Quad City - IA/IL where to live for Citizenship

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MrTitan

Registered Users (C)
Guys, some of you might know, I had lost my job late last year. Well, I did get a new job in Davenport, IA.

Just to give brief info Davenport, it is part of Quad cities area - 4 tiny cities (Davenport and Bettendorf located on Iowa side, while Rock Island and Moline located on Illinios side). So one can really live in either of these 4 cities.

So I wanted to make my residence in wherever my citizenship will be fastest. Questions:

- which office (for N-400 processing) serves Davenport, IA and how long currently it is taking place.

- which office serves Rock Island, IL and how long currently it is taking place.

Thanks all, peace.
 
MrTitan said:
Guys, some of you might know, I had lost my job late last year. Well, I did get a new job in Davenport, IA.

Just to give brief info Davenport, it is part of Quad cities area - 4 tiny cities (Davenport and Bettendorf located on Iowa side, while Rock Island and Moline located on Illinios side). So one can really live in either of these 4 cities.

So I wanted to make my residence in wherever my citizenship will be fastest. Questions:

- which office (for N-400 processing) serves Davenport, IA and how long currently it is taking place.

- which office serves Rock Island, IL and how long currently it is taking place.

Thanks all, peace.
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According to the processing times, it varies from 6 months to 9 months. Also, don't forget this: You have to have been a resident in the state OR service area covered by the office where you file your N-400 for the three months immediately preceding the submission of the application. "For purposes of this section, the applicant's residence in a State where there are two or more districts will be sufficient to comply with the jurisdictional requirement of residence in any one of those districts."
 
o shoot, does this mean, I cant apply for N-400 till I have been a resident of IA for 3 months?

Guys if you advice here:
- I am currently residing for next 1 month atleast in Charlotte, NC
- I do have a prepared application, should I immediately mail it? , and then file a transfer when I move to Iowa.

I'm thinking if it takes me 1 month to move to Iowa, and 3 months to remain resident there and then apply, isn't it better to send my paper right away while in charlotte? (Would this route be faster?)
 
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MrTitan said:
- I do have a prepared application, should I immediately mail it? , and then file a transfer when I move to Iowa.
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If you move to a new state/district after filing, they'll make you wait at least 3 months living in the new district before giving you an interview. Sometimes they won't realize that you moved and they'll send an interview appointment for the old district. Then when you show up they realize you moved and will schedule another interview for a time after you've met the 3 months in the new location.
 
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Aww ... that is confusing. So you saying, even if I file now (while in Charlotte), I'll be setback 3 months anyway?

So should I file now, or not ???
 
I would wait until after moving and living 3 months in the new place. If you stray off the straightforward path and do any major shakeups in the middle of the process like changing your name or moving to a new district or rescheduling an interview, you risk falling into the USCIS blackhole and being made to wait a long long time.

Whatever you do, you're headed for some extra waiting (unless you stay put in Charlotte). And by the time you have satisfied the 3-month rule, the new location may have become slower or faster than what it was before. So choose your residence based on the long-term costs and benefits of living in the new location, not the short-term expectation of which place might process your citizenship faster.
 
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MrTitan said:
Thank you Jackolantern, though your advice is hard to swallow. Does EVERYONE agree with it, any dissenting views ?

Bobysmyth and USGC, what do you think?
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yes, because IO will ask for your driver license showing your current address. I suggest you wait until after you move and live 3 months. It would save your time and will be straightforward.
 
Simply put, you need to establish at least 3 months of residence in the service area you are applying from.
 
but wouldn't that be moot, if I apply while still residing in Charlotte (where I'v been for 5 yrs). And someone said (need to verify) that when you change your DO, you loose about 1 month time.

So this route, I'll end up faster.
 
