POE experiences you've had

[Pandora01 0]

Oh, I'm already used to country living, it's city living I never got used to. The day when I'll be in ND for good cannot come soon enough. Believe me!

I'm lucky indeed about my dad taking me in like that. I didn't want to renew my lease and then get stuck with the responsability of it while living in the US. I could have tried to break the lease but didn't want to take the chance that the landlord said no to it. And in the province here, it's the landlord who has the last word

[JillA 2]

JillA - On what date are you planning to cross? Saturday November 15th!!

Ant - Most of my stuff is already packed and in storage. I moved back in with my dad at the end of my lease. So there's really not much left to pack. My computer, my clothing and a few things here and there. Shouldn't take me more than a day.

Once in the US, I'll be on a satellite connection. We'll be living out in the country and it's all we can get there. Speeds will be a little lower than high speed but not too bad I guess. I'll have to get used to it though.

Galateia - I feel for you, having to go through that trouble. I'd go nuts I'm putting the Detroit Tunnel on my black list right this instant. Thanks for the heads up, Galateia!

[antda 13]

Hi Pandora01,

Lol...likewise, I "never got used to city living" either. I still can't believe that I "wasted all those years" living in the city before! Oh well, I can enjoy "the joys of country living now, and for the rest of my life..." And I hope too, that you will be "used to" and "happy" living in the countryside of ND. No wonder you want to move and live there right away, which will come true for you very soon!

Yeah, it doesn't seem fair that the landlord has more say that the tenant in terms of living conditions and/or leases and contracts. After all, one should be able to "break a lease" due to "life circumstances", as long as they are in good standing previously with their rent payments. Maybe it's because of some "landlord and tenant act/bill" that they passed years ago (in Ontario there was one, I think) that made it unfair? By the way, did you have problems breaking your lease, if you did such? If not, then how are you dealing with breaking the lease/contract by immigrating here?

Ant

Oh, I'm already used to country living, it's city living I never got used to. The day when I'll be in ND for good cannot come soon enough. Believe me!

I'm lucky indeed about my dad taking me in like that. I didn't want to renew my lease and then get stuck with the responsability of it while living in the US. I could have tried to break the lease but didn't want to take the chance that the landlord said no to it. And in the province here, it's the landlord who has the last word

[Krikit 1,165]

Hi Krikit,

I had no "visa" when I crossed over for a "visit" (as Canadians are exempts from such). I just showed them my Canadian passport at the border as Canadian ID for my visit to the USA, and hoped that they let me and my boyfriend/husband over without any problems. I guess not then, as they "forced" me to get a "visitor's visa" and "I-94", after they "interrograted and questioned" us and "searched" belongings non-stop for 2 hours.

Ok, I can understand that it takes some time for processing (maybe 1/2 hour or so for others who have "visas" ahead of time), but 2 hours of a non-stop nightmare for the both of us is not right!

Needless to say, that horrible experience "forced" us to move our "marriage timeline" ahead, and we got married here in the USA and I moved here and "immigrated" instead...

And now we live, "Happily ever after in the USA..."..(oh there are always good endings to bad experiences, indeed!)....And ever since then I've had no other major problems crossing the US/Canada border ever again!

Ant ("Happily ever after...")

Ant, it will take them longer to cross because they are coming through on a visa and will have to go through secondary processing.

Yes, Ant, I know you came here without a visa. I was responding to your post saying it might take them a little longer than 10 minutes. It may even take them longer than "maybe 1/2 hour or so". Mine took 2.5 hours.

Krikit (done with this and going to bed now...)

[Pandora01 0]

JillA - On what date are you planning to cross? Saturday November 15th!!

That's coming soon! Just a little over a month. All the best to you and your SO for a smooth move!

[Pandora01 0]

Hi Pandora01,

Lol...likewise, I "never got used to city living" either. I still can't believe that I "wasted all those years" living in the city before! Oh well, I can enjoy "the joys of country living now, and for the rest of my life..." And I hope too, that you will be "used to" and "happy" living in the countryside of ND. No wonder you want to move and live there right away, which will come true for you very soon!

Yeah, it doesn't seem fair that the landlord has more say that the tenant in terms of living conditions and/or leases and contracts. After all, one should be able to "break a lease" due to "life circumstances", as long as they are in good standing previously with their rent payments. Maybe it's because of some "landlord and tenant act/bill" that they passed years ago (in Ontario there was one, I think) that made it unfair? By the way, did you have problems breaking your lease, if you did such? If not, then how are you dealing with breaking the lease/contract by immigrating here?

Ant

I didn't break my lease, it was terminating at the end of June. So when the time came to renew the lease in January, I notified the landlord that I would be moving out and that he could lease the apartment starting on the 1st of July. It was a lease for 12 months, renewed yearly. And yeah, there's some kind of act/bill (don't know what it's called here in the province in English and I'm too tired to go look it up right now) that made things work this way. To protect the renters. Yeah, right.

Edited October 13, 2008 by Pandora01

[antda 13]

Hi Krikit,

Sorry about the misunderstandings about the time it "actually" takes for a person with a "visa" to cross the border at the POE. I didn't know that it takes longer than 10 minutes, as I was just guessing there, thinking that since a person has all their paperwork and visa ahead of time, they should have no problems and be processed quickly too. I guess I was wrong before in assuming that before...

By the way, what exactly is "secondary processing"? And what happens during this "processing" at the POE? If you had to go through this, was it a positive or negative experience overall for you?

Wow, that was a long time that you spent at the border (2.5 hrs) at your POE, Krikit! I hope that they didn't give you too many problems then, especially so if you have a visa and your paperwork ready beforehand. Either way, you don't have to worry about that now that you're in the USA, and have crossed over the POE already.

