This is Immigration Attorney Parviz Malakouti and if you are watching this video you are probably one of my clients and in this video
I'm going to talk about preparation for the
I-485 adjustment of status
Interview or the naturalization interview. This video applies equally for both.
We're going to talk about how the interview goes and how to listen to the questions and how to answer the questions.
Okay
so first of all, if I am there in with you in the interview,
which I likely will be, I will be seated right next to you.
Okay
I will have all of your application information in front of me
and I will be listening carefully to every question that is asked and answered by the
USCIS officer. The USCIS officer is going to ask you the questions and you have to answer. I do not answer for you.
But like I said, I will be following along and I know the answer to every question. I know the proper answer, the right answer,
the correct answer, the honest answer and I will be listening to
see if something is going wrong, or if potentially you have answered a question incorrectly.
This happens all the time
due to nerves people getting nervous and they answer a question incorrectly. Something, you know even basic about their life.
Only in those cases will, I pipe up and say something to
basically clear up the issue. Okay, when you are asked a question by the
USCIS officer, you need to listen very very carefully to the question. Okay. Listen to the whole question.
Do not start speaking until the entire question is finished so that you understand what the question is.
When you hear the question, you take as much time as necessary to consider that question before you start answer it.
If you don't understand the question,
you can ask and you should ask the USCIS officer to
rephrase the question.
If you didn't hear a question properly ask them to please repeat the question if you have to do that multiple times.
That's totally fine. What we don't want in any circumstance is for you to be guessing to a question.
You should never be guessing to a question that's being asked of you in a USCIS entered, okay?
Second point I want to make.
There are four type four answers which are perfectly acceptable
IF they're applicable. Those four answers are 1) yes
2) no, 3)I don't know and 4) I don't remember.
Yes. No. I don't know and I don't remember. Very very short answers.
If you're asked the question in which one of those four answers is APPLICABLE and you're not asked to explain,
that's totally fine. And in fact, that's what you should answer.
Okay, so
The moral of that story is that you should answer a question in as short away as possible without being evasive.
Answer the question and stop. There is no need to continue on explaining and trying to, you know
give stories and explanations about something. The USCIS officer is trained in this and if they want additional
explanation, they will ask for additional explanation. Okay.
The third point I want to make:
sometimes there are flare-ups.
Sometimes there's conflict between your lawyer, which would be me, and the
USCIS officer. This could happen for a variety of reasons. Sometimes it's related to
conflict about the seating arrangement, where I should be seated or
about the types of questions that the adjudicator is asking. Or maybe even about their tone or maybe about, you know, anything else.
If there is a conflict, okay, and something flares up, remain calm.
I want you to remain calm and want you to know that everything is under control.
I'm going to take care of whatever issue might come up.
Okay, so do your best not to get flustered because there's conflict or, you know, start thinking:
"Oh, it's all going downhill..." You know, it's not that way. A lot of times in USCIS office
Excuse me, USCIS interviews, there is a flare up between the lawyer and the adjudicator and once the issue is resolved
it can be completely back to normal.
Okay.
So it's very very important for you to keep calm while you're in in the interview
no matter how the interaction is between your lawyer and the USCIS officer. Fourth.
If you need to take a break for any reason, Okay, whether it be to use the bathroom or just
basically...having nerves, maybe needing to walk around for a quick second, that's totally fine.
Okay.
You turn to me or your lawyer (if somebody else has been sent in my place) and simply ask for a break.
Okay, and that's it.
You're entitled to pause the interview and you go outside, take your break or whatever, you know,
use the bathroom or whatever exactly whatever it is that you need exactly.
Fifth, okay:
It's very important to be respectful and cordial towards the USCIS officer
BUT not overly friendly. Okay. So what do I mean? I mean basically when we go in there when we go into the office you
should be respectful to the officer. Okay, you should say "please" and you should say "thank you."
If the adjudicator asks you you how your morning is going, you should say it's going fine.
Okay, or whatever your response is. Thank you. I'm doing well. Thank you. Okay
But,
we draw the line between that and
engaging in small talk with the USCIS officer. I don't want you talking to the USCIS officer about
random things in your life that don't have anything to do with the with the interview, Okay.
We don't want to be talking with the USCIS officer about what you did last weekend. You don't want to be
volunteering information about your immigration history or your love history. I had one
one client who went into an interview adjustment of status. Excuse me,
a naturalization interview and he started joking about how he had two previous marriages. That's a no-no.
Okay that raised the suspicion of the officer and it's something I had to deal with. Okay, and he was not asked about it
He just started talking about it just by himself. Okay, so we want to avoid situations like that. Okay.
So, um, that's how the interview goes. In a perfect interview, I don't have to say a single thing.
I just listen there and and I don't say anything.
Okay, but of course, I am there ready and able of course to chime in if necessary, okay.
That's it. As always if you have any questions, you know how to contact me by now.
You have my contact information and I'm looking forward to a successful
Interview and a success adjustment of status or naturalization interview. That's it.