Your application lists a different address than the one you just gave. Which is current, and when did you move?

“Your application lists a different address than the one you just gave. Which is current, and when did you move?” is a practice question about mismatched answers for a marriage-based green card interview at a USCIS field office. A real officer may ask it in other words, ask something else, or skip it. Practice can help you explain your own facts. It cannot tell you what USCIS will decide.

What is the officer checking with this question?

The officer may need to determine whether the difference reflects a move after filing, a mailing address, or an error. The dates help connect the address on the application with the address you use now. This question gives you a chance to identify the actual change or mistake without assuming that two different addresses describe the same period.

What might the officer ask next?

• When did you stop living at the address on the form?
• Is either address used only for mail?
• Did both spouses move to the current home together?

The next question usually comes from the words in your answer. If you name a person, a place, or a month, expect a question about it. The guide to green card interview follow-up questions explains how to practice past the first answer.

How do you prepare to answer it?

Review the address on the filed application and the date you began living at your present home. Separate where you live from where you receive mail if they differ. Identify whether your earlier spoken answer was wrong or whether the facts changed after filing. If you cannot recall the exact moving day, give only the period you know. Ask your lawyer how to address an error or update in your actual case rather than assuming practice changes the filing.

Answer from your own memory, in your own words. Do not learn a script or a sample answer. If your spouse remembers a detail differently, first check whether you mean the same event. Ask your lawyer about any concern with your forms or documents.

Can you practice this question out loud for free?

Yes. Choose "Answer it now, free". The officer asks this question first. You answer out loud, and the officer follows up on what you said. You can try 3 questions free, and you do not need documents. Feedback comes after the session, not while you speak.

More mismatched answers questions

• You mentioned moving in together in a particular month and year. What was the address of that first shared residence?
• You each gave an account of a recent meal. Please state again what you had and who prepared it.
• How do you communicate with each other day to day if you do not share a fluent common language?
• The lease or mortgage shows only one name. Explain how both of you live at that address.
• Walk me through a typical weekday morning in your household, step by step.
• What medications, if any, does your spouse take regularly?
• You gave different dates for when you decided to marry. Can you clarify the timeline together?

Read the mismatched answers topic guide, or see all 91 interview questions.