Hello everyone,

i would really like to ask all those who have been thru jfk poe to share their experiences
although those from other poe experiences will also be helpful to know

thanks in advance ,
mala

What is JFK

Jfk is John F Kennedy airport ,
i wanted to ask people with 1 st time poe experiences ?

I think its common for all POE, Accepting packet that brown envelop then Fingerprint and thats all pretty much same. ANy way doc please update ur interview questions once u done with interview i know its coming up and i am looking forward to it. We hope you get it. Someone also said something about Embassy not scheduling interviews for month of agust i think how is that possible when u got August intterview coming up am i right?

I wrote this post a while back for a guy who was meeting his fiancee at JFK... I found it with the search function. We came through 2 years ago, but from what I've read, it hasn't changed much, if at all:

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[which line to enter], 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 [because we REALLY wanted the temp EAD and arranged to detour on our entry, just to go through JFK and get the EAD].

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

dear maya,
thank you very much for this post
really appreciable
i wanted to ask in case u have idea the cr-1 visas also need the ead stamp ?
coz i heard the cr-1 are supposed to get ssn within 4-6 weeks of entry in the us
however i m unsure about this so i asked
thanks a tonne,
mala

My understanding is: if the immigrating spouse checks "yes" in the box on the DS-230 form (asking if you want a SSN), then he/she will get one in the mail (only if you enter with CR-1) a few weeks after arrival in the US.

You might want to search or ask this question on the CR-1 forum or the Working in America forum....

Best of luck!

Maya

thanks a tonne maya ,
-mala

Great details, Maya62! Yes it is pretty much the same even now. My husband arrived in late May. He was questioned for about half an hour and as I wrote in another detailed post, they gave him a hard time. Another friend on VJ, merijan, said when her husband arrived in late June, he was given a hard time too, questioned a lot in detail, and kept for hours (however, he was Muslim so go figure... discrimination of course...). However much mental torture they try to give, in the end they let allow our loved ones into America!

Going to JFK was a breeze, on the plane they will give you the I-94 to fill out, we both went through the citizen line, I was going to go to the resident line with my wife then the custom officer said we both can go. Once my wife(fiancee at the time) reached the booth, gave the office the brown envelop, they took her fingerprint and picture right at the both itself, then the officer leaves the booth and ask to follow him. The officer than give the evnelope to the other custome officers that are seating behind the boots.

It looks almost like a traffic court ticket, It's a high Podium like you expect some judges to be the only difference, custom officers are up there with the computers, hmmm i should say those computers looked even kinda DATED, maybe they have some new ones now.

After the officer process the brown envelope, He calls your name, give you the passport, and remind us to get married within 90 days, and that was it we were on the way out.

We didn't have to transfer since my folks from NY went to to India also, so we stayed in NY for a couple of days before flying to SFO.

One problem that is now resolved,

2 years ago, when flying international some airline still give you the 70lbs limit, but once you reach the US, now you fall under US regulation and now you can only take 50lbs. I think know all airlines have the 70lbs limit requirement including international flight(Another way to fleece customers in my opinion)

Just relax, be yourself and think of your sweetheart you are about to start your new life with, then everyting else seems non existent.

thank you so much nikita2charles
this was very informative n encouraging for me coz i will be travelling alone 3 weeks after my xam though my hubby is there with me for my interview but only for 5 days with me in this visit
regards,
mala

thanks eileen ( u have always been a bountiful of knowlegde ) n thanks to maya - for her very useful info

Mala,


No Offense May I ask Do you have a real job? or you just sit on computer all day typing questinos and answers on visa jounrey. Seriously get a life.

What kind of question is that? Whether Mala has a job or not is none of your business. Hopefully moderators are taking note of this poster and ban him/her from vj site.

thanks ssma
if i am free and done with my exams and going to start my residency soon in usa n in free time i am trying to help people why people like DAVIDVJ are having probs i really dont know .
mala

DavidVJ,

You leave pinkydoc alone. She has been an immense help on this forum and a tremendous support and friend as well to all. If you are not interested in reading these posts, don't. You are not obligated to read them.

Someone's bitter and taking it out on other people.

doccute...keep posting, ignore this guy.

nimble, ssma



Stop sucking on Mala Doc_Cute. I know she is fine you people cant help it dammn brownies

Thanks for the questions, Mala. We'll be detouring through JFK for the EAD stamp too

Good luck with your interview.

Davidvj is a bully
He has been picking on me too.
anyway Mala I wish you a safe journey and a happy married life.

Don't worry about This David, he's a new comer, He should have plenty of his own fish to fry. He has the option to just skip the post, and even skip the south asian forums and go get his reading somewhere else. No need to even reply to such individual as people who are always negative or nosy only attract bad vibes, some people take pleasure to annoy other folks, somehow they get a high from it, all we can do is Pray for his sould. May God bless you David.

thnks guys for the help
jfk was pretty cool n awesome
they just took fingerprints n the sealed envelope the lady in the immigration countrer opens it n puts a stamp in passport with daTE of entry n visa status
i m since 1 week to ny n it is just a lovely place i m so glad with my lovely hubby finally we are together for always

Welcome to the U.S.!

Congrats doc cute!

So you did not get questioned at all, at JFK POE? I guess they are nicer to the ladies.

