pinac

Hi. I was wondering of any Green Card holders ever got "Authenticated" while crossing the border. It happened to me a few weeks back and I was wondering if this is something new.

The Authentication involved finger printing and taking my picture. Sometimes they also ask for my driver's license in addition to my green card. I find this all a bit odd.

I think it depends on where you cross as there does not appear to be a uniform implementation of the rule. They take photos and fingerprints every time I clear in Dallas, but have never taken them when I clear in Montreal.

After 363 days I was very happy to receive an email saying that my application had been approved, and that they will be mailing my new green card to me.

That was on Monday, since then I have received 3 more emails and 1 letter telling me effectively the same thing.

I was wondering if everyone else is getting the same flood of emails and how long most people have been waiting to actually receive their cards.

Thanks

ps. for those who might be interested there were no touches on my file between biometrics (feb 08 and approval jan 09)

hello everybody..happy new year....I booked my stay at La Tour Centre Ville for my interview bec I read in the forum that it is close to the embassy..does anybody know if it is close to the train station too?(Via Rail) .I will be coming from Toronto Union Station.Also,does anyone know if there is a long term parking near Union Station?just like those ones at the airport. Thanks

The consulate is within walking distance of the train station, so if the hotel is close to the consulate you should be fine.

My pasport expires in Feb 08. Anyone know if there is a conslate in Houston????

To apply for the new passport you will have to send the application to Gatineau (Hull).

You will also have to be prepared to wait; current processing time is 15 weeks up from 8 in March.

there are probably half a dozen threads here asking the same question and everyone interprets it differently for Canadians with green cards.

My own personal experience is that I've always been asked for BOTH my green card and my passport whenever coming back into the US.

Do you still have your expired passport, and evidence of your ongoing application for a new one?

My experience has always been that they have asked for both as well. The question in my mind was what to expect if I am in the position where I did not have a valid passport with me.

Since I made the original post I spoke with passport canada, they called regarding a status request that I had submitted, and they suggested that if I am going to be in Canada to go to a passport centre and ask for an expedited passport which could be ready in 24-48 hours.

If that works this obviously becomes moot.

If that does not work then I figure in the worst case I'll have the cancelled passport, the receipt from the passport office, the printout from dhs.gov, & my green card. With all of that and the relaxed rules for americans I figure I should be ok.

It depends a lot on where you are going.

For what it is worth if it is Canada, Mexico, or Bermuda you might be in luck. Check out http://www.dhs.gov/xtrvlsec/crossingborder...tibasics.shtm#4

I have been having trouble getting a passport (13 weeks to find out that my photos taken in Texas were not acceptable)

When I called the consulate and asked what could be done so that I could fly to Canada while waiting for the next attempt (15 weeks) they told me that I do not actually need a passport to come back into the US; that just the green card should be sufficient.

In fact, they also pointed me to the page at dhs.gov that says that the green card is an acceptable alternative to having a passport.

I'm wondering if anyone else has heard and/or tried this.

thanks

OK, let me explain this a bit more. My FI and I's wedding is May 19th in the Detroit area (I'm from Windsor) and is planned 110% and is taking place regardless of whether or not we get our consulate appn'n in time (we just figure we'll sign the papers at a later date after our appn't). Now, judging from the timelines .. we expect our appn't in either May or June.

I am driving out to Utah after Easter to visit my Fiance for about a month and a week. I will then be flying back to Detroit and crossing back over into Canada before the wedding in May. So, when I cross the border coming back ... I will not have my car. Will this be OK? Is this a stupid question? What I mean by this is will the US customes eventually flag my car as never having come back into Canada? Is this even possible??

You should have no problems with the car, you will have to clear it into the US by going to a POE (closest international airport) after you have your visa.

My experience was that I took the car to the customs office at DFW, the officer checked for a sticker on the car (safety compliance I think), did not ask for any letters from the car company, and I was on my way. Took about 5 minutes and I did not need an appointment.

All in all, very easy.

I am wondering if anyone has any recent experience in getting a new passport while in the US.

From the passport canada web site they are saying that the current processing time is up to 9 weeks (45 business days), and I am wondering if anyone knows how accurate this is.

thanks

My wife (the american) mother tongue is french.

We speak english about 70% of the time, french about 25% and franglais the rest.

As with anything these number shift over time, and after a couple of years in Texas we are noticing more and more spanish slipping into the mix as well.

