Hi,

My fiance came in to the U.S. on the 21st.

We're looking at trying to apply for his social security card next week. I was confused about the whole SAVE system. When I called the main SS line, I was told that upon port of entry, that is sometimes considered an application for a social security card, and that's how you get into the system. How do you know if you've applied? Was there some form or document that was supposed to have been submitted at that time? I have heard nightmares of 2-3 month waits for SS numbers, and I am hoping to avoid that. Does anyone have any insight or experience with this?

Thanks for all of your help!

As a K-1, you need to apply at your local office. Wait for 3 weeks after entry before applying, however, just so that the SSA has time to get you into the SAVE system. I don't know which of you is the foreigner, the male or the female, but if you are the female, then as long as you haven't got married before applying, you should have no trouble getting a card. If you get married before applying, and want the card issued in your married name, then you will need to wait for your EAD card. That will take about 3 months after filing for AOS/EAD before you get it.

So the key to avoiding the 3-month wait is to get the card in your maiden name before you get married!!

If the foreign fiance is the male, then it shouldn't make any difference when you apply since you typically won't be changing your name.

As a point of reference, my fiancee first got a card in her maiden name, we then got married, then she updated it to her married name after she received her EAD card. We were married at the end of August, filed for EAD late September, and got the card early January.

G

If she enter as a K-1 she hasn't applied. That's only for people age or older that have been issued an immigrant visa and ALL K visa classifications are nonimmigrant.

My fiance got here Wednesday. We were hoping to get married next week or so in the courthouse. Are you saying that in order to avoid the delay in getting the SSN we will have to wait 3 weeks to get married or could we just get married then apply for her SSN using her maiden name, then later apply for an updated card? We want to get married as soon as possible and we want to get her SSN as soon as possible.

I thought the process of changing your name occured when you made the change on your SSN not simply because you were married.

If she enter as a K-1 she hasn't applied. That's only for people age 18 or older that have been issued an immigrant visa and ALL K visa classifications are nonimmigrant.

Go ahead and get married whenever you had planned to get married. Waiting a two weeks to apply for the SSN is plenty for her info to be entered into the SAVE system. If it's not there by then it probably isn't going to make it there.

SSA will not assign an SSN or issue a card if her status is expired or within 14 days of expiring, so with the K-1 status being good for 90 days that only give her 76 days to be assigned an SSN based on the K-1 status. The longer you wait to apply the more you cut into those 76 days.

The main thing with applying in the married name either for the original card or for a name change is the marriage certificate must have either her age or date of birth. Otherwise, she's going to need another identity document that SSA will accept with the married name and that pretty much ends that until she has an EAD card with the married name.
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http://policy.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0100203210 RM 00203.210 Changing Numident Data

The applicant may submit either:

One legal name change document showing both the old and new names (e.g., a court order for a name change or a marriage document. The document must also show either (1) a description or photograph of the person or (2) biographical information that can be compared with the Numident data; or

When the name change document does not show either a photograph of the person or biographical information that can be compared with the Numident data, then, in addition to the name change document, the applicant must also submit two identity documents listed in RM 00203.200E. One of the submitted identity documents must show the old name (the name on the latest Numident record) AND the other submitted identity document must show the new name (the name to be shown on the corrected SSN card). The identity documents submitted must show either a photograph of the applicant or provide biographical information that can be compared with the Numident data.

a. Bride Takes Groom’s Last Name

In all 50 U.S. States (this means the 50 States, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa) the bride may take her husband's last name (surname or family name) as her new last name. (EXAMPLE: Jane Doe married John Jones and she may change her name to Jane Jones.)

Interim Guidance: If the bride wants to take her husband's last name, accept the marriage document as a legal name change for the bride if the new name can be derived from the marriage document; even if the marriage document only shows each partner's first names, the bride's prior surname and husband's surname. The marriage document alone can be accepted as evidence of identity for both the old and new names when it meets the criteria described in RM 00203.200G.2.
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http://policy.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0100203200#G2

2. Determine if the ID Document Has Required Information

Ask the applicant to submit one or more documents that show the person's name AND provide:

Biographical information in addition to the person's name that the reviewer can compare with the data on the SS-5 (e.g., date of birth, age, or parents' names) and/or Physical information that the reviewer can compare with the applicant (e.g., physical description, photograph).

NOTE: A non-picture identity document must have the person's name as well as information that can be compared to the Numident, the applicant or other documents submitted (e.g., age, date of birth, or parents' names).
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C. Procedure - Immigration Document as Evidence of Legal Name

When issuing immigration documents, the Department of State and DHS issue them in the person's legal name. The legal name is also generally the name in which the foreign passport was issued.

