Travel on EAD AP Card
 

Hi everyone - I hope you are all well. I'm married to a USC and I am still waiting for my GC. I currently have a valid EAD AP combo card with 2 years on it.
We are due to go to Mexico this weekend (I live in California) to attend a friend's wedding.
I had a couple of silly questions and would love anyone's advice or experience:

- My EAD AP card has a different surname to my British passport since I changed name after getting married. Is this an issue? (My immigration lawyer isn't worried about this but told me to take our marriage certificate just in case)
- I cannot seem to figure out how to put the EAD AP card info into the online check-in which requires immigration status info - is it standard practice to have to manually go to the airport counter and show them the card etc? Are airlines familiar with Advance Parole?
- Also, now we are married, do my husband and go through Immigration together through the US Citizens and Perm Residents line?

Thanks,
William

Re: Travel on EAD AP Card
 

1. Not a problem. Make sure your airline ticket is booked in your passport name. Bring copy of marriage certificate just in case.

2. You will need to check in at the counter. They should be familiar with AP.

3. You are neither a USC nor a PR, so he can go through the non- citizen line with you, if he wants to. There's usually an agent there you could also ask just to make sure.

Rene

Re: Travel on EAD AP Card
 

Since you aren't either of those, and your spouses status has no bearing on your status, the answer to that would be 'no'

Right now, you're an alien. Nothing more. Non-citizen line is the one for you.

Re: Travel on EAD AP Card
 

Thanks so much. One other question since you both seem very knowledgable and helpful.
I have an existing active Global Entry account, originating from my previous H1B visa.

Do you know if you can still use GE with an AP card? I'm guessing the GE machine would automatically provide me with an "X" receipt from the machine and send me to secondary inspection, but at least I would still have bypassed any long immigration queues.

Prior to all of this, I used to beat my USC spouse through immigration since he didn't have GE.

Thanks

Re: Travel on EAD AP Card
 

That’s exactly what will happen. Firsthand experience back in July. (Since then I became a GCH.)

Once you become a GCH you’ll need to update your GE profile the next time you see a Border Officer coming back from a trip abroad.

Re: Travel on EAD AP Card
 

In had the same thing happen when becoming a USC, my GE linked to my GC stopped working, I discovered this by almost missing a domestic flight because my TSA Pre also stopped working.

Rather than wait to return from an international trip I made an appointment at a GE enrollment center in NYC and got it fixed.