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Activation Trip

R

ronnin

Registered Users (C)
Hi,

In a few weeks I'm doing my activation trip. I'm going to Chicago (O'Hare Airport). I know sometimes you have to go to immigrants line and others to citizens/LPR line. My question is: What happen later?

Facts line:
1- Wait on the line
2- Hand in the brown envelope (what to say? :D )
3- (I think then I will be interviwed by an immigration officer, but I don't know what happen after handing in the documentation, could you complete this information? ;) )
...:confused:


The MOST important: after the mini interview do I have to keep any document from the immigration officer? Do they have to stamp my passport? What about temporary I-551, what is that?

THANKS A LOT!!!!!
 
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There is no interview at the POE. Procedure is different at any POE. At JFK the first officer opened the sealed envelope put all neccessary information in the computer and make the admision stamp in our passports. With this stamp your visa is activated and your temp. GC. After that he send us to a different section of the airport where they took our fingerprints. Thats it, welcome to the United States :)
At other airports the have separate rooms for the whole procedure.
 
US immigration etc is done in the airports here in Ireland - before you board the plane.
Would be great (and save us over €700 on flights) if for the initial "activation trip" I could just some how drop in someday and go through the process and not have to get on the plane to go over only to have to come back again.
5 miles for me to get to US immigration then 6,000+ mile trip to return home. Ah well.

Then again, i still could just no bother getting on the plane but money wasted (maybe be better to by a one way ticket only and not use it).
 
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Ok. And what about temporary I-551, is it the stamp or is it a separate paper that i have to keep?
 
Ok. And what about temporary I-551, is it the stamp or is it a separate paper that i have to keep?
Click to expand...
You alraedy have the I-551 in your passport and with the stamp it becomes your temp. GC
 
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AHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But it's sticked, why people say that Air France torce them to surrender their I-551 when they wanted to come back to their home countries before having recived the plastic GC?!?
 
AHAHAHHA, Sorry, but sometimes I make up some words. I will suffer a bit my first months in the USA :D, but i will go on.

I wanted to say:

I-511 is attached, printed on a page of my passport, I can't surrender it, unless they cut the page, is it now better? ;)
 
Nobody has cut anything at you visa!

The only one who makes it invalid is the officer at the POE once you arrive there with you plastic GC.
 
smcg said:
US immigration etc is done in the airports here in Ireland - before you board the plane. Think its the only country to do it.
Click to expand...

No, Canada, Bermuda, Aruba, Bahamas and others have PFIs.

Would be great (and save us over €700 on flights) if I could just some how drop in someday and go through the process and not have to get on the plane to go over only to have to come back again. 5 miles for me to get to US immigration then 6,000+ mile trip to return home. Ah well.
Click to expand...

The US is your "home". If not, give the visa to someone who will consider it that way.
 
What?

Of course the US is not my home at that point in time.
And you know the visas aren't transferable.
Stupid comment
 
Calm down friends ;)

SMCG, RealCanadian only wanted to say that if you are not using your GC, you should surrender it. Other people may use it more efficiently ;) But it's up to you, it was just his advice.
 
And how the hell am I using it inefficiently????
And where did i say I was not using the greencard???

I was just saying that would be nice to be able to save the €700 for flights for the activation trip I plan and not have to go to the hassle of flying over to come back a couple of days later (and of course to return to the US once i sort out all the stuff here) .... ah forget it.
America is not some mystical magical land that you must praise and suck up into its patriotic rubbish once you get the greencard and everything will be sweet and rosey if you get there. And its certainly going to be a big step down for me but im going to try it out anyway. And it certainly wont be home for a while.
 
I think we understood that you will keep doing the same all the time... It was just a misunderstood ;)
 
EII!! Has sb gone to te states to activate the GC yet? Have you had to apply for the ESTA before you go, or do they accepted the temporal GC stamped on your passport?
 
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