Happy you are having a great time in NY, all the best for years of happiness!

Welcome!! Good to know that everything went smooth. Immi officer didn't ask a single question to my wife either.

Congratulations and welcome!!

welcome to usa.

Hello. I am now wondering about the EAD stamp. We are thinking that it would be best to go through JFK as the port of entry because of the EAD stamp. I looked on the uscis website and saw the amount. Would he pay that at the port of entry? I know that within 90 days of his arrival we will be filing AOS and the EAD is included with that. It seems that paying for the EAD at JFK would be a waste of money since we would have to file again soon for the EAD, but at least if he comes through JFK and gets the stamp he would be able to work immediately and save up the $1,010 for the adjustment of status.

Congrats and Welcome to the Big Apple.

I don't know what borough you are in, but I am sure you'll find plenty of stuff to do, lot of indian there. Being in NYC, we have a large mixed of indian descent from the carribean so don't be suprise if people take you for Guyanese or Trinidadian. Asking you about Roti and all kind off dishes that are common in the west indies but don't have them in India or under different name or have changed so much from the time the british brought the indians to the west indies. Grow up in NYC so if you need any info even though i am on the west coast still pretty familiar with the place.

Hi Imran and Safiya! There is no charge for the EAD at JFK, they give it for free and in fact you don't even have to ask for it, it is given automatically. It is valid for only 90 days though. That is hard because most employers do not want to give a job to someone whose work permission will run out in 3 months. My husband gave many job applications but finally only got some work in a gas station for a few weeks.

When you give the AOS application, the EAD once granted will be valid for one year, then it has to be renewed. But when the AOS is approved and green card granted (often within 3 months of applying, but sometimes delayed for a year or more), the separate EAD permission is not needed, because anyone with green card can work anywhere in USA (for the validity of the green card, usually for 2 years).

Mazel tov & Swagatam, Mala!

Hello ELW. Thank you so much for your response. I know the EAD given at JFK is temporary, but right now I'm thinking that would be a good idea. He would be able to work to save up for the AOS, I won't have $1,010 extra. I wonder if others that have gotten the EAD at JFK found the EAD useless. I wonder if it was hard to find a job with that. I know you said your hubby had a hard time. We are still waiting on our NOA2, so we still have lots of time to decide.

My husband got the temp EAD at JFK and I think both of us were really glad he did. He worked for the first 90 days instead of sitting around the house. He then took some time off while we waited for the 1 year EAD... we had pre-arranged this with the employer. I think it really helped his mental state to be a contributor right away, rather than a "dependent". I think maybe a lot of men have difficulty being a "dependent" when they have always been socialized to believe they should be "providers".

But everyone is different... it may not work for you, especially with that gap between the temp EAD and the 1 year EAD. Although some people believe you can work in between there... I haven't ever seen any conclusive documentation that it is OK or is NOT OK to work through that gap.

Best wishes!

Maya

If I was in that situation, it would have helped me as well.

Working in between (after temp EAD expires and before one year EAD is granted) is not really legal. The arguments on VJ are from people who bend the law a bit...

I agree that generally it is really hard for guys to just sit around the house all day, they need to feel useful. While waiting to get a job, my guy found a great volunteer opportunity at http://www.volunteermatch.org/. I highly recommend it for anyone wanting to keep busy! (Also, volunteer jobs are useful as references on a resume and the volunteer work often leads to job opportunities later.)

An employer could face problems because they need the EAD to comply with the I-9 form. But if they don't care and let the person continue working, that's their problem.

Anyway, great advice about working for 90 days and the mental state. I agree and think it could make a serious difference in frame of mind (especially for a lot of men -- and there's nothing meant to be sexist in that comment). We'll be routing through JFK just for this reason!

I and my fiancee came thru the Seattle POE and it was smooth. Essentially this IV/NIV visa line was of 2 people only.
The officer asked 3 questions:
What do you do ?(for me)
Do you have any children ? (for my fiancee)
When are you getting married ? (for my fiancee)

He took a detailed look at all the documents in the brown envelope and then stamped the I-94, and showed us the way to the customs.

The validity of the GC is only 2 years these days ? I thought it was 10 yrs, isn't it ? The one that I had was valid for 10 yrs. (I had gotten it thru employment based category though not via family based category)

Journeyman,

K1 and K3 visa holders are usually given 2 year conditional permanent resident cards when they apply for adjustment of status because they are immigrating based on a fairly new marriage. I have heard of people whose AOS interviews were very close to their 2 year anniversaries, who got very sympathetic and alert IO's who waited to order card production until after that 2 year wedding anniversary and thus were able to order production of a 10 year green card. But most get 2 year cards first, then remove conditions and get 10 year cards.

Leastwise that's my understanding...

Cheers,
maya

Mala,

If you and hubby are still in NYC I hope you get the chance to come out to Queens, take the E.F. R or 7 train to Jackson Heights - 74th St. It's a real Little India(and Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal...). Lots of great restaurants and saree shops. Also there is another smaller Indian area in Manhattan around 28th St., but Jackson Heights is much more varied. I also happened to visit a largely Indo-Caribbean area this weekend -Richmond Hill. Very interesting how food and music blends Indian and native island elements. It's hard finding veg food there, but when my friend and I did, it was to die for...Based on that alone I could see G and I living there.