How to Succeed with Your Green Card Interview

The Green Card interview is a vital – yet nerve-wracking – part of the application process. Although you must pass it to obtain a Green Card for the United States, it’s not difficult to do if you’ve prepared appropriately.

In this article, we’ll go over some brief information about the Diversity Visa interview and then share some tips to help you succeed.

What is the Green Card Interview?

The Green Card interview is one of the last stages in the application process. If nothing else, it allows USCIS to confirm who you are and to conduct a more thorough background check. The interviewer will usually ask questions about your history and reason for moving to the US.

Your Diversity Visa interview will happen at your local US embassy or consulate. In most cases, the interview will be conducted in English. However, if you’re not fluent in English, you can bring an interpreter (a professional one). If the interviewer is fluent in your language, they’ll just speak to you directly.

Unless you’re applying for a marriage Green Card, you won’t be able to take anyone into the interview (other than a translator or lawyer). Most of the time, you won’t need a lawyer with you, but one can be helpful if you have some immigration or criminal issues that need to be addressed.

While the Green Card interview is important, getting too nervous is unnecessary. Providing you were honest on your application, and the answers you gave in the interview are consistent with this information, you should pass with flying colors.

Diversity Visa Interview Tips

The tips below are fairly general, but the only necessary specifics in the interview relate to you and your answers. So, here are our top Green Card interview tips to help you succeed.

Punctuality

This is a pretty obvious place to start: be on time for your interview. In fact, arrive early so you have time to find the interview location and relax a bit before you go in. It’s not unreasonable to be up to 45 minutes early for your Green Card interview.

Similarly, if your local US consulate or embassy is far away from your home address, consider staying nearby overnight. The last thing you want is to get stuck on the way and be late, so it might be worth spending some money on an overnight hotel.

Being late will heighten your anxiety and compromise your ability to focus on the questions being asked during the interview. While lateness isn’t something they mark you on in the Green Card interview, being late doesn’t look good and might annoy your interviewer.

Dress Code

Although there is no written dress code for a Green Card interview, how you dress also plays an important role in the decision process. The best option is to be formal and conservative. This is a suit for men, and women should wear business attire that isn’t too flashy.

While the interviewer won’t mark you on your clothes, it’s no secret that first impressions count. So, much like being on time, dressing properly is one of those unwritten factors that can drastically affect the outcome of your Diversity Visa interview.

Organize in Advance

You need to bring a lot of documents to your Green Card interview. These include the original copies of supporting documents, such as birth and marriage certificates, your passport, and more. Your invitation to interview will include a full list of everything you need to bring.

As you’ll have the information well in advance, ensure you’re prepared. Get all the documents together at least a week before your interview date, then check them over at least once. Considering how much notice you’ll have, there’s no excuse not to organize everything. Better still, have everything collected neatly in a folder so that you can access it immediately.

Avoid carrying many personal items with you, such as a purse stuffed with items you don’t need for the interview. This will make you look scattered and will make the process of entering the immigration building complicated. Most buildings where your interview is held prohibit cell phones and any items that could pose a threat to security, such as sharp objects and other potentially dangerous items.

Listen Carefully

Although you may be nervous during the interview, keep reminding yourself to listen carefully to the questions you are being asked. Some will be quite simple (such as asking about your birthday), whereas others will be more complex. You’ll be asked questions related to the information on your application form, which is to check you told the truth.

There’s no point in saying don’t be nervous because even the most confident people will get anxious in this kind of situation. However, you must try to remain calm and focus on what the interviewer is asking. None of the questions are designed to catch you out, but you could answer incorrectly if you don’t listen properly.

Take your time answering the questions and allow yourself to think about the questions being asked. However, don’t take too long to answer because this can look a bit suspicious. Achieve a balance, which you can do by practicing your answers before attending the interview. You’ll find example questions online or you can ask an immigration professional for help.

Be Honest

There’s no point in lying or misrepresenting yourself as part of your Green Card interview. It’s fair to assume that USCIS will find out eventually, and you could have your visa revoked.

The interviewer might ask about things including criminal or immigration history, and it can be tempting to tell them what you think they want to hear. However, this isn’t a great idea. Instead, be as honest as you can and tell them the truth as you remember it.

Finally, if you don’t know the answer to something or don’t understand a question, just say so. There’s no harm in this, and it’s better to own up rather than lie.

The Green Card interview is a vital step in the process; thorough preparation is essential. If you have applied online through the US Green Card Office valued added paid service, we are delighted to offer our assistance in preparing for your visa interview. Our goal is to help you avoid any errors and maximize your chances of success, ensuring a smooth approval process for your green card application.