WHAT HAPPENS AT POE FOR OUR SPOUSES

[Sandrila 1]

Since a lot of you are all seasoned veterans here can you shed some light and tell me

once hubby gets off the plane what we can expect? I am aware that no situation is the same....but just

in general.

I want to know the time frame I might be looking at...like I dont want to rush to the airport

right at the time the plane is coming in cuz I am sure it will take longer than normal.

So if you could just share your experience with me. What they do, what they check....the standard process.

All the ducks are in a row...just counting down.

Any tips or suggestions are much appreciated!! Thanks guys.

ASH!!!!!!! I think it would be nice to hear from you since Jihed came thru Philadelphia and you guys are living so

close to me...give a holla!

Edited November 7, 2008 by sandrila

[doodlebugg 10]

For us it was a quick and easy experience. He got off the plane and headed to his area, sat in an office with the immigration person who asked him why he's here. He said I'm here to be with my wife and then he whipped out my new wedding ring (the other one made my skin all red and puffy) and asked the guy's opinion and the guy smiled, said it was nice and hopes I like it, stamped whatever they stamp and sent him on his way. Egyptians can be quite the charmers.

[Muh and me 18]

Kamal came thru Chicago and unfortunatly didn't have such a good experience. For some reason they thought he was a refugee. so after they sent him to another place (and made him miss his plane to MKE) they realized that they were wrong and sent him the right direction. It was a nightmare for me, cause i'm sitting up in MKE waiting for him to get off a plane he wasn't even on. I was a basket case!

[MrsAmera 41]

The first time he entered the US it wasn't bad - he was with his brother who is a GC holder so they got to go through the same line. They pulled him in the office for an hour or so asked some questions and let him go (this was at JFK).

Second time he entered the US with a GC through Minneapolis - PAIN!!! He was held for about 3 hours and questioned worse tha at his interview. Finally they let him go.

Third time - entered through Washington Dulles with me and our son, immigration was a breeze, he went through line with me and our son, 3 stamps and we were done.

[Beautiful_years 0]

For me too it was quick and easy, going through the normal security checks and then the officer who clears you where you and takes the brown envelope asks a few questions after you hand the brown envelope over, like your partners name, address, if you know you have to get married within 90days? Thats about it, stamps the passport asks if you filled the I-94 and directs you to immigration where they tear off the upper peforated part of the I-94 and return the other to you.

It usually doesnt take time except the crowd you meet when you come in.... so if a lot of planes arrive as same time as you be sure you ll wait a little but all these happen within an hour no more, i think i spent less than an hour though.

[Tunisia216 2]

Sure thing girl! Here is my timeline review for Philly

Port of Entry Review

Event Date

Port of Entry : Philadelphia

POE Date : 2008-05-18

Got EAD Stamp : No

Biometrics Taken : Yes

Harassment Level : 0

Comments : Customs at Philly were REALLY super great! Very friendly, no harassment, took the envelope from the embassy, finger prints and he was on his way!! Overall less than 30 minutes! (and 15 of those spent waiting) Asked him over and over.. What are you going to do in 2 years less 90 days??? And they wanted the answer file to lift conditions LOL

There were really super nice to him. And like I said in the review overall it was about 30 minutes (this was on a busy Sunday afternoon) and most of that time was just spent waiting in line. Prepare hubby to be fingerprinted, make sure he has his big medical envelope. be sure that he knows your address (which will be his address here) and your phone number. Also make sure he knows / understands what he's going to be doing in 2 years from his date of entry - adjusting status / file to life conditions. (since he is coming on a CR 1) Bring some things for yourself to do though in that huge room where you are going to wait (international arrivals) there isn't much there but some chairs and big leather circle seating. I'd bring drinks/food for yourself (maybe him too, Jihed was super thirsty ) and know where the bathrooms are cuz that was the first thing Jihed wanted lol. Now this is just the immigration portion but add more time because of all the lining up to que, separate (citizen / non citizen) getting off the plane, finding baggage, etc. The big board is pretty accurate and up do date when plans are late or sitting on the runway waiting to 'park' so you will probably be in the loop. For safety sake I bought Jihed a Us calling card, he printed it out (online / with the pin number) and made sure he knew how to dial my cell phone w/ the card incase he found any problems before he got out to me (did this before he left Tunis) I went over his flights with him - he had a connector in Frankfurt Germany, etc. Go to the Philadelphia air port website http://www.phl.org/index.html find your airline and it tells you the best / closest place to park, fees for parking, and even has a time table for the flights - reporting on the day of his arrival if his flight is going to be late/early, etc and you can plan your departure from home around that (what I did) . I was glad that I parked close because he was super exhausted and you know how busy Philly is so navigating the parking and terminals can be a bear. It's better to map it out ahead and know what's going to happen/ where to go. If you want to know anything else, please don't hesitate to ask here or PM me and I will try to help in any way possible. Good luck to you guys and happy reunion

PS With the CR 1 here, immigration will take that brown envelope, within a few days they will send it to the Texas Service Center and you should get (he will get, addressed to him) a letter saying Welcome to America and your information was received and Green Card will be generated. It took exactly 3 weeks for Jihed to get his green card in the mail. If you checked the box on the application (CR 1) to have the social security card sent directly to your home, you may find problems with that. We waited and waited and it NEVER came. I called and SS had no record of an app for him. So we went down to the local office, applied, (www.ssa.gov - you can get the forms) and it came in about 8 days. I suggest this is best. I wouldn't even wait to see if the card comes, just go right down after you print the application for a social security card online, show his passport (with the visa in it) and you should be good to go.