MrTitan said:
but wouldn't that be moot, if I apply while still residing in Charlotte (where I'v been for 5 yrs). And someone said (need to verify) that when you change your DO, you loose about 1 month time.
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It's unpredictable how much time you'll waste if you change DO's in the middle of the process. If you're lucky, they'll process your address change promptly and schedule an interview right after you've completed 3 months in the new location. If you're not so lucky, they'll cancel and reschedule your original interview after receiving your address change or after you show up at the interview and then the rescheduled interview could be many months into the future. Sometimes they'll just send you a de-schedule notice and leave you hanging for weeks without knowing about when the rescheduled interview will be.
 
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This is a bit tricky but..

Check your service areas/states zones of CIS where you were and wanted to move.
Then,
As general notion of CIS seems go like this--
A person shall be residing 90days in the service area/state, prior to applying to applying N400 .
The issue now is--Some service areas serves more than two states(incase of small states)and in some states there are more than one service areas(like CA).
Now,as per the notion,it shall oridinarily satisfies if a person lived in
same state for part of 90 days at a place A and part of 90 days at place B,
but should be in same state.
or A person shall have resided in sate A and B for parts of 90 days but serviced by same area.
Theoretically both prongs meets the criteria as per the convetion.
(But pratcially whether CIS all procssors undertands/has knowledge of the convention has to be seen--that was the reason I posted separate thread to post people's experiences if any one had,but the thread had a cold repsonse).
All I can mention is the conventions as per CIS proceess procedure docs. was as metioned above).
This is regrading eligibilty Q of 90days but not what hapapnens with CIS practically whether they take you met 90 days rule and send you IL to a new address yet to be seen
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note: I am not a lawyer and I am just a lay man without any legal knwledge.!
Read the above STRICTLY at your own risk.
 
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MrTitan said:
And someone said (need to verify) that when you change your DO, you loose about 1 month time.
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MrT, bummer as it is, but you are dealing with a huge Government department run by humans and humans make the occasional mistake.

As others have suggested, sit out the 3 months at the new location. Then apply. In an ideal world you might only lose one month but you might also lose 3 or 6 months. Do some searching here for around the 4th month this year as I recall a couple of postings where a people was still waiting after 8 months after address changes and/or rescheduling.

It may be fine that 99% get through with an extra month but it ain't going to be fun if you are in that 1%. I agree with the others here, sit out the 3 months then file from the new place or ya takes yer chances. :)
 
example -who moved to new service area after applying

Just for information on the topic related.(it was from 2005 postings).This is the first one I found in this forum upon searching and this may be useful who are in....
The guy had moved to a different service area (in the same state).
Thread:
http://forums.immigration.com/showthread.php?t=183801.
quoted as below:
'Some useful notes:

1) Interview was done at the Oakland office as we applied in Alameda County.
2) We relocated to Orange County on July 7th and filed the AR-11 but US CIS left it to our discretion as to whether we wanted to transfer our case or not. We were still required to file the AR-11. US CIS did mention that we had to fly back and forth if we wanted to leave the case with SF CIS as we couldn't take the interview down in the Santa Ana office on behalf of SF CIS. We decided not to transfer to Santa Ana as they are about 2 months behind SF.
3) They give you the oath notice right there after the interview as the oath was scheduled just 2 weeks later. We are going to have to fly back for that too (somehow we can't join an oath ceremony in Santa Ana without mailing them back, getting new date, etc etc.).
4) Last of all but not least, be VERY HONEST with the officer. This interview in my opinion was nothing more than a rubber stamp interview where they want to get a "good feeling" about you and verify all your answers and if there are any new developments since you filed. I did mention parking tickets and I was a 245i case and she noted it down. She somehow knew I moved even though we filed our AR-11 only on the 7th of July.

Overall, I want to say, thanks to all the info I got from this board. I've been coming to this board since it started back in the late 90s. It's been a tremendous help.

Any questions, I will be monitoring this thread on and off and will try to answer. Of course, I'm not an attorney.

Aurelius '

>>So it may be possible if some one after applying can move and CIS gives an option(?) .
Seems,hopefully,same thing may apply for applicant who lives(90 days) partly in two different service areas in same state.If it is--It's good.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note: I am not a lawyer and I am just a lay man without any legal knwledge.!
Read the above STRICTLY at your own risk.
 
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