Confused about CR1 and SS Card

[Techbrarian 0]

Hi,

My husband got here at the end of January and we've been waiting patiently for his SS Card to come in the mail and it hasn't. We DID receive his Green Card just last week.

Can he work without the SS Card, using the Green Card instead, or do we have to wait on it still?

AND

####### is taking so long and where should we call to find out.

Thanks!

- Sam

[lucyrich 19]

Congrats!

He probably will at least need a social security NUMBER in order to work, even if he doesn't necessarily have to show the card itself. He may be requested to show the card, too. Anyway, if this is his first time to get a SSN, he probably has no way of knowing his number until they send him the card.

Go to http://www.ssa.gov and figure out your nearest local SSA office. Call them up and/or visit them to figure out what to do.

Checking the appropriate boxes on the immigration forms to have a SS number assigned automatically upon CR-1 entry seems to work most of the time (it worked for us), but I've also heard quite a few reports of it failing. It's most definitely not guaranteed. So don't keep waiting indefinitely, call them and see what's up.

[YuAndDan 153]

From what I have seen CR-1 visas tend to not get an SSN automatically, you will need to visit SSA office and apply for one.

Many employers will give you up to 30 days to produce the SSN card for them to be able to collect income tax.

Moving to moving and life in USA.

Edited March 6, 2009 by YuAndDan

[Techbrarian 0]

According to this he can just use his Green Card:

http://www.visajourney.com/wiki/index.php/Permanent_Resident

I guess I'll have to call the SS Card office in Roanoke and see what's up. We DID send in an AR-11 since my mom's address in KY was on all the forms and now we live in VA. The Green Card went to mom's. I guess what we need in order to fill out for the SS Card is just his foreign passport AND his Green Card?

Need to rectify the work situation soon, husband is getting ansy sitting about all day with nothing to do but clean house and play with the cat.

From what I have seen CR-1 visas tend to not get an SSN automatically, you will need to visit SSA office and apply for one.

Many employers will give you up to 30 days to produce the SSN card for them to be able to collect income tax.

Moving to moving and life in USA.

[trinket 30]

According to this he can just use his Green Card:

http://www.visajourney.com/wiki/index.php/Permanent_Resident

I guess I'll have to call the SS Card office in Roanoke and see what's up. We DID send in an AR-11 since my mom's address in KY was on all the forms and now we live in VA. The Green Card went to mom's. I guess what we need in order to fill out for the SS Card is just his foreign passport AND his Green Card?

Need to rectify the work situation soon, husband is getting ansy sitting about all day with nothing to do but clean house and play with the cat.

From what I have seen CR-1 visas tend to not get an SSN automatically, you will need to visit SSA office and apply for one.

Many employers will give you up to 30 days to produce the SSN card for them to be able to collect income tax.

Moving to moving and life in USA.

Most of the CR-1/IR-1 applicants have to go to SS office and file for SSN. I did the same, your husband can go there just with his passport. They will just need the Alien registration number from his passport, give them your new address adn you should get SSN within 2 weeks in mail.

[Techbrarian 0]

Would have been really nice to know this on the day he got here...sigh. 1.5 months of wasted time waiting for this #######. Going to the SS office tomorrow or Wednesday. Adding this ####### to my wiki about immigration....

[trinket 30]

Would have been really nice to know this on the day he got here...sigh. 1.5 months of wasted time waiting for this #######. Going to the SS office tomorrow or Wednesday. Adding this ####### to my wiki about immigration....

Don't worry, you said your husband did receive his GC. So that means USCIS has processed your husband's file and I do think that indicates that he has a SSN ready already. Maybe they just don't post SSN to CR-1 filers.

If you go tomorrow and SSN is already in the system, you will get it the same day.

Best wishes

[LA80 3]

Would have been really nice to know this on the day he got here...sigh. 1.5 months of wasted time waiting for this #######. Going to the SS office tomorrow or Wednesday. Adding this ####### to my wiki about immigration....

Sorry to hear you waited that long, but do not get too annoyed. Save your nerves. It happens all the time. When I went to see what happened with my SSN, I was not even in the system a month later, and I got here on CR1 too. Then, they wanted to send my international version of birth certificate to be translated!

Good news is that your husband can apply locally. Just bring passport (green card), birth certificate (in English or international version), fill out a form, and he should get his SSN card in 10 business days.

[MrsCat 6]

Would have been really nice to know this on the day he got here...sigh. 1.5 months of wasted time waiting for this #######. Going to the SS office tomorrow or Wednesday. Adding this ####### to my wiki about immigration....