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

If you look up at the top of the page, there is a thin blue banner/menu bar. Under the picture of the baby you will see the letters POE. Click that and find the city where your fiance will enter. People have written up reviews and descriptions of many airports. Hopefully you can find specific information about the airport where she will arrive.

[Penguin_ie 5,993]

It was very quick for me in EWR- at passport control they took my passport and the Mysterious Brown Envelope, then escorted me to secondary. I barely sat down when they called me. Had to sign a piece of paper twice, get my index fingerprint taken (in ink), and back out to lugage claim. Lugage wasn't even out yet!

[Donna A 4]

its been so long ago but what i can remember was they took his brown envelope, fingerprinted, and i believe took a picture of him and then he was on his way.

[braveheart1 0]

Twelve days ago I came to the States via LAX ... No complaints at all to make...I waited in the 'visitors' queue for about 20 minutes and when it was my turn to be interviewed walked across to the immigration officer who opened my package then proceeded to ask, seemingly, casual questions about my fiance and my wedding plans. Then he processed my I-94 and stamped my passport. The whole process only took about 15 minutes, afterwhich he wished me well and waved me on. So, this was not a lengthy or a nail biting experience. But suffice to say my poor heart was skipping many beats.

ps: forgot to say, they took my fingerprints and photograph - gosh, that photo must have been dreadful! Afterall, I'd been travelling for about 15hrs!

[Nikita2Charles 32]

JFK POE

It's been awhile but i dont think much has changed. Since we were both traveling, there's a custom agent instructing people what line to go to, citizen and visitor. Since I was with my wife he said both of us can go to the citizen line.

My fiancee gave them the envelope and the custom officer asked us to follow him to this secondary room. It looks like a traffic court but don't get intimidated you'll be out in a jiffy. The office stand on a podium pretty high, they process the paper and they stamp the I-94 on your passport and if it's JFK your POA you might get the 90 days temporary EAD.

The officer reminds you you have 90 days to get married, and wish you good luck and welcome to america.

[julietom 0]

went thru JFK on 12th of oct. flight touched down at 8.30am. was told i can queue up at the us citizen line but then was moved to the front of the line for non-citizen. officer processed paper and was sent to a waiting place where i had to wait for like 15 mins before the officer came back from a break. had to sign and be fingerprinted. was with my husband by 930 am. be patient, smile and you'll be on your way!

[KHPerfectMatch 1]

My husband entered at JFK on 10/06/08. He wasn't finger printed. He wasn't questioned. He gave them the envelope and waited while they looked in it. They called his name, they put the I-94 in his passport. They gave him 6 months (instead of 90 days) and totally ignored his questions about the Temp EAD. He was out in the main terminal in 30 minutes. 3 minutes with the Immigration Officer total. After that he went to take his bags and they didn't even open them... Very uneventful...

Still mourning the lack of a Temp EAD... He's so bored I think he is going to wear out the carpet pacing... Sometimes I think the immigration processing might be the easy part...

Congratulations on your Visa!

[NancyB 0]

My husband entered at JFK on 10/06/08. He wasn't finger printed. He wasn't questioned. He gave them the envelope and waited while they looked in it. They called his name, they put the I-94 in his passport. They gave him 6 months (instead of 90 days) and totally ignored his questions about the Temp EAD. He was out in the main terminal in 30 minutes. 3 minutes with the Immigration Officer total. After that he went to take his bags and they didn't even open them... Very uneventful...

Still mourning the lack of a Temp EAD... He's so bored I think he is going to wear out the carpet pacing... Sometimes I think the immigration processing might be the easy part...

Congratulations on your Visa!

Karamella,

Oh I'm happy your husband is here but at the same time I'm pulling my hair out on them not giving him his EAD card.

Hum! Girl I'm praying for you both and all of us who have to go thru this #######.

[maggieNomar 0]

The POE's are as different as the interviews I think. My husband came through JFK on fiance visa. He was about 15 min total with pic, prints and EAD stamp. They just asked him for the address he was going and when we planned to get married.

Another person I used to know on here, her husband went through Minneapolis and it took him 2 hours. He ended up missing his flight (of course he ignored her suggestion to leave a lot of time between flights an only had an HOUR!!! )

So my suggestion is to make sure that he leaves plenty of time- like someone else said, you never know how many planes will be dumping into immigration at the same time- and make sure he has basic info about you (address) and your plans (wedding date if applicable) If at all possible, I advise trying to get the EAD. It seems that many people who have adjustment issues are the ones who can't work and get bored.