Re-Entry Permit needed?
Oct 21st 2002, 12:22 am
#1
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re-Entry Permit needed?
My father in-law is in the process for a Resident Alien card, derived
from his US citizen daughter (my wife...). We are stationed overseas,
and all the "paperwork" and interviews was handled by the State
Department (at our Embassy, where I work in another department)....INS
was not involved at all.....last week he was given a large packet of
paperwork, sealed, by the Consular Officer, and instructed to give
this to the INS inspector when he enters the USA the first time....no
further instructions were given....
our question is, does he need a re-entry permit to return to Mexico
(home) for a weekend visit or will the inspector assign some sort of
temporary resident alien permit? also, does anyone know what is in
this mystery envelope?
THANKS
BILL
[email protected]
from his US citizen daughter (my wife...). We are stationed overseas,
and all the "paperwork" and interviews was handled by the State
Department (at our Embassy, where I work in another department)....INS
was not involved at all.....last week he was given a large packet of
paperwork, sealed, by the Consular Officer, and instructed to give
this to the INS inspector when he enters the USA the first time....no
further instructions were given....
our question is, does he need a re-entry permit to return to Mexico
(home) for a weekend visit or will the inspector assign some sort of
temporary resident alien permit? also, does anyone know what is in
this mystery envelope?
THANKS
BILL
[email protected]
Oct 21st 2002, 10:25 am
#2
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Re-Entry Permit needed?
On Sun, 20 Oct 2002 17:22:06 -0700, Bill wrote:
> My father in-law is in the process for a Resident Alien card, derived
> from his US citizen daughter (my wife...). We are stationed overseas,
> and all the "paperwork" and interviews was handled by the State
> Department (at our Embassy, where I work in another department)....INS
> was not involved at all.....last week he was given a large packet of
> paperwork, sealed, by the Consular Officer, and instructed to give this
> to the INS inspector when he enters the USA the first time....no further
> instructions were given....
> our question is, does he need a re-entry permit to return to Mexico
> (home) for a weekend visit or will the inspector assign some sort of
> temporary resident alien permit? also, does anyone know what is in this
> mystery envelope?
Congratulations! This "mystery envelope" actually is his immigrant visa.
Most people are only familiar with non-immigrant visas, which are stickers
that are placed in the passport. Immigrant visas are exactly these
envelopes.
He must not open it, or it would become invalidated. Basically, it
contains all of the paperwork that he and you submitted on his behalf.
When he arrives in the US for the first time, he needs to show this visa
and his passport to the immigration inspector. He will then be directed to
the secondary inspection area. It may take an hour or two of waiting (so
make sure that he has plenty of time when making his travel arrangements).
Eventually, he will get a stamp in his passport that says "I-551" and some
text to the effect that work is authorized. This stamp is precious; it IS
his Green Card. At the same time, INS will also take a fingerprint and
fill out a form to order his actual plastic Green Card. Most importantly,
they will ask him for his address in the United States. In other words,
when he arrives, he already must know exactly where he will be living. It
is important that this address remain valid for at least one year or so.
This is where the final plastic Green Card will be mailed, and it can take
a year.
As for travelling to Mexico, no problem. Since the I-551 stamp is legally
the same as an actual Green Card, he can simply use that to get back into
the country. Once he has his plastic GC, he should of course use that
instead.
Finally, one more hint - unrelated to your question but important
nonetheless: if your father-in-law moves to a different address, it is
very important that he notify INS of the new address, or he can be
deported for failing to do that (this is a new policy Ashcroft recently
implemented; many of the 1000 or so people detained after 9/11 were
actually detained for failing to notify INS of a new address). The form
for that is AR-11; make sure to send it by certified mail, return receipt
requested, and keep a copy of the AR-11. However, do NOT expect INS to
send the Green Card to this new address. INS is a bit disorganized, and
the AR-11 actually goes to a very different office than what would handle
the Green Card.
> My father in-law is in the process for a Resident Alien card, derived
> from his US citizen daughter (my wife...). We are stationed overseas,
> and all the "paperwork" and interviews was handled by the State
> Department (at our Embassy, where I work in another department)....INS
> was not involved at all.....last week he was given a large packet of
> paperwork, sealed, by the Consular Officer, and instructed to give this
> to the INS inspector when he enters the USA the first time....no further
> instructions were given....
> our question is, does he need a re-entry permit to return to Mexico
> (home) for a weekend visit or will the inspector assign some sort of
> temporary resident alien permit? also, does anyone know what is in this
> mystery envelope?
Congratulations! This "mystery envelope" actually is his immigrant visa.
Most people are only familiar with non-immigrant visas, which are stickers
that are placed in the passport. Immigrant visas are exactly these
envelopes.
He must not open it, or it would become invalidated. Basically, it
contains all of the paperwork that he and you submitted on his behalf.
When he arrives in the US for the first time, he needs to show this visa
and his passport to the immigration inspector. He will then be directed to
the secondary inspection area. It may take an hour or two of waiting (so
make sure that he has plenty of time when making his travel arrangements).
Eventually, he will get a stamp in his passport that says "I-551" and some
text to the effect that work is authorized. This stamp is precious; it IS
his Green Card. At the same time, INS will also take a fingerprint and
fill out a form to order his actual plastic Green Card. Most importantly,
they will ask him for his address in the United States. In other words,
when he arrives, he already must know exactly where he will be living. It
is important that this address remain valid for at least one year or so.
This is where the final plastic Green Card will be mailed, and it can take
a year.
As for travelling to Mexico, no problem. Since the I-551 stamp is legally
the same as an actual Green Card, he can simply use that to get back into
the country. Once he has his plastic GC, he should of course use that
instead.
Finally, one more hint - unrelated to your question but important
nonetheless: if your father-in-law moves to a different address, it is
very important that he notify INS of the new address, or he can be
deported for failing to do that (this is a new policy Ashcroft recently
implemented; many of the 1000 or so people detained after 9/11 were
actually detained for failing to notify INS of a new address). The form
for that is AR-11; make sure to send it by certified mail, return receipt
requested, and keep a copy of the AR-11. However, do NOT expect INS to
send the Green Card to this new address. INS is a bit disorganized, and
the AR-11 actually goes to a very different office than what would handle
the Green Card.
