Upon Entry

[Jackie79 1]

Hi Guys,

My wife and I are movng to the US in 2018. I will be on a 10 year green card because we have been married for 5 years now. I was wondering how long it takes after entering the US to:

1. Get your greencard in the post

2. Be able to apply for your social security number and set up a bank account.

3. Apply and recieve your 2 year travel permit, which I will be applying for becasue I have to come back to the UK for work initially every few months for a couple of weeks.

I'm thinking that if I plan a 6 month period initially before I leave the country I should have all these things through and set up?

Many Thanks,

Claire

[canadian_wife 1,785]

So...I'm confused.

You say you have been married for 5 years but your profile says a K-1 fiance visa. Further you talk about a travel permit (which would be for the K 1 visa) but that is not necessary if you are coming on a spousal visa such as a C-1.

Can you just clarify?

Good luck

[Penguin_ie 5,984]

1- 2-3 months for the physical card, but you will get a stamp in your passport to act as a temporary greencard

2- this should come to your home within 2-4 weeks, if not, you can go to then SS office and get it there.

3- you don;t need a travel permit to go to the UK for a few weeks every few months, you have your greencard and can travel with it freely, as long as you stay more time in the USA than outside of it.

[mindthegap 2,521]

Assuming it is a spousal immigrant visa (IR-1) you are applying for;

1- It may be a week or two, or it may be a couple of months. Your IR-1 visa will be stamped and endorsed at your POE and acts as a temporary GC for up to one year, or until your physical card arrives.

2 - If you ticked the box to automatically assign you your SSN, it may arrive in the mail after a few weeks, or it may not (this is not uncommon). A quick visit to the SSN office will have you sorted, but I suggest you don't do this right away, as it can take a while for the systems they use to update your status. Personally I waited 10 days before visiting the SSN office and had no issues.

You do not need an SSN to open a US bank account.

3 - You do not need a travel permit. When you enter on the IR-1 visa you are immediately classed as a permanent resident, and as above, your endorsed immigrant visa will act a a temporary GC until your physical card arrives. You could leave the US the same day if you like.

Are you getting confused with the 2 year (CR-1) GC or perhaps a re-entry permit? The former is for people who have been married for less than 2 years, and the latter is something for permanent residents who wish to stay overseas for an extended period, without their permanent residency being abandoned. Unless you plan on spending over a year outside the US, you don't need one.