"Priority date" has different meaning for different immigration benefits.
Priority date in the context of the N-400 refers the date the application is received.
To state that N-400 don't have priority dates implies that the long held terminology used on this forum (and other forums) is incorrect.
Yes, Bobsmyth, that is correct. That is exactly what I am saying. It is a misnomer. I blame USCIS for being sloppy about it.
The Adjudicating Officers know the distinctions, it is drilled into them in legal training before they ever touch an application or petition, and from being overturned on appeal when they are wrong (they don't want to be wrong again on the same thing). The paperpushers and computer programmers who design forms and computer application and systems do not understand immigration and nationality law and the customers suffer for it.
There are a lot of dates on an N-400. The date it is signed. The postmark date. The mailroom receipt date. The pre-populated data entry date. The date a check bounces and the date proper payment is received. Travel dates. Arrest dates and conviction dates, periods of probation and incarceration, for GMC. Then of course, there is the initial examination or interview date (which starts the 120 day clock). Finally the Oath date. OR in the alternative, the denial date. The N-336 filing deadline. The N-336 hearing date.
Different dates have different legal applications and different importance attached to them for specific purposes.
In the N-600 realm, numerous other dates come into play: child's LPR date, legitimation date, 16th, 18th or 21st birthdates, physical presence, residence (in the U.S.), divorce, legal vs. physical custody, marriage, adoption, and death dates. Effective dates and repeal dates (i.e. the Nationality charts).
The correct date is not a thing that can be easily dismissed, especially when you consider how bad we can be at math in this country or around the world.
Thank you for your indulgence. It feels good to vent sometimes.