When an alien applies for an SSN card, presume the name on the immigration document is the legal name unless the applicant presents evidence of a legal name change (e.g., marriage) that occurred after the immigration document was issued.

In cases where an alien applies for a replacement SSN card and submits an immigration document showing a name that is different from the name on the prior Numident record, accept the immigration document as evidence of the legal name. In these cases, the prior SSN card may have been issued in a name that was not the NH’s legal name.

Note: Also need proof of work authorized alien status.
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http://policy.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0100203200
RM 00203.200 Evidence of Identity for an SSN Card

6. Documents for Adult Age 18 and Older

ALIEN: Adult Age 18 and older

1. Primary Evidence

Request a current U.S. immigration document and an unexpired foreign passport.

-- Form I-551, Permanent Resident Card (includes temporary I-551 stamp/machine readable immigrant visa (MRIV) in combination with an unexpired foreign passport when the I-551 Permanent Resident Card has not yet been issued)

-- Form I-94, Arrival/departure Record in combination with an unexpired foreign passport

-- Form I-766, Employment Authorization card

-- Form I-688B, Employment Authorization card
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If they can verify her work authorized status through SAVE with her maiden name, this should stop them from sending the G-845 when applying with the married name as long as the marriage certificate has her age or date of birth:

http://policy.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0100203735
RM 00203.735 Requesting Online (Primary) Verification By SAVE

E. PROCEDURE—ONLINE SAVE QUERY RESPONSE INFORMATION DOES NOT AGREE WITH
IMMIGRATION DOCUMENT

1. Name

e. Applicant Has Changed His/Her Name But SAVE Query Response Shows Old
Name

In some cases, the applicant may have changed his/her name after DHS issued the immigration document (e.g., he/she has married and is now using the spouse’s last name) but does not present an immigration
document showing the new name. In these cases, the DHS system reflects the new name only when the person provided the name change information to DHS and requested to have his/her immigration record changed to show the new name.

When the SAVE query response shows the old name that is shown on the immigration document presented and not the new name on the identity document presented, do not consider this a name discrepancy for
enumeration purposes. See RM 00203.200 when the applicant presents an identity document in the new name that is more recent than the immigration document to determine if the identity document is
acceptable. Tell the applicant he/she must report the name change to DHS so that DHS can update its records.

NOTE FROM ME: Procedure tells the SSA office to tell you to report the name change to DHS, not that the application can't be processed and that's just what you will be doing when the AOS paperwork is submitted.
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It's just that simple. LOL

If you can call your local SS office, you can ask nicely and see if she's in the SAVE system. I did this at my local office & they were fine about it...

How did you get the local office number? Unless you go in and ask for it you normally get directed to the SSA 800#.

It was in the telephone book -- but Portland is not a big city! It did take me about an hour to get through to them, though...

Our 'horror' story of a long wait for the SSN was that James's name had been recorded in the system incorrectly. They take the name off the I-94 that you fill out at POE, and he has bad handwriting (MiniRANT: why don't they double check the 10 printed documents that are handed to them at the same time!?! We know its his own fault ultimately, but come on! Rant over) so a few letters came out wrong, it was easy enough to fix, just a quick trip back to the airport, but it took forever to figure out thats why he wasn't in the system and caused a long delay.

Since she is already in the country my advice on that would be, if you wait a reasonable amount of time and she is still not in the SAVE system, look at the I-94 and make sure it is very clear, if it isn't maybe call the office at her POE and ask them to double check? The lady who fixed it at Logan Airport for James said she saw 10-15 of those a day.

Just an update- I called the local office, and after being placed on hold for 30 minutes, I got a nice man who told me that Amed is in the system! So we're going Thurs morning to apply!

Thanks for the help!

I don't want to rain on your parade, but what exactly did the guy at the SSA office explain "in the system" to mean? For the application to be cleared based on the SAVE query his name has to be spelled correctly (allowed one letter to be off), his date of birth has to be 100% correct and it must show "Temporary Employment Authorized." Without all three of those the G-845 will need to be sent.

After waiting almost three weeks following entry we went to the SSA office and she was still not in the system. We went ahead and had her information entered manually. Her SS card arrived six days later. Didn't seem like a really big deal.

You got your card six days after you went to the SSA office, so I don't doubt that part, but I find it very hard to believe that the SSA office sent a G-845 and got it back in time for you to get the card 6 days later. I guess they could have faxed it, but immigration and SSA offices normally don't fax G-845s to each other.

I am thankful that Claudeth had a fairly easy time the the social security thingy

I don't know about the G-845 and figured it's not my problem to worry about. All I cared about was getting my fiancee her SS card. As I said we had it in 6 days, and I was happy and a bit surprised. Like I said, it wasn't too difficult.

:yes