Yx

I'm in the States on a VWP (UK National). My US Fiance proposed and we are getting
married soon. Can anybody render some advice on whether Puerto Rico is a suitable
destination for a weekend break (mini honeymoon) given that I would probably have
filed for the I-485 AOS before departing to PR for a weekend break. Is PR deemed to
be a state within the US ? Will I be hassled on my way back in to the US ? Or do I
have to file for the Advance Parole bit of the AOS paperwork and wait for that to
come through before even contemplating going to any airport let alone Puerto Rico ??

Thanks so much Yx

Paul Helpdesk

You are required to stay in the country after you file for AOS. From your statements,
it does look like you need the Advance Parole. You will find some helpful info at:

http://www.visapro.com/US-Immigratio...nce-Parole.asp

http://www.uiowa.edu/hr/immigration/travel/parole.html

http://www.visapro.com/Green-Card-Fa...US-Citizen.asp

Paul @ HelpDesk

Ingo Pakleppa

I would not recommend it. For one, you would have to be very careful that the flight
there is truly non-stop. A few months ago, somebody here reported being stuck "in
paradise" because the flight stopped over on one Caribbean island.

I have never been to Puerto Rico, but I have been to Guam, which has a similar
status. It is indeed considered a State for purposes of immigration law. However,
there are some special rules, and you DO have to go through INS inspection both going
from Hawaii to Guam, and going back from Guam to Hawaii. Whether an I-485 is a
problem or not, I don't know and wouldn't want to try.

Ingo

On 5 Jun 2002 08:16:49 -0700, [email protected] (Yx) wrote:

    >I'm in the States on a VWP (UK National). My US Fiance proposed and we are getting
    >married soon. Can anybody render some advice on whether Puerto Rico is a suitable
    >destination for a weekend break (mini honeymoon) given that I would probably have
    >filed for the I-485 AOS before departing to PR for a weekend break. Is PR deemed to
    >be a state within the US ? Will I be hassled on my way back in to the US ? Or do I
    >have to file for the Advance Parole bit of the AOS paperwork and wait for that to
    >come through before even contemplating going to any airport let alone Puerto Rico ??
    >
    >Thanks so much Yx

I am not a lawyer and this is not legal advice. For reliable advice, please consult
with a professional immigration attorney.

For further information, check the following frequently-requested links.

For many questions, you may find answers at
http://travel.state.gov/visa_services.html (Department of State)

or http://ins.usdoj.gov (INS).

For consular policies and visa reciprocity fees, find your consulate in
http://travel.state.gov/links.html

For visa denial and suggestions what to do about them, see
http://travel.state.gov/visadenials.html

For DOL Online Labor Certification: http://workforcesecurity.doleta.gov/

For information on affidavit of support for marriage to US citizens (I-864), go to
http://travel.state.gov/i864gen.html and http://travel.state.gov/checklist.html

For information on entering the US as a K-1: http://www.k1poelist.com/

For poverty levels, see http://aspe.os.dhhs.gov/poverty/00poverty.htm

For information on H/L/O/P visa extensions at Dept. of State in St. Louis, MO, see
http://travel.state.gov/revals.html

For non-official information, check:

(When using these sites, and any Web sites, please watch out for privacy, as I do not
know all site operators.)

http://www.visalaw.com http://www.shusterman.com http://www.immigration.com
http://members.aol.com/MDUdall http://www.murthy.com/ http://www.richw.org/dualcit/
(dual citizenship FAQ) http://www.ilw.com http://www.srs-usvisa.com
http://www.getusavisa.com http://greencard-lottery.virtualave.net/
http://www.jcvisa.com (H-1B) http://www.h1bresources.com (marriage and fiancee)
http://www.kamya.com/misc/ (marriage and fiancee)
http://www.mindspring.com/~docsteen/...o/visainfo.htm http://www.workpermit.com

This is not an endorsement of any of these Web sites. I am not affiliated with any of
the Web site owners and do not receive nor accept payment in return for listing them,
and typically don't even know them.

