Kdd1214

Looking ahead: we are still waiting for the interview for my husband's I-751 removing conditions. His biometrics appointment was in December of 2022. I was looking at his passport today and realized it will expire in May of 2024. If we don't have the interview before then, and he needs to get a new passport, will this be an issue? Should we submit copies of the new passport page to the government somehow? Has anyone else ran into this issue? 

2 minutes ago, Allaboutwaiting said:

Must be the new 48 month extension letter. 

Yes that's correct! Does it continue to extend in that way again prior to receiving the appointment for the interview or is it because of it taking longer for USCIS to process everyone's in general? 

While waiting to hear about the possible interview for my husband to complete the I-751 process, something strange has happened. On November 11th, we received his original receipt notice and then about a week after he received the information to get his fingerprints taken and it stated that it would be extended for 24 months past the expiration date. 

On MyUSCIS is says this: 

My husband is about to be on the last step of the CR-1 visa since he has lived in the states for almost 2 years. Our date to refile all of the information is in October to remove the conditional status. However he wants to go to Costa Rica ( where he's from) in November. His green card is valid until January 17th, 2023. Does anyone know if he is still able to travel without any problems so close to the expiration or does he have to wait until he gets the new green card without conditions? I just want to make sure it's not something like he can't travel within the last 6 months or something like that.

On 3/11/2021 at 3:16 PM, isis375 said:

CR-1 Visa Approved!  Zoom Ceremony.

 

My husband and I married through Utah Online marriage ceremony in September 2020. I visited him in Costa Rica in October 2020 and filed for the CR-1. Our I-130 was approved January 29, 2021. We were DQ in the NVC on February 16, 2021 and received our interview date on February 24th.

 

My husband passed his interview this morning and now we await his passport and POE in the coming weeks.

Oh my goodness! That was so fast! Congratulations! We started the process in Costa Rica in 2019 and were finally approved in December of 2020. I'm glad to see the process is picking back up in CR for others!

Update incase anyone finds this thread along the way.... 

I wanted to share some hope for those of you in the same position!! 

I spoke with USCIS after FINALLY getting through the automated system and explained what was happening. She said that due to COVID, they aren't sending anything to the SSO until after the official green card arrives and that will take at least 90 days upon arrival. She said that there would be no problem if we restarted the process with Social Security if we didn't want to wait for the USCIS to put his number into the system. With that clarification, I contacted our local social security office and we were put on the waitlist for an appointment in person to restart the process. It took about two weeks for them to contact us for the appointment time.

We had our appointment at the SSO and it took literally less than 5 minutes for us to turn in the paperwork. He made copies of my husband's passport and CR-1 visa (with stamp) and that was it!

We received his social security card today! It only took a week after our appointment. 🎉

On 3/8/2021 at 1:40 AM, Jess_Cah said:

Hi! I was doing a search of insurance forums in the group and I came across your post. Do you know if you legally need insurance to enter the US? We are in the same situation (living abroad, husband will be on a visa and no insurance) and wondering if we have time to find insurance when we get there or if we need it before entering. 

Hi! So sorry I missed your message! I would check with the requirements for entry into your specific state to be sure. When we arrived, we didn’t have health insurance and weren’t asked about it at the port of entry. We ended up going with a monthly insurance plan because in order to have an actual short term insurance plan, you have to have been in the US for the last 12 months which didn’t apply for myself or my husband. Hope you got everything figured out! :) 

On 2/18/2021 at 7:18 PM, JeanneAdil said:

He can work with the CR1 (I 551 stamp) on his passport

That was my understanding too but what I am confused about is how is he able to work without having a social security number? It is my understanding that he isn't able to open a bank account, have a driver license or be paid legally without a social security number. Do employers overlook him not having one at the moment because of his immigration status? Is there a way to prove his immigration status other than just the stamp in the passport? He hasn't received his green card yet either. 

1 hour ago, JeanneAdil said:

the request for the SS # would not be activated till he arrived in January (same for the green card)

And all have been waiting months now instead of a few weeks (ours came in 2 weeks back in 2015 ) 

sorry for your wait but it's hard for these offices (some with limited staff as workers are sick with the virus )

Basically i do not have advice/  its another waiting process 

Oh okay thank you for clarifying the time that the activation begins. It's a bummer since we understood that he would be able to work right when arriving with the CR-1 visa but now it seems like there is this extra step before he can begin working. We are definitely used to lots of waiting so I guess this is another chance for us to practice patience. Thank you for your response! Stay healthy and safe! 