Thanks for the advice on being able to transfer over an Amex card from Canada to the US. Do you suppose it will matter that I have only had it a few months when I have it transferred to a US one as I just applied this week and hopefully will be able to transfer it over early next year?

It should not matter if you have only had it for a few months.

In my case I had the card in Canada for about a year and had no problems.

Good luck.

Ok , so credit seems to be a pretty common theme. SO, I got to thinking.....If anyone knows of specific U.S. companys/banks that will either, allow you to use your Canadian credit, check your Canadian credit report, verify credit with their Canadian affiliates etc , maybe we could gather a list in one running thread. Any info that is available would be good , i.e. web addy, phone number, physical addy etc.

Personally ........I got nothin !!!!! Hence this thread ......lolololololol

For the most part Canadian credit does not count for anything. You may find that you have some mixed success with some of the major banks.

The best bit of advise that I was given was to get an American Express card while still in Canada. When you move to the US they will transfer the card and convert the limit. At least this way you will have one card with a reasonable limit that you can then use to build on.

For what it is worth, another good thing to do is to see if you can not get a copy of your driving record as a lot of insurance companies will want to treat you as a new driver and may be reluctant to take your Canadian history into account. However with a copy of the history and the willingness to make a lot of phone calls you should be able to find someone willing to accept it. (I had thought that as I had all state in Canada that all state here would just accept my previous history - I was wrong).

Just a litte notice about Quebec birth certificate for french people.

I am french and sent them an english form with a note to get 2 copies of my birth certificate in english. Received it 2 times in french and paid 30$. I called them back to find out that it is against the law to change the language in which it was first registered. So i have to go with a certified translator for that , which is not a problem. But ####### never called me just to tell me my request was not valid and never questionned and just sent me something I didnt need. Ive been waiting 3 weeks now to get a refund that i wont necessarly get because they dont do any refund usually its not in their policies. But i made the point clear in my explanation letter that its their mistake to send me the wrong stuff because of course I would have cancelled it if i had known it was not possible...... neways

So if you need a certified copy for your french birth certificate, you can find a list here http://www.ottiaq.org/index_en.php of certified translator in quebec. Cost me 17$ +tx to have it done.

Mephys

For what it is worth, my birth was registered in english and I could only get a birth certificate issued in French. I know I had to have it translated for the AOS, but I don't think that we had it translated for the K-1. Have you recieved the instructions for the interview from the consulate? If it is in Montreal they may not require the english translation (of course the policies could have changed since I received my visa).

I remember in Sask. Canada at the border I was turned away once (cause they thought it was too soon to return for a visit) long story !!

but anyways the lady there (very nice) told me NEVER, NEVER!!! ever say your coming to see your fiancee, she never use the word. That stuck in my mind like GLUE!!! You could very well have tons of trouble. But I hope it works out

I'm glad things worked out but I would never lie or evade the truth when speaking to a USCIS agent. I frequently visited the US when engaged and had no problems.

I would underline the comment about being truthful in your answers. You do not have to volunteer information, but if you answer the questions that they ask, and only the questions that they ask, you should not have any problems.

I crossed many times while waiting and was actually told that I should use fiance and not girl friend.

The conversation was something like this ...

How are you visiting? My Girlfriend.

(Probably seeing a lot of entries) How serious is the relationship? We are engaged.

Is she moving here or are you moving there? I am moving there once I get my K-1

How is that going .... Have a nice trip ... And, by the way next time you should say fiance and not girl firend.

My wife and I have the luxury of being able to have our car shipped to the US. My interview is Aug 7. I want to have the car shipped now before my interview so it will be there when I arrive and for her use now. She is the USC and although she has been living in Canada with me for three years, she left today to get things ready at the house there.

I have the compliance certificate. The car is registered in my name only.

Is this allowable??

Ed

I am not sure about shipping it before the interview but you can drive it down before getting the visa and then clear the car through customs after you have entered on your visa.

In my case I went to the customs office near the airport in Dallas. Explained to the officer that I needed to have my car cleared into the US as I was moving here. He asked for my paper work (not the paper work on the car), did a quick inspection, then filled out his paper work. The whole process took about 15 minutes.

OK I just called NSC and after explaining her everything she said she will do the checking for me and If I didnt hear from them withing the next 30 days I should call her again.