Sorry to hear that. Sometimes CR-1s get the SSN right away in the mail, others have to attend the office for it to show up.

But the good thing is that he should already have a # assigned, so they'll be able to print off a piece of paper with his # on it. And one should arrive in the mail in 7-10 days once you head into the office.

The same thing happened to me. But mine got lost in the mail 2x for 2 months. Finally got it though.

[trinket 30]

Would have been really nice to know this on the day he got here...sigh. 1.5 months of wasted time waiting for this #######. Going to the SS office tomorrow or Wednesday. Adding this ####### to my wiki about immigration....

Sorry to hear you waited that long, but do not get too annoyed. Save your nerves. It happens all the time. When I went to see what happened with my SSN, I was not even in the system a month later, and I got here on CR1 too. Then, they wanted to send my international version of birth certificate to be translated!

Good news is that your husband can apply locally. Just bring passport (green card), birth certificate (in English or international version), fill out a form, and he should get his SSN card in 10 business days.

?? what's the need of birth certificate? I was never asked for BC while applying SSN.

[LA80 3]

Would have been really nice to know this on the day he got here...sigh. 1.5 months of wasted time waiting for this #######. Going to the SS office tomorrow or Wednesday. Adding this ####### to my wiki about immigration....

Sorry to hear you waited that long, but do not get too annoyed. Save your nerves. It happens all the time. When I went to see what happened with my SSN, I was not even in the system a month later, and I got here on CR1 too. Then, they wanted to send my international version of birth certificate to be translated!

Good news is that your husband can apply locally. Just bring passport (green card), birth certificate (in English or international version), fill out a form, and he should get his SSN card in 10 business days.

?? what's the need of birth certificate? I was never asked for BC while applying SSN.

They asked me for one...but it seems you are right because according to their site:

"Age

You must present your birth certificate if you have it or can easily obtain it. If not, we can consider other documents, such as your passport or a document issued by DHS, to prove your age."

http://www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/10096.html

[Techbrarian 0]

We called the national SS hotline Monday. And I'd like to complain about how impossible it would be for a foreign born person to use. VOICE not NUMERIC entering of information! It couldn't even understand me spelling M-E-T-O-D-I, let alone anyone with a real accent. ALSO even though all the options I chose before showed that he obviously didn't have a SSN the first voice question asks for a SSN... I spent 10 minutes verbally abusing the AI before she gave up and went to question #2. I don't think normal folks would bother, they'd hang up!

Anyway, they said he had no record in the system and that we needed to go to the 'local' office.

We drove to Roanoke (I missed 4 hours of work), and we took the Green Card, Passport and a translated Birth Certificate that we had from our returned NVC docs from the Embassy times. Metodi says that the guy just acknowledged that he had is BC and looked at it vaguely. I'm not sure if it was necessary to bring it or not. 2 weeks till SSN so the SS Office says...

So much for all that hype at the Embassy about checking this box or that for your damn SSN! Liars! Anywhoo back to catching up on the 4 hours of work I missed. Thanks for all the help guys.

<3 Sam

[Flames9_RN 358]

We called the national SS hotline Monday. And I'd like to complain about how impossible it would be for a foreign born person to use. VOICE not NUMERIC entering of information! It couldn't even understand me spelling M-E-T-O-D-I, let alone anyone with a real accent. ALSO even though all the options I chose before showed that he obviously didn't have a SSN the first voice question asks for a SSN... I spent 10 minutes verbally abusing the AI before she gave up and went to question #2. I don't think normal folks would bother, they'd hang up!

Anyway, they said he had no record in the system and that we needed to go to the 'local' office.

We drove to Roanoke (I missed 4 hours of work), and we took the Green Card, Passport and a translated Birth Certificate that we had from our returned NVC docs from the Embassy times. Metodi says that the guy just acknowledged that he had is BC and looked at it vaguely. I'm not sure if it was necessary to bring it or not. 2 weeks till SSN so the SS Office says...

So much for all that hype at the Embassy about checking this box or that for your damn SSN! Liars! Anywhoo back to catching up on the 4 hours of work I missed. Thanks for all the help guys.

<3 Sam

most of us thathave checked off that box do NOT get the SSN automatically! have to head over to the SSN office and apply!! my SSN card arrived 1 week after applying!

[Peter&Jaime 1]

How long do you recommend waiting to apply for the SSN after POE?

[ricebird 0]

How long do you recommend waiting to apply for the SSN after POE?

I applied for SSN after I got my Green Card. I'm living in Kansas but able to file application in Las Vegas using my GC and passport while visiting my cousins there. I used my cousin's address and got my SSN card in the mail after 5 business days.