Possible reasons for namecheck delay.

[rwsh]

My FP was completed in September 06. Still no interview letter (six months from filing) but I am not overly anxious yet !!!!! (based on posts from this forum).

However, I thought I might share my own ideas on why my case is taking months, rather than weeks as is the good fortune of some participants who post their timelines.

1) I have three first (aka "Christian") names for a total of four and thus I have more than average permutations of them if indeed the security guys check all combinations.

2) I have visited many countries that might now be considered politically controversial (Iraq, Somalia, Egypt, Iran, Indonesia, Burma etc.). Please note that this comment is offered as a statment of fact and does NOT suggest any opinion on those places. All my trips were on business for a US corporation.

3) My INS (now USCIS) history goes back to 1982 and therefore well into the realm of PAPER records rather than ELECTRONIC records. These are much harder to trace and check. USCIS switched over circa 1997.

Just some thoughts. Have a wonderful weekend everybody.


• 28th July 06: N-400 application mailed
• 7th August 06: Resubmitted with correct check (first check based on incorrect data on USCIS web site)
• 9th August 06: Check cashed
• 14th August 06: USCIS acknowledgement with application number (17 days from first application)
• 15th August 06: Fingerprint (FP) notification (only one day from acknowledgement; missed FP date due to absence from town
• 31st August 06: Request to reschedule FP
• 5th September 06: Proactive visit to the FP office as a “walk-in”: (17 days from original notice)

 

[equate]

I don't think any of that really matters. If there are exact matches, those are easy to take care of, because then they know the record belongs to you and no further searches are required.

The problem area is the hits. Hits are the partial matches and require manual verification of the record to ensure the record doesn't belong to you. And most of the time, hits are someone else's record and has nothing to do with you. Thus, the record could be in any form and stored anywhere regardless of how long you've been in US.

 

[rwsh]

Thanks for the comment. I fully agree that items # 1 & 2 are speculation. However, it seems as though item # 3 is based on fact and it makes sense. Paper records that were the norm pre-1997 can be in any one of nearly 300 repositaries whereas an electronic database (in theory) should be easy to search.

 

[equate]

If anything, I think #1 could be the problem. More names you have, there are more chances for false hits. In fact, I heard a story in which a man's original name passed the name check but his new intended name from the name change got him stuck with a false hit.

As for #3, I tend to disagree. What they search for are criminal records. I can't hardly see why your immigration record would end up in FBI criminal database.

I assume false hits can occur for any old record, even if one's been in US for a short period. That's because it's not like they limit the searches only to the time after your official entrance to US. That makes sense since it is possible for someone to sneak in without inspection. In fact, one of the database includes border crossing record (e.g., deportations, arrests while attempting to cross the border, etc). Thus, a person with short immigration history would be still subjected to same risk of getting false hits.