Restamping of I-551 (Need help)

R

rajeshamara

Registered Users (C)
Hi all,
My I-551 Stamp expires on 4/3/2002. Is it OK if I go on 4/4/2002 to get it restamped. As 4/3/2002 is wednesday and i need to have an appointment to go to local INS (I stay in NJ) on wednesdays. Will i be having any problems if i go on 4/4/2002?
Some how I assumed it is ok if i go on 4/4/2002.
thanks
rajesh
 
I agree with JoeF

Do it at a time that is right for you, I don\'t think you\'ll have a problem. The stamp is for proof of status only, going on the same day or a day or a few days later shouldn\'t make any difference.
 
Hey

AmericanWannabe,

  Did you use to be the teacher\'s pet :) ? I am aware of that law, and that it is rarely enforced if at all. I didn\'t want to muddy the matter more. Are you going to tell me that you go with your passport everywhere, or that you did while you were waiting for your plastic card (in case you already have your plastic card)?
 
No Title

There are some stories about PRs being picked up for not carrying
the I-551 at airports by the INS agents even if they are only on domestic flights.
 
Yes!

I knew that when you were a kid you were the teacher\'s pet :)

Kidding apart. Yes, I was aware of that. Let\'s qualify it, as far as you don\'t plan to travel you will probably fine with the expired stamp for a few days. For Pete\'s sake, even the INS doesn\'t make such a fuss about expired plastic cards. By the way, my own experience, and that of close friends is that for domestic flights nobody is asking to show the green card, or passport stamp. Again, if you fit certain profile you can be asked about this and get in some trouble (I hope minor).

Paraphrasing a famous sentence of an infamous trial:
If you don\'t need to travel. you can wait to restamp.
See if the glove fits you :)

I am not a lawyer (as far as I know), and this is not legal advice. According to the law you should have proof of status with you at all times. One way of ensuring you don\'t get in trouble if you are swimming, and get fished out of the water by the coast guard and asked a bunch of questions is to consider folding up your passport or plastic card, put it inside a plastic bag and shove it up your rectum. This would satisfy each and every law about carrying proof of status with you. Of course, this is intending to be more humorous than offensive. My (non-legal) advice is to no sweat over a few days.

My 2 cents.

An excerpt from an immigration article of Sept. 26, I believe things are better now, but no way to attest this.

"Yes, that is NOT a typo, we meant DOMESTIC flights! AILA has received several reports of
                               nonimmigrants boarding domestic flights and being questioned and asked for immigration
                               documentation. Apparently, in at least two of these incidents, the INS officer told the individuals
                               involved that they were required to carry their I-94 card and I-797 approval notices at all times.

                               Laws requiring aliens to carry their I-94 cards, or alien registration cards for permanent residents,
                               have been on the books since World War II. While these laws have not been heavily enforced for a
                               long time, it looks as if INS and the Department of Justice are revisiting all the tools they have at
                               their disposal to deal with the currrent situation. Note that the law mentions the I-94 card but not the
                               I-797 receipts.
"
 
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