1 hour ago, StrawberryKiss said:

Even long since before COVID I didn't receive my SSN card after 2 months upon arrival (had checked the box on the DS-260 form, too). We just had to go to our local office and apply for it in person since I was also offered a job. The whole process took very long (inlcuding the wait at the office) and I'd suggest your husband bring as much proof of identity as he can (passport, birth certificate, ID card, etc.). It took another 2-3 weeks to get the card in the mail, but nowadays it's different with the pandemic and snow storm, of course. Good luck!

Thanks for sharing your experience! Was there a reason that you waited the full 2 months prior to restarting the process? Is that what they suggested incase the number appears? I know the paperwork we received said to call if it had been over 3 weeks of waiting upon arriving in the states but then to receive such different information between two people in the same office was confusing. Basically we want to wait the least amount of time possible so he is able to begin working! 

On 2/14/2021 at 4:34 PM, HRQX said:

Yes, JFH's case is an example:

 

https://www.twc.texas.gov/news/efte/employees_without_ssns.html "It is certainly legal to hire someone who is authorized to work in this country, but who does not have a social security number or who chooses not to disclose it."

 

For employers that use E-Verify, the employer can select "Awaiting Social Security number." https://www.e-verify.gov/faq/my-employee-applied-for-a-social-security-number-ssn-but-has-not-yet-received-it-what-should-i "If a newly hired employee has applied for, but has not yet received his or her SSN (e.g., the employee is a newly arrived immigrant), attach an explanation to the employee’s Form I-9 and set it aside. Then create a case in E-Verify using the employee’s SSN as soon as it is available. If you are unable to create a case by the third business day after the employee’s first day of employment, select Awaiting Social Security number when prompted by E-Verify."

Awesome, thank you for the information and super helpful links!  

Hello Everyone, 

It has been 4 weeks since my husband arrived in the US and we haven't received his SSN so I called the local office and wanted to share my findings with you all and see if other people have had the same issues.

First off a little timeline: 

-We requested that a social security number be created on the DS-260 form when filing for his CR-1, that paperwork was submitted to the online filing system October 23rd.

-Visa approved December 16th. 

-Arrived January 16th to USA

First call to local office: 

Not in the system. Woman said that we needed to wait 2 months upon entry into the states to see if the number would appear in the system. Suggested not to restart the process for fear of duplicate number being assigned to my husband . 

Second Call: 

Still not in the system. Looked with Alien Registration number this time. Was told that if the paperwork was filed in October of 2020, it has been too long for it not to have been submitted to their office so he does not and will not have a social security number assigned to him. We were put on the wait list for emergency in-person services and told we need to restart the entire process which could take 3-4 weeks. 

Has anyone had the same issue? Do you have any tips or ideas for us? I will continue to update with findings incase this can help anyone else! 

Hey Everyone,

Little bit of background: My husband's CR-1 visa was approved December 16th, 2020, paid the immigration fee December 23, arrived in the US January 16th. When we submitted the DS-260, we selected the create a social security number option and were told by our lawyer that we should receive the SSN within 1-3 weeks of arriving in the USA. Since we hadn't received it yet (and our lawyer has often told us the wrong information) I called the Social Security office on Friday and the person said that there was no evidence that he was even in the system yet. She said that he would need to wait 2-3 months due to COVID to begin the process of applying from the beginning because they don't want there to be a duplicate number. This is the part that we are both confused/frustrated by, with the CR-1 visa and the stamp, technically he is eligible to work in the US but how can he work if he doesn't have a SSN yet for payroll? Has anyone successfully been able to secure employment without a SSN to provide right away? 

Any advice on SSN problems, possibilities to work w/o having the actual SSN yet or pretty much anything would be amazing! 

Thank you @Boiler! Yes we do so that is a good idea! 

@aaron2020Thank you for your suggestion. I have spent a lot of time googling but I wanted to see what people had personally experienced because there are so many options it's hard to know which is legit!  

On 12/11/2020 at 8:44 PM, designguy said:

Have you looked at the exchange? What state are you moving to ?

I haven't yet! But I will! Thank you! We are beginning in Illinois but then moving to Texas or Tennessee depending on where we can find jobs! 

My husband and I are planning to move to the states sometime in January of 2021, well, that is if he receives his visa when we have our interview in a few days. I'm a US citizen but have lived internationally for 5 years so I don't have health insurance in the states and neither will my husband . Anyone have any ideas on where to look for temporary health insurance as we look for jobs when we arrive in the states? I have found a few private health insurance companies that I could qualify for as a US citizen temporarily, but not sure if I would be able to add my husband to them since he is an immigrant. We really don't want to risk getting COVID-19 without insurance! Any ideas or places to look would be awesome! Thank you in advance!