Hi folks,
I tried searching for this subject, but could find very few specifics.
My fiancee is coming from Ukraine on May 1 I will be waiting outside of Customs to meet her
If anyone has passed through JFK in the past few months, could you give me a step by step breakdown of what she needs to do? All I remember of the arrival hall is that USC go to the right side, and all others to the left. I have heard that some POEs have a seperate line for immigrants--is this the case here?
An tips or advise would be most welcome or just point me in the right direction if you know where the info is located

Easiest thing would be for her to find the roving crowd control officer and ask... Once in line make sure she has her packet from the embassy ready and available and a filled out I-94. The officer at the booth will provide the rest of the needed instructions.

If I remember correctly, it was pretty straightforward. Like you said, USCs go off to the right, others go to the left. Then you pick up your luggage and go through customs. Just tell your fiance to never be afraid to ask, if she doesn't know!

Congrats on having made it this far.

It is quite straightforward. I came through in fall of 2005 with my now husband and stepson. It looked like it hasn't changed for about 50 years, so I doubt it's changed in the last two...

USC's go to the right in the Customs Hall, your fiancee will go to the left. If she's not sure, there will be a CPB officer around there to ask.

She will go to a little booth where a CPB officer sits. She gives him/her The Sealed Envelope (from the Consulate) containing all her paperwork and her passport. The officer will open the envelope and go through the papers and enter a few things in the computer. He/she will then probably ask her to do some minor biometrics (fingerprint, photo, maybe retinal scan.... I can't remember exactly). Then the officer will tell her to go to a smaller room off to the left. This place really looks like time forgot it... very 50's post modern bureaucrat style... dingy and unattractive. Lots of chairs there to collapse in while they finish the paperwork. There's a big, elevated counter at the front where another officer will look over her papers and put the I-94 in her passport and probably stamp the back of it with the temporary EAD. I checked my husband's passport for the temp EAD before leaving this room.

Then she walks through the doors to the inspection area (with those routine questions from the Ag inspectors about what she's bringing into the country... ). And THEN she walks through another set of doors where YOU are waiting for her and you all start your new life together!!

Best wishes....

Maya

It was pretty straight foward. When she gets off the plane, she will go down to immigration, there's an officer there directing people what line they have to go to. Once there, she will give the brown envelope, the officer will ask her to follow him/her to this room, it looks like a traffic ticket court, where the officers are sitting up on the podium, have a seat and after awhile they will call her name, stamp the I94, not sure if they are still issuing the 90das work permit, If so they will put the stamp on her passport and advise her to get married before the 90 days expired.

When I arrived from the UK, I stood in line with the non-residents, and presented the immigration officer with my 'mysterious brown envelope.' He ripped it open, flicked through the contents, and said 'Ah, wedding bells!' He then stamped my passport and wrote my A number on my I94. He then advised me to go to a room on my left to obtain my work authorization. (he gave me some papers to take with me to the room). I entered, and there were a few people sitting down. The officer at the main desk then informed me that I was in the wrong place. He directed me to the other side of the immigration officers' desks in the main terminal. I gave my docs to a man at the desk, he told me to wait, and in literally two minutes he whistled me over and gave me my passport with a work authorization stamp. Easy process, and I was needlessly apprehensive!

Thanks to everybody!
I forwarded her a link to this thread--it should ease her mind a little