Good to know something each day about "actual POE processing times". Thanks.....

Ant (Learning about "processing times" and yes, am also "going to bed" soon...)

Ant, it will take them longer to cross because they are coming through on a visa and will have to go through secondary processing. Yes, Ant, I know you came here without a visa. I was responding to your post saying it might take them a little longer than 10 minutes. It may even take them longer than "maybe 1/2 hour or so". Mine took 2.5 hours.

Krikit (done with this and going to bed now...)

Edited October 13, 2008 by AntandD

[antda 13]

Hi Pandora01,

Glad things worked out for you between you and your landlord and you didn't have to worry about your lease in Canada anymore. Lol....no such thing as a "act/bill" to protect the renters, yet, just ones that protect the landlords...and it looks like it will stay this way for a very long time, regardless of country and/or province of residence....

Ant

I didn't break my lease, it was terminating at the end of June. So when the time came to renew the lease in January, I notified the landlord that I would be moving out and that he could lease the apartment starting on the 1st of July. It was a lease for 12 months, renewed yearly. And yeah, there's some kind of act/bill (don't know what it's called here in the province in English and I'm too tired to go look it up right now) that made things work this way. To protect the renters. Yeah, right.

[CBR 0]

We crossed at Sarnia in June this year. It wasn't bad at all. We had a guy who had never processed a k-1 before so it took

a little longer than it should have, but it all went well. Just know what you're doing and if they do something wrong, politely

suggest the correct way (our guy wanted to give us our packet which they are supposed to keep and send back to USCIS for

when we file AoS. ..he kept insisting until the guy next to him said "yea, we keep that to send". duh! lol)

Good luck, i'm sure it'll be smooth sailing whichever POE you choose.

[Cassie 8]

Hi Krikit,

Sorry about the misunderstandings about the time it "actually" takes for a person with a "visa" to cross the border at the POE. I didn't know that it takes longer than 10 minutes, as I was just guessing there, thinking that since a person has all their paperwork and visa ahead of time, they should have no problems and be processed quickly too. I guess I was wrong before in assuming that before...

By the way, what exactly is "secondary processing"? And what happens during this "processing" at the POE? If you had to go through this, was it a positive or negative experience overall for you?

Secondary processing is basically being taken off to another room or area and the officers take a look at all your paperwork to make sure it is in order, passport gets stamped /I-94 gets filled out and stamped. This can take 10-15 minutes, or it can take a while (like Krikit's experience), depending on how well-versed the officers are in the various visas or how many people are in secondary in front of you. I've seen people going through land POE's (particularly the lesser-used ones) are usually the ones to have the lengthy waits in secondary, because the officers may not see them everyday and may not be familiar with the procedures. The longest I had to wait in secondary was when I was going through JFK using my AP, because there were a ton of people waiting before me. So I sat and waited for about half an hour.

[Pandora01 0]

Ant - Yeah, unfortunately

CBR - Thanks, CBR It's the feeling I'm starting to get, that it'll go smoothly (even though there'll always be that little part of me that keeps saying "Yeah, get comfy, but then things could get ugly too" )

[MsZ 6]

We'll be going through Lewiston and I'll let you know what I learn. I plan to stop by the office next time I come home and ask what *they* want to see when we get ready to activate Mike's visa.

[Pandora01 0]

Cool! Thanks, MsZ

[antda 13]

Hi Cassie,

Thanks for explaining as to what “secondary processing” is. From what you described, it sounds like the process that I went through when I was at the POE, which took awhile (more like Krikit’s time-wise). I just didn’t know that it was called “secondary processing” before, as when I crossed the border, I had no visa before and wasn’t told of such “processing” beforehand. When I got “processed” (more like “interrogated”, as I like to say) I got my passport stamped with a B2 Visitor’s Visa and got an I-94. There weren’t too many people ahead of us (about 10 or less), and we only had to wait a few mins before we met with an immigration officer. For the rest of the time (about 2 hours), they just questioned us (my boyfriend/husband and I) and searched our belongings. Maybe they weren’t too well-versed and/or not familiar with the procedures, like you suggested; as they took so long and I remember at one point they were saying that they had to talk to the supervisor while we waited again in the waiting area after for their decision about me. In fact, they left us “hanging on a string/in suspense” wondering if I was going to be able to cross the border to visit at all, and at one point they had two officers questioning us separately about our intentions. So it was to a shock to me, indeed, when they called us back into the room in the end and finally said “How long do you want to visit for? (which I said for 2-3 weeks)”, and then they granted me the paperwork to approve my visit to the USA. And well, the rest is history (see my VJ timeline for more info)….

Glad to hear, Cassie, that you had no problems when you went through “secondary processing” process. Wow, that sure is quick that you were in JFK (a very busy place) using your AP and you only had to wait about half an hour for your turn. Were the officers at that time confused since you were traveling with your AP, or were they familiar with it beforehand?

And now that you have your green card (the 10 yr one too!), you don’t have to worry as much about “processing”, as they know what to do with that card and shouldn’t give you any problems traveling because of it.

Good luck on the rest of your immigration journey too.

Ant (Learned about “secondary processing”…)

Secondary processing is basically being taken off to another room or area and the officers take a look at all your paperwork to make sure it is in order, passport gets stamped /I-94 gets filled out and stamped. This can take 10-15 minutes, or it can take a while (like Krikit's experience), depending on how well-versed the officers are in the various visas or how many people are in secondary in front of you. I've seen people going through land POE's (particularly the lesser-used ones) are usually the ones to have the lengthy waits in secondary, because the officers may not see them everyday and may not be familiar with the procedures. The longest I had to wait in secondary was when I was going through JFK using my AP, because there were a ton of people waiting before me. So I sat and waited for about half an hour.