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If you have been scheduled for a naturalization interview following your submission of Form N-400, but you will be unable to make it to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) office on that day, how can you reschedule? Although this should be a simple logistical matter, it's definitely one you want to handle properly, to avoid delays or even disaster in getting your U.S. citizenship approved. We'll provide details here.
If at all possible, you should attend your naturalization interview on the day it is scheduled. However, if you truly cannot make the scheduled appointment—for example, because of illness or a medical or family emergency—you can ask USCIS for a new date. In fact, USCIS strongly prefers that people who have any sort of contagious illness cancel their appointments, for the sake of others around them.
Whatever you do, do not simply skip the interview date. If you do, USCIS is likely to close your naturalization case. Then you will have to start all over again and reapply and pay the fee anew.
To request a reschedule of your citizenship interview, the two main methods include:
You might want to do both. Also check your interview notice, in case it gives you a new or different way to contact USCIS about the reschedule.
First, try calling USCIS's Contact Center to see if it can help. Getting to talk to a live person, however, can be nearly impossible. Your best bet is to start the process early in the day, since you might be asked to await a call-back. If all goes well, they will forward your request to the USCIS office handling your case (the one serving the geographical area where you live and where the interview was scheduled to be held).
Separately or in addition, it's worth writing to the USCIS office where the interview will happen, to explain the situation. Include a request that you be given a new interview date, and mention any pertinent scheduling information, such as (in a medical emergency) the length of time that you will be hospitalized or homebound. When you send in your request, be sure to enclose a copy of the interview notice that USCIS sent you.
Use the sample letter, below, as a guide. Do not send the letter to the same address that you first sent your application—that is a USCIS Service Center, and once it has transferred your file to your local USCIS office, it has no power over your case.
[Your address and the date]
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Citizenship Unit
[Address from which the interview notice came]
RE: [Your full name and A-number]; Request for Reschedule
I am unable to attend the citizenship interview that you set for [date].The reason is that [explain your reason]. Please reschedule me for a later date. I can be reached at the address above, or by telephone at [your number].
Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Very truly yours,
In order to qualify for a new naturalization interview date, you will need to show "good cause," and that you are prevented from attending the scheduled interview for reasons beyond your control.
"I'm not ready yet!" is not an acceptable excuse. If you simply have not prepared for the exams adequately, we recommend that you attend the interview anyway, to show that you're still interested. If the only problem is that you can't pass the English or civics exam, you'll get a second chance; the USCIS officer who meets with you will reschedule you to come back within 90 days.
Ultimately, the USCIS officer to whom you write has discretion over whether to grant the reschedule. (See 8 C.F.R. § 103.2(b)(9) )
It typically takes USCIS at least four weeks to respond to your request. If you don't hear back from USCIS about your request within six weeks or more, get in touch (possibly again) with USCIS's Contact Center.