview: The officer asked me to first raise my hand and agree to speak the truth and nothing but the truth. Interview started when she asked me if there'r any changes and I immediately asked about my name change.
Name Change:When asked about the name change, she immediately gave me a sticky notepad to write down the names as it should appear and updated my application. Please note that any name change is allowed. The only catch is no name can be initialized (S for Sam is not allowed). She Printed the change forms and gave me instructions to sign the paper with old and new names. She even checked her calendar and verified the court dates in Wilmington, DE for oath.
This is where we were casually talking and I took a chance to mention that my wife is expecting a letter and was curios to know the reason for the delay and if her FP is in trouble. She checked her computer and said that everything looks fine but there is a long queue.
Application: The officer also checked my application thoroughly and verified every single bit to confirm the accuracy. It is necessary for the applicants to know what they have filled. DOB, Address and duration of stay at the current address was checked. Simple questions like have you filed taxes last 5 years? and do you owe taxes? Then there was a barrage of questions on drug, DUI, convictions, felonies for which you need to be prepared to answer. Since the answers are mostly YES or NO, answering something wrongly or thinking too hard while answering *might* flag for something wrong. This is just my impression. She asked me to produce my GC, passport and DL. Verified and returned the same and asked me to sign on the photographs sent with the application.
Questionnaire: Standard printed questionnaire A was provided. She joked that I need not answer the question that asks to list the 13 states, if I don't have to. I joked back saying that I'll abbreviate and if that would be ok. She was impressed that all 10 were answered correctly.
Approval Notice: She handed me the printed N-652 "Naturalization Interview Letter" with details of my A#, interview results (Written 100% if you get all the 10 right) and circled a box that advices you to go to a scheduled oath ceremony. I asked if there's any acknowledgement/receipt for my name change and the answer was in the negative. According to her, expect form a few weeks to 3 months to recieve the oath letter. She adviced not to panic if I the notification wasn't recieved in a few weeks. She said there is further background check process which would take time. In my case, due to the name change, there is additional process to schedule around the court dates. So June is too close and September 6 is my only option.
Some logisitical tips:
1. Don't arrive too early.
2. There's plenty of public parking (2hr) on Callowhill between N15th and N17th. Take qtrs.
3. Security is a breeze if you don't carry unnecessary stuff. Just think on the same lines as air-travel and go prepared. I saw a couple haggling with the security to let them carry food inside. This increased others wait times.
4. Once you enter the 2 floor, just don't take a seat. First, head to the window and give them the notice of action. This is what starts the interview process. No instructions whatsoever for applicants regarding this. A few of them sat there for more than 15 mins not realizing this.
Overall this was a wonderful experience.
Good luck!
I quickly went back through the Philadelphia forum. Let's see if this makes sense. With exceptions (like April 4th Ceremony), it appears to take 3 months on average between Interview Date and Oath Date. Oath Letter appears to show up about 2 weeks before Oath date.
So for DE folks, I think if nothings shows up in the mail in late May (which will be a nice surprise), next time to start expecting is last week of August.
So for DE folks, I think if nothings shows up in the mail in late May (which will be a nice surprise), next time to start expecting is last week of August.
Anyone not from DE that went through the interview recently ? I was wondering what you were told about the oath ? I know there is another Philly ceremony coming up on June 14 that I was hoping I would make it to. Guess I am being too optimistic ? I know people were handed oath letters for the April 4 ceremony even when their interview was barely a month earlier. I wonder what was different then. Also, anyone know when the next oath is in Philly after June ?
Thanks,
-KM
Thanks,
-KM
Not so fast Cognac ! You don't officially become a citizen until you have gone through the oath
But I can understand your excitement about having come so close to the end of this long journey. Thanks for the detailed account of your interview experience and hope you don't have to wait too long for your oath.-KM
Not so fast Cognac ! You don't officially become a citizen until you have gone through the oath
-KM
Considering that his/her process was only 4 month, Cognac does not realize how many things can go wrong for no particular reason. Cognac, if you read even just this thread, you will find some horror stories including some people not getting their naturalization certificates even after getting through Oath Ceremony.