(if believe you have a good immigration-related Web site and want your Web site
listed here, please e-mail me).

Lord Hamster

I'm not sure if your need Advanced parole or not. However, I can help you on
Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rico is part of the United States. It is a US territory. Puerto Ricans are US
Citizens. They have zip codes and are delivered to via USPS. Also, I have been to
Puerto Rico as a Permanent Resident many times and have never had to go through
"immigration" when going or coming back.

However, be sure to confirm this with an expert first.

"Yx" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > I'm in the States on a VWP (UK National). My US Fiance proposed and we are getting
    > married soon. Can anybody render some advice on whether Puerto Rico is a suitable
    > destination for a weekend break (mini honeymoon) given that I would probably have
    > filed for the I-485 AOS before departing to PR for a weekend break. Is PR deemed
    > to be a state within the US ? Will I be hassled on my way back in to the US ? Or
    > do I have to file for the Advance Parole bit of the AOS paperwork and wait for
    > that to come through before even contemplating going to any airport let alone
    > Puerto Rico ??
    >
    > Thanks so much Yx

Ingo Pakleppa

On Wed, 19 Jun 2002 03:54:27 GMT, "Lord Hamster" <[email protected]> wrote:

    >I'm not sure if your need Advanced parole or not. However, I can help you on
    >Puerto Rico.
    >
    >Puerto Rico is part of the United States. It is a US territory. Puerto Ricans are US
    >Citizens. They have zip codes and are delivered to via USPS. Also, I have been to
    >Puerto Rico as a Permanent Resident many times and have never had to go through
    >"immigration" when going or coming back.

Thanks for the update! I have never been to PR.

Actually, there are a number of foreign countries that also have US ZIP codes, mostly
island countries in the Pacific. Palau is one I can think of (it's state code PW).

Also, when flying between Hawaii and Guam (which has a status similar to Puerto
Rico), you DO have to go through immigration in both directions, even though it
should really be a domestic flight.

Ingo

I am not a lawyer and this is not legal advice. For reliable advice, please consult
with a professional immigration attorney.

For further information, check the following frequently-requested links.

For many questions, you may find answers at
http://travel.state.gov/visa_services.html (Department of State)

or http://ins.usdoj.gov (INS).

For consular policies and visa reciprocity fees, find your consulate in
http://travel.state.gov/links.html

For visa denial and suggestions what to do about them, see
http://travel.state.gov/visadenials.html

For DOL Online Labor Certification: http://workforcesecurity.doleta.gov/

For information on affidavit of support for marriage to US citizens (I-864), go to
http://travel.state.gov/i864gen.html and http://travel.state.gov/checklist.html

For information on entering the US as a K-1: http://www.k1poelist.com/

For poverty levels, see http://aspe.os.dhhs.gov/poverty/00poverty.htm

For information on H/L/O/P visa extensions at Dept. of State in St. Louis, MO, see
http://travel.state.gov/revals.html

For non-official information, check:

(When using these sites, and any Web sites, please watch out for privacy, as I do not
know all site operators.)

http://www.visalaw.com http://www.shusterman.com http://www.immigration.com
http://members.aol.com/MDUdall http://www.murthy.com/ http://www.richw.org/dualcit/
(dual citizenship FAQ) http://www.ilw.com http://www.srs-usvisa.com
http://www.getusavisa.com http://greencard-lottery.virtualave.net/
http://www.jcvisa.com (H-1B) http://www.h1bresources.com (marriage and fiancee)
http://www.kamya.com/misc/ (marriage and fiancee)
http://www.mindspring.com/~docsteen/...o/visainfo.htm http://www.workpermit.com

This is not an endorsement of any of these Web sites. I am not affiliated with any of
the Web site owners and do not receive nor accept payment in return for listing them,
and typically don't even know them.

(if believe you have a good immigration-related Web site and want your Web site
listed here, please e-mail me).