EC&IC

I don't have insider knowledge, unfortunately. I assume it's sent to a central hub in each city, and then gets dispatched from there? My thought was that having it sent to my house, or even to an address listed in a town near me (90 min from Montreal), would add delays. So I asked for it to be sent to one of the addresses listed in Montreal, and I drove to go get it. It was ready two days after my interview! (On a Friday, which seems to be the trend.) (When I got there, at about 3 pm on a Friday, the offices seemed closed and there was no notice or anything... I was terrified that they were closed for the weekend! Fortunately, one lady waiting there told me that they were on their lunch break [!] and after a 25-min wait, they reopened and I got my papers. And crossed the border the next day!) (This is also a reply to @DijonMustard.)

Yes! 🙂

[Oh sorry, didn't see that others had replied already! I can't even find how to delete my post. 🤷‍♀️] It's this step in the process: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/the-immigrant-visa-process/step-5-collect-financial-evidence-and-other-supporting-documents/step-6-complete-online-visa-application.html

Unless I'm mistaken, what they need to see is proof that you have submitted the DS-260. I had a pdf entitled “Immigrant Visa and Alien Registration Application Confirmation”, that reads “Thank you—You have successfully submitted an Immigrant Visa and Alien Registration Application (Form DS-260)”, and has two barcodes at the bottom. It's printed from the confirmation page after you've submitted the DS-260. I don't remember bringing a printout of the form itself. It might be different in Toronto, though...

The question wasn't addressed to me, but we were in the same situation. As my husband and I are freelancers and because of our intention to homeschool our children, we didn't have any “easy” proof, like a job offer or registration in schools. Here are the documents we sent the NVC initially to prove his intention to reestablish US domicile (included with his I-864): Bank statements proving that we moved a big chunk of our savings to our American bank account; Bank statements proving that we had been using our American credit card for six months in order to build credit; Proof that we were acquiring land to build a house on, a quote from our builder, and a copy of our email exchanges with the bank concerning our construction loan; Proof that my husband had voted in previous general elections, with screen captures going as far back as the electronic system allowed. I wasn't asked any more questions about this at our interview, it seems like that was proof enough. But we did have a joint sponsor living in the US, I don't know if that changes anything.

I agree. My husband was living in Canada with me at the time of my interview and he entered the US with me when I finally got my green card. Your husband has to enter the country either before or at the same time as you, he just can't stay behind and enter later. 🙂 As for a US address and phone number, we used my in-laws’, as we were planning on living with them for a little while before finding a place of our own. Good luck!

I think *some* people have had bad luck with a border officer who thought they weren't allowed to enter the US while their green card application was pending, and then at the interview they had to say that they had been denied entry to the US, and while they explained the situation to the interviewing officer, it created some delays after the interview, for some of them, because the officer had to investigate what really happened. Just in case this happens to you, you might want to bring some print-outs from the USCIS website or other official sources explicitly stating that you are allowed to enter while waiting for your green card! That way you could show them to the border agent if there is an issue.

I think that would create big problems and/or long delays—definitely “a big deal”. As I was waiting for my interview, one lady was talking with an agent saying that she needed to make sure she'd have her passport back within two weeks, I think because she also had an international trip planned, and the agent couldn't guarantee it. They need your passport to validate your identity and stick the temporary green card (sorry for my lack of vocabulary) in it. It's the last step before you can cross the border. Personally, I wouldn't want to do anything to create hurdles to that process, especially after waiting such a long time, but maybe someone else will have a good idea! I hope somebody else can offer ideas!

I had my interview on Wednesday, March 22, and my passport was ready for me to go pick it up in Montreal two days later! I saw on a previous post that they usually release them on Fridays; I don't know if that is true, but it was for me. According to the Google sheet, it seems to usually go faster than two weeks, but it really depends on your case—other users had issues at the interview or didn't get their medical results in time, which resulted in delays. We had to leave our house before the interview, and I had reserved temporary lodgings until the 28th. Fortunately that was enough for us! But it's stressful not to know. Good luck!

Oof, a road test too! Good luck!

I got my Wyoming driver’s license last week with only my Canadian passport containing the (stamped) visa, no other form. My license is valid for one year, based on the visa. I'll have to show the actual green card to extend the expiration date of the license. As yours isn't stamped, you might want to print out a few webpages showing that even unstamped, your visa is valid! At least that's what I would do. Also, I had to pass a knowledge test—so did my US citizen husband, since he had left the country for almost 20 years. I did a few tests online and read a few things specific to my state, and I passed (barely!) on the first try.

Thanks everybody—I'm busy and can't reply individually, but I appreciate everyone's input, and we'll definitely research this healthcare sharing ministry concept more in depth. We've also contacted insurance brokers, but we're still waiting to hear from them. In any case, thank you all.

Thank you. It all feels a bit overwhelming, this shopping for coverage during our current medical situation, but we'll take the time to investigate further, thanks for your input.

Thank you! I'd never heard of that option. Although we're in the middle of nowhere, and the closest provider shown on that website is 350 miles away... But thanks for the idea, it's still a possibility. Thank you. We're in Wyoming, everything is far away, but I will look into this option as well!

Thank you. I will look into that, I have only heard good things from members. I also called insurance companies, but I wouldn't be covered either, it would only become effective May 1 at the earliest, with no retroactive coverage. Only Medicaid could have helped pay past bills, if our income was low enough. (As freelancers, it varies a lot, but my husband had a better year last year...) Thank you.