I wish us all good luck, but I am not opening my special bottle of Champaign just yet. To be honest, I have not even bought it yet
Done with interview !
Had my interview in Philly this morning and it was almost anti-climactic. All this waiting for an interview that barely lasted 5-10 minutes ? In any case the IO was a very nice and courteous lady. She asked for just the 3 basic documents (driver's license, passport and GC), quickly went through all the yes/no questions and gave me a printed sheet with the 10 questions (got all of them right). I was handed a letter with the "Congratulations ! You have been recommended for approval" checked and told that with some luck I might make it to the huge oath ceremony they are having in Philly on June 14 to mark Flag Day (she wasn't sure when the next oath might be if they couldn't get me into this one).
There was a bit of a wait though. I got there half an hour before my scheduled time and had to wait an hour and half (had my actual interview an hour later than scheduled).
-KM
Had my interview in Philly this morning and it was almost anti-climactic. All this waiting for an interview that barely lasted 5-10 minutes ? In any case the IO was a very nice and courteous lady. She asked for just the 3 basic documents (driver's license, passport and GC), quickly went through all the yes/no questions and gave me a printed sheet with the 10 questions (got all of them right). I was handed a letter with the "Congratulations ! You have been recommended for approval" checked and told that with some luck I might make it to the huge oath ceremony they are having in Philly on June 14 to mark Flag Day (she wasn't sure when the next oath might be if they couldn't get me into this one).
There was a bit of a wait though. I got there half an hour before my scheduled time and had to wait an hour and half (had my actual interview an hour later than scheduled).
-KM
Congratulation Kagemusha! You are one big step closer.
I recently checked Convention Center schedule for the rest of the year and did not see any more USCIS days after June 14th. It is not a good sign though that even USCIS does not know when is their next Oath Ceremony is.
I recently checked Convention Center schedule for the rest of the year and did not see any more USCIS days after June 14th. It is not a good sign though that even USCIS does not know when is their next Oath Ceremony is.
Thanks MichaelDE ! It almost seems unfair that you have to wait until September (if you don't make it to the June 7 oath in DE) - especially given that you also had a long wait for the interview letter to arrive. Couldn't you have requested the oath in Philly like drjochen and a few other DE folks ? It seems that they might have found you a seat in that June 14 mega ceremony.
-KM
-KM
Thanks Kagemusha. Kenttina actually asked his IO exactly this question. The answer was "No".
Nobody understands exact logistics of USCIS (and especially when it gets to a local DO level). Some people from DE did attend April 4th Ceremony in Philadelphia, so I would think there is at least a slight chance that they might put some DE people into June 14th Ceremony. But otherwise your guess is as good as mine.
As a practical point, I will call local DO and Wilmington Court (if anybody knows a number, please post) a few days before June 7th to make sure that my Oath letter did not get lost somewhere (it did happen before). I will call Philadelphia DO again a few days before June 14th to make sure that my Oath letter did not get lost either. After that, will have to wait untill late August and enjoy the summer. Time for fishing, golfing etc. Have no time to worry about stinking wait...
Nobody understands exact logistics of USCIS (and especially when it gets to a local DO level). Some people from DE did attend April 4th Ceremony in Philadelphia, so I would think there is at least a slight chance that they might put some DE people into June 14th Ceremony. But otherwise your guess is as good as mine.
As a practical point, I will call local DO and Wilmington Court (if anybody knows a number, please post) a few days before June 7th to make sure that my Oath letter did not get lost somewhere (it did happen before). I will call Philadelphia DO again a few days before June 14th to make sure that my Oath letter did not get lost either. After that, will have to wait untill late August and enjoy the summer. Time for fishing, golfing etc. Have no time to worry about stinking wait...