Communication Method Recommendations After Arrival

[fletchvann 0]

I'm looking for suggestions on how my fiance can contact me in the airport once he lands and clears immigration. His POE will likely be in New York, but he'll have to take a connecting flight to Atlanta before I see him. I don't believe his cell phone will work in the US, and my biggest fear is that he'll be either detained or denied entry upon arrival (no reason for fear other than being a worry wart) and will not have any way of notifying me until he's gone. Any suggestions for brief communication to confirm landing and approved entry?

[bmiles62 5]

I'm looking for suggestions on how my fiance can contact me in the airport once he lands and clears immigration. His POE will likely be in New York, but he'll have to take a connecting flight to Atlanta before I see him. I don't believe his cell phone will work in the US, and my biggest fear is that he'll be either detained or denied entry upon arrival (no reason for fear other than being a worry wart) and will not have any way of notifying me until he's gone. Any suggestions for brief communication to confirm landing and approved entry?

Not sure if you have enough time to do this but I added my wife to my cellphone plan before she got here. Then I sent her one of my old phones with her new number so she could call me when she landed. I was sending her a package with paperwork any way so it did not cost anything extra. If there is not enough time to do that I would just have them borrow one from a fellow passenger to make a quick call to you. Good luck!!

[HK12 273]

Not sure if you have enough time to do this but I added my wife to my cellphone plan before she got here. Then I sent her one of my old phones with her new number so she could call me when she landed. I was sending her a package with paperwork any way so it did not cost anything extra. If there is not enough time to do that I would just have them borrow one from a fellow passenger to make a quick call to you. Good luck!!

My husband also sent me a cheap cell phone that I used to call him upon arriving in the States. Alternatively, most airports have telephone booths, so your fiancé could just get a phone card and call you from there.

[PotatoFrittata 15]

My biggest fear is that my fiancé will be denied entry, also.

[And_Sam 44]

I bought a phone card at the local convenient store and sent him the 800 number and instructions on how to do it. My husband came through JFK too with a connecting flight to Orlando. Once he got through immigration he went to the Delta desk and showed his connecting flight and asked where to go for his next flight. The staff at JFK are very very nice and helpful. Once he got to his next gate he found a pay phone (yes they still have them there) and called me with the phone card and then he called his mother in Egypt to let her know that he landed safely.

Good luck with your fiance coming over!

[Harpa Timsah 13,263]

I agree on the calling card. I think if you are denied entry you get a phone call. He won't be denied, btw, so you should relax

[ProudAfrican 5]

Why are you do scared he will be denied entry? I don't know your reason behind that negative feeling but try to be positive.

No one succeeds in any type of undertaking without confidence and positive thought.

I came through JFK and connect to atl and I was able to call my wife in a business center there at the airport an also called her back on a pay booth.

Edited February 25, 2013 by ProudAfrican

[William33 110]

purchase and send the digits for a prepaid phone card, before he leaves Indo.

[aws&ndd 103]

Don't worry about him being denied. He'll just be processed, which may seem like a long while, and maybe ask a few questions and then let him on his way. It's a really simple process. We had to wait about 30 min at my fiancee's POE before getting called into a little office. He asked her one question, then told us we had to get married in 90 days. That was it.

And as far as calling you, I would simply recommend getting a cheap phone card and using one of the payphones to call. Don't worry everything will work out OK!!

[Taylor&Joey 0]

He could also get an American SIM card if he already has a phone that holds a SIM card. He can buy one at the airport or you could buy one ahead of time and sent it to him.

[CaroSL 68]

I'm looking for suggestions on how my fiance can contact me in the airport once he lands and clears immigration. His POE will likely be in New York, but he'll have to take a connecting flight to Atlanta before I see him. I don't believe his cell phone will work in the US, and my biggest fear is that he'll be either detained or denied entry upon arrival (no reason for fear other than being a worry wart) and will not have any way of notifying me until he's gone. Any suggestions for brief communication to confirm landing and approved entry?

He won't be denied. Once he gets the visa there is no reason why he would be denied at the POE.

My selfphone works (for texts) abroad. Tell him to check his plan with his provider.

Otherwise you can always send him a card (t-mobile or whatever) so that he can put it in his phone (he can either put it in his phone or buy a cheap phone with no plan attached that will work abroad prior to leaving). Activate the plan for hiim, send him the card, and he will be able to call you in POE.

He can also just borrow someone's phone at PEO to text you, I am pretty sure it is doable

[GandD 5,966]

He could also get an American SIM card if he already has a phone that holds a SIM card. He can buy one at the airport or you could buy one ahead of time and sent it to him.

Be a little wary of this. Some carriers (Rogers in Canada for sure) lock their devices to their network. To get it unlocked you either have to pay the carrier $40 to release it, pay someone on the internet $30, or jailbreak it. This applied to our iPhone 4, some of the non-smartphones may not have this issue but I'm not sure. Anyway, something to consider.

[Cathi 5,886]

Be a little wary of this. Some carriers (Rogers in Canada for sure) lock their devices to their network. To get it unlocked you either have to pay the carrier $40 to release it, pay someone on the internet $30, or jailbreak it. This applied to our iPhone 4, some of the non-smartphones may not have this issue but I'm not sure. Anyway, something to consider.

As the owner of a cell phone company, and also with experience with my husband's international phone from Joordan, most international phones(I'm not talking about Canada they have US standards and similar restrictions)come unlocked when you purchase them, US cell phones are actually locked AFTER they are purchased from the manufacturer, so buying a SIM card would work unless you have Verizon, they are not part of the GSM network and therefore their phones do not have SIM cards. Good luck.

Edited February 25, 2013 by mimolicious

[Andrea&Henry 311]

My husband went with me to my interview, so when he came to Venezuela he brought me one of his old cellphones. We already knew that I was traveling alone to the US cause my now husband, couldn't wait for me to get my visa after my interview (His boss only gave him 3 days off from work so he could attended the interview with me and my visa took 10 days to be issued)

So once I landed I turned on the phone and call him while I was till in the airplane...While I was in line to go through immigration we were texting (be careful cause if an Immigration office watch u talking or texting, they will ask you to stop) once I was about to be in front of the immigrant officer I said bye see you!

He knew that be in the white room can take 30 min- to 4 hours in some cases so he was calm. We knew also that traveling before saturday was the best idea, so the airport (Miami intl' airport) wasn't that crowed. We choose the 4pm Caracas-Miami flight (last flight) and I arrived around 8.30 pm. I entered the immigration room by 9.20 pm and I was out by 10.30 pm

My then fiance was really excited and worried for me, cause while you are in the immigration room you CANNOT talk or text, so he needed to be patient.

Im not quite sure to count on telephone booth because that ones that I saw at the Miami airport, they were at the baggage/luggage section (to reach that point she already went through all the immigration stuff)

So having a cellphone with her I think is the smartest choice

Edited February 25, 2013 by Andrea&Henry

[Andrea&Henry 311]

And don't worry, you did things right...Unless she commit some crime in the plane, or if she lost her k1 package on her way to the US, there're no reasons to be worried about getting deny at the POE. I's never read something like that before.

So be patient and don't worry...yeah he's gonna be tired from the flight and spending a couple of hours at the immigration sections is not fun but is not a huge deal either. They're gonna take his package, open it, check it and stamp his passport..That's pretty much it.

But you need to make him feel that everything is good and before you notice his gonna be running into your arms at the airport. :dance: That was the best day of my life!