*** URGENT SITUATION *** Please help !

P

PunetoNJ

Registered Users (C)
Dear friends,

We've had an unfortunate situation in the family where my father-in-law passed away in India.

To add to this, tomorrow (Jan 12th) is our naturalization interview (my wife and I)

My wife is flying out of the country to be with her family tomorrow night itself.

The problem is, in case we're granted the citizenship, we become US citizens and then have to surrender our greencards. We still keep our foreign passports (since US doesn't care about dual-citizenship)

So can we still travel to India on that foreign passport given that we're US citizens ?

Alternatively, in case we do pass the interviews, could we request them about re-scheduling the oath part since it is here I believe where we hand in our Greencards.

What are our options ?

Could we take the naturalization letter to India and apply for U.S. passports from there ? After being a US citizen, we could probably leave the U.S. using a foreign passport however I don't be US citizens can enter the U.S. on a foreign passport. Is it easy to apply for a first-time U.S. passport in India ?
Is the procedure straightforward enough ?

Or is our best alternative to ask them to re-schedule the oath in case we pass the interview ? Or simply ask them to re-schedule the entire interview ?

Your inputs are most appreciated.

Thanks !

-PunetoNJ.
 
My understanding is, once you become US citizen (oath), you are not supposed to use Indian passport. The best thing to do is wait until the end of interview conversation and when the IO is about to assign a oath date, tell the IO about the emergency situation and request an oath date sometime in next month. This way the IO finishes making the required decision on the case instead of asking you to come again for interview. Then you can go to India using Indian passport with GC, come back and notify the trip on the oath letter and finish oath. Once the IO gives you form N-652 with approved checked on it and fixes oath at a later date (as you requested), you should be fine.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Sorry to hear your loss of family member.
GC will need to be surrendered at the time of oath. if you take oath tomorrow (after you pass interview/test); you will not be able to travel until a day later (get US passport and get Indian visa etc).
Attend interview/test tomorrow and schedule oath for a later date; while you are at USCIS, ask immigration officer for appropriate procedure to travel while waiting for oath.
Unless you live in a city from where you can fly non-stop direct to India, you will need passport;assuming you take oath tomorrow and fly with naturalization certificate instead of passport. Even if you can fly to India without passport, obtaining US passport in India may be daunting task.
 
According to Indian laws - When you accept a foreign citizenship, you automatically loose your Indian citizenship (so you can not use your Indian passport anymore). You will have to apply for and Indian Visa or OCI (which by the way is not Indian citizenship. You will not be able to vote as an OCI).
Your best bet is to ask the IO to not give you same day oath and to schedule your oath maybe a month from now or after whenever you know you will be back. This should not be an issue. You will be able to travel with your indian passport and your greencard.
 
PunetoNJ said:
Dear friends,

We've had an unfortunate situation in the family where my father-in-law passed away in India.

To add to this, tomorrow (Jan 12th) is our naturalization interview (my wife and I)

My wife is flying out of the country to be with her family tomorrow night itself.

The problem is, in case we're granted the citizenship, we become US citizens and then have to surrender our greencards. We still keep our foreign passports (since US doesn't care about dual-citizenship)

So can we still travel to India on that foreign passport given that we're US citizens ?

Alternatively, in case we do pass the interviews, could we request them about re-scheduling the oath part since it is here I believe where we hand in our Greencards.

What are our options ?

Could we take the naturalization letter to India and apply for U.S. passports from there ? After being a US citizen, we could probably leave the U.S. using a foreign passport however I don't be US citizens can enter the U.S. on a foreign passport. Is it easy to apply for a first-time U.S. passport in India ?
Is the procedure straightforward enough ?

Or is our best alternative to ask them to re-schedule the oath in case we pass the interview ? Or simply ask them to re-schedule the entire interview ?

Your inputs are most appreciated.

Thanks !

-PunetoNJ.
Click to expand...
Sorry to know the loss of family member.

Attend interview tomorrow if passed inform the officer that you will be taking oath at later date. if you and your wife know when you will be back to US then ask for that date for the oath so that you both can attent oath same date. Make sure when both of you will be back and decide the oath date (better 6-8 days after you come to US) and you or your wife should request same date oath (future date)after interview is compleate and officer will give you that date . If you are coming back on Jan 21 then you can request for Oath date 26 and your wife can also ask for 26th.
NJ office has Oath 3 times 11AM ,2PM, 4PM
 
Thanks everyone for their inputs.
Folks, is it best to tell the officer before the interview about this
situation or afterwards when they ask us what day oath we'd like ?

Don't we have to hand in our greencards to them as we walk into their office ? If we pass the interview, don't they enter into the system that
we're now citizens ? Or is it that we strictly become citizens only after taking the oath ?

BTW, we're not Indian Citizens but British Citizens and both UK and US don't care about dual citizenship. Therefore, I'm hoping that we can travel on our British passports and simply ask them to postpone the oath to a later date.

-PunetoNJ.
 
PunetoNJ said:
Thanks everyone for their inputs.


Folks, is it best to tell the officer before the interview about this
situation or afterwards when they ask us what day oath we'd like ?
------------ NJ DO officers dont ask on what date oath you like as they have same day oath 3 times. once the officer says "you have passed the interview" and asks you you sign on Photogaphs you should inform that you are unable to take the oath same day or 12th and explain the reason then officer can give you future date or will guide you. NJ has good officers.

Don't we have to hand in our greencards to them as we walk into their office ?
---------You enter the building, security check.
You go to floor 15 and you again meet security officer he looks at your interview notice and directs you to give the interview letter at window that is Left side in hall. You go to window give the letter and wait in hall, you will find about 70-100 people wafting in hall. Your name will be called after sometime and they will announce the door number. You go to that door and meet the officer. You follow the officer to his office. He/she will ask you to raise your Right hand to tell the truth. Officer will ask you DL, GC passport. Officer will check the N400, Yes/No questions and then questions and writing and reading. If you pass the officers gives you a form tick marked that you have passed the interview. At that time you should inform that you don’t want to take the oath today.
Officer returns GC DL, passport. They take the GC when they take your signature on naturalization certificate and the same officer doesn’t take the signature on naturalization certificate. Different officer prepare the naturalization certificate and takes your signature and also takes your GC.

 If we pass the interview, don't they enter into the system that
we're now citizens ?
Or is it that we strictly become citizens only after taking the oath ?
----------- you become US citizen only after taking the oath and you get Certificate after oath.

BTW, we're not Indian Citizens but British Citizens and both UK and US don't care about dual citizenship. Therefore, I'm hoping that we can travel on our British passports and simply ask them to postpone the oath to a later date.

-PunetoNJ.
Click to expand...
---------------
 
Go to the interview tomorrow and make sure your oath date is some time in the future. You can keep your GC until the oath AND since you are not a US citizen until your oath you can safely travel with your current passport.
 
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