March 9, 2006

Local Office Procedures for Some Naturalization Cases

GT has learned that some United States Citizenship and Immigration Services ("USCIS") officers are requesting that applicants who appear for an interview, in connection with a naturalization matter, sign a waiver at the time of their interview. The waiver apparently states "I understand that in order to determine my eligibility for naturalization to US citizenship, the USCIS is authorized to verify information contained in my N-400 Application for naturalization, my immigration file(s), that which I provided during my interview, and information received from any other source. As a result, I hereby waive the requirement under Section 336 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, that the USCIS must render a determination on my N-400 Application for Naturalization within 120 days from the date of my naturalization interview/examination". We caution our clients and friends to consult with their immigration counsel prior to signing this type of a waiver, as it may not be in an applicant's best interests to allow USCIS to utilize any "additional information from any other source" and have an open-ended time table for the adjudication of the application.