And Pinac would you mind telling me more about that interview what did ask for what did they say?You know Im nervous when it comes to that :-(

The interview was pretty basic.

We were both sworn in.

Asked for our ID, gave him our passports.

He started looking through the file.

Asked us where we got married - Sedona Az

Asked why there

Asked if we had filed our taxes yet, we gave him our returns

Asked the have you ever ... questions from the 485 form

Ripped out the I94s from my passport (actually ended falling behind his desk)

Stamped my passport and explained that if I needed to travel before receiving my card to show the stamp

Then started to show us out

I had to ask if he wanted me to give him my EAD and AP, he did and he took them

As I said, we were in and out in under 20 minutes including the time spent in the lobby. In fact my wife commented that he did not even ask her a question.

The best pieces of advise I was given about the whole thing were to be patient and to only answer the questions that you are asked. If they want to know more they will ask.

In the end I ignored the first bit and spent a lot of time worrying about the worst case, when as it turned out they were right in that it all works out in the end and that it is just a matter of time.

18 months?? WOW! Did they atleast give you guys a permanent card then instead of conditional???

Hmmm..I just went to that link you gave me and it says that Boston is processing files received on december 25st 2005 (and they filled in march 2006??) and Dallas,Tx is processin May 1st 2005 :-(.You think these timelines are accurate??

For what it is worth my AOS through Dallas (the normal AOS and not DORA) took about 10 months (June 2005 to March 2006). When it came through we were all really happy that it happened that quickly as we had been told to expect a processing time closer to 18 months.

It only took 10 months for us, so I got the 2 year card.

If you have been married for more than 2 years when the AOS is approved you get the full 10 year green card.

On the bright side the interview in Dallas was really quick. I think we spent more time in the wiating room than we did being interviewed (about 15 minutes). We were in and out, complete with stamp in passport in under 20 minutes.

Hmmm..I just went to that link you gave me and it says that Boston is processing files received on december 25st 2005 (and they filled in march 2006??) and Dallas,Tx is processin May 1st 2005 :-(.You think these timelines are accurate??

For what it is worth my AOS through Dallas (the normal AOS and not DORA) took about 10 months (June 2005 to March 2006). When it came through we were all really happy that it happened that quickly as we had been told to expect a processing time closer to 18 months.

We got 2 AP documents. I presume that is normal as we didn't ask for extra copies. We've not travelled on them though so I don't know if they keep one each time you go. If you do a search on VJ, there are plenty here who have used them and I'm sure the answer will pop up.

I would put the November travel date down and you should be good to go. And yes once you have the green card you no longer need AP.

The first time you travel on the AP take both copies with you. When you come back to the US they will stamp both copies, keep one, and give one back to you. You use the one that they gave back to you if you make any more trips during the year (validity of the AP) or until you get your green card which ever comes first.

On the AP application I believe I put down multiple for trips and TBD for the dates.

For Dallas it depends a great deal on if you are going through DORA or not.

We did not go through DORA (wanted to get to work more quickly) and our wait was 8 months.

hi i will be having my AOS interview this coming May 18 i didnt apply 4 EAD...i started applying in diferent places now and having my interview tomoro and May 22...my husband get upset when he found out that im already applying and having interview 4 work he said that i will get in trouble i dont think so coz in my application i put that i can start by june..and i will not work without my green card..im confuse now does im doing right or wrong?

You are allowed to accept work before you get your green card as long as you do not actually start work. So if you are approved at your interview you can start working immediately after the interview.

I would suggest that if (when) you are approved at your interview that you ask them to stamp your passport so that you can show your employer that you are legally allowed to work when you show up to start your new job.

Good Luck.

expressvu is the bast way to get canadian tv down here.

sirius satellite radio is also an option for canadaian news (cbc & radio-canada).

US citizens and GC holders flying into a US POE can use the residents/citizens line; for those flying into US from a PFI-equipped airport, it's moot (no separate lines for , resident/citizen)

Actually there are airports in Canada where this is not the case. If there is little or no traffic there might be only one line, but during rush hours there will be two.

In any case as a resident go into the USC line.

Two years start to finish.

We submitted our k-1 application on 2004-03-17 and the green card showed up in the mailbox today.

Time to celebrate (the card, St. Patty's, and other things green)

There is nothing that says you can not look for work while waiting for the EAD.