November filers

[marie09 5]

Hello, everybody! This is just a quickie post, as I got up super early (about 5:00 a.m!) to drive through to San Antonio with my husband for my interview at 9:00 a.m., and I'm exhausted. Disorganized and neurotic as usual, we were up until about 3:00 a.m. sticking photos in albums, and attending to the last minute details of our supporting documentation.

I'll come back tomorrow to fill you in with all the juicy details, but suffice it to say that I got approved! Yay! I've got the cool little F-551 stamp in my passport. Can't wait to get the actual green card in the mail.

Speaking of green cards, congratulations on getting yours today, Marie! I'm so happy for you - and for me! It's great to know that we're done with USCIS for a year and nine months.

I've got my driving test next Tuesday (yikes!), so I'll be ecstatic if I pass that, too.

May I appeal to the infinite wisdom of Marie or Shani (or anybody else for that matter) and ask a question about driving licences actually? When I got my driving permit in the mail, I was horrified to see that it was (a) vertically oriented, not horizontally like a regular licence and (b) had "Temporary Visitor" emblazoned across it in big red letters. When I get the real licence will it still have that across it, or once I get my green card will I have a regular-looking licence like everybody else?

If I do get a regular licence now, will I be able to get it with just the F-551 stamp in my passport or will I have to wait to get the green card in the mail? It's unlikely I'll have the green card in hand by the time I sit my test next Tuesday, and I'm really hoping the F-551 stamp will be enough to get the regular licence, as I don't want to make another bloody trip to the Department of Public Safety to get a new one. Sigh.

Congratulations! :dance: Yay i'm so happy for you!!! That's awesome they gave you the I-551 stamp too.

Good luck with your driving test, fingers crossed for you.

I think over the license thing like Mestis said it's a state thing. California just gives you a regular license. I'm sure when you go to get your real license and tell them you're now a permanent resident and show them the I-551 they'll hopefully remove it. You might want to check on the Texas DMV website... See if it tells you anything.

Congratulations again on being done!

Got mine too yesterday!!! Our timeline were really like carbon copy or something :-P Congratz on being done! Woo!

Yay! Congratulations on getting yours too! Feels great to be done!

[dirtyweebesom 8]

I think over the license thing like Mestis said it's a state thing. California just gives you a regular license. I'm sure when you go to get your real license and tell them you're now a permanent resident and show them the I-551 they'll hopefully remove it. You might want to check on the Texas DMV website... See if it tells you anything.

I did a little bit of research this morning as regards the "Temporary Visitor" driving licence in Texas and, much to my horror, I think that it will still stay on an immigrant's licence even if he/she is a permanent resident! I don't know for sure yet, but that seems to be the case. I guess I'll find out soon.

I guess I can sort of see the logic to saying that a conditional permanent resident is still a "temporary visitor" because their status is dependent on the success of their ROC application, but from what I've read even ten-year green card holders still need to have the "Temporary Visitor" licence! That's really quite disgusting when you think that permanent residents live here for years and pay taxes just like regular American citizens. I've got an eighty-five-year-old Scottish friend here, who has never applied to be a citizen even though he's been here for more than fifty years. What on earth is "temporary" about his status here in the US?!

I'm probably over-reacting a little bit, but I'm actually a little bit depressed about this whole "Temporary Visitor" licence situation. After all the time, energy and money I've put into this immigration process, it would be nice to have a driver's licence that didn't mark me out as a foreigner in massive red letters. It's a bit of a slap in the face.

Yet another reason why Texas is #######.

[dirtyweebesom 8]

Apparently I'm not the only one pissed off about the driver licence rules for immigrants in Texas:

http://maldef.org/news/releases/DPS_12312009/

[marie09 5]

I did a little bit of research this morning as regards the "Temporary Visitor" driving licence in Texas and, much to my horror, I think that it will still stay on an immigrant's licence even if he/she is a permanent resident! I don't know for sure yet, but that seems to be the case. I guess I'll find out soon.

I guess I can sort of see the logic to saying that a conditional permanent resident is still a "temporary visitor" because their status is dependent on the success of their ROC application, but from what I've read even ten-year green card holders still need to have the "Temporary Visitor" licence! That's really quite disgusting when you think that permanent residents live here for years and pay taxes just like regular American citizens. I've got an eighty-five-year-old Scottish friend here, who has never applied to be a citizen even though he's been here for more than fifty years. What on earth is "temporary" about his status here in the US?!

I'm probably over-reacting a little bit, but I'm actually a little bit depressed about this whole "Temporary Visitor" licence situation. After all the time, energy and money I've put into this immigration process, it would be nice to have a driver's licence that didn't mark me out as a foreigner in massive red letters. It's a bit of a slap in the face.

Yet another reason why Texas is #######.

Wow that's crazy! You'd think they'd at least put `Permanent Resident' in big letters if they felt the need to quantify it at all. No I totally get your frustration as you just want a normal license that when you show travelling domestically or if you were get to pulled over driving doesn't scream `alien!'

That's so weird - California is a border state too and ours are normal, also Arizona too - it would only be the expiration date that would be any different. Wow! You should move j/k!

[dirtyweebesom 8]

Ha, yes, I should just move, Marie, but in this economy it would be better just to stay put and weather the storm. Also, thankfully, Austin is a little blip of liberalism in a massive ocean of red necks, so I don't have to be annoyed too much about how conservative this state is. Well, except for times when I'm given a driver licence screaming "This person is a dirty foreigner!!!!"

I still can't seem to find out for sure if permanent residents are given the "Temporary Visitor" licence but I will certainly find out soon and report back.

[marie09 5]

Ha, yes, I should just move, Marie, but in this economy it would be better just to stay put and weather the storm. Also, thankfully, Austin is a little blip of liberalism in a massive ocean of red necks, so I don't have to be annoyed too much about how conservative this state is. Well, except for times when I'm given a driver licence screaming "This person is a dirty foreigner!!!!"

I still can't seem to find out for sure if permanent residents are given the "Temporary Visitor" licence but I will certainly find out soon and report back.

i found a link for you (it's my day off work and i'm bored - lol!)

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=237043

If you read Nick-nich's post #5 it looks like once you're a permanent resident you can get a regular Texas license. Lets hope so huh!

[dirtyweebesom 8]

God, let's hope so. I have already spent countless hours at the DPS because of all this bullshit!

Thanks for the link!

[Sky* 0]

Yayyyyyyyy..

I went to interview today.. and yupppp my application has been approved!!!

card production ordered!

Thanks you guys so much!!

[Laura & Kyle 16]

Yayyyyyyyy..

I went to interview today.. and yupppp my application has been approved!!!

card production ordered!

Thanks you guys so much!!

YAY!!!! Congrats Sky!!! I wanna know details as we will be interviewing in Norfolk too!!! I'm so happy for you!!! DETAILS DETAILS!!!

[marie09 5]

Yayyyyyyyy..

I went to interview today.. and yupppp my application has been approved!!!

card production ordered!

Thanks you guys so much!!

:dance: Congratulations!!! :dance:

[IstanBulls 1]

Yayyyyyyyy..

I went to interview today.. and yupppp my application has been approved!!!

card production ordered!

Thanks you guys so much!!

Congratulations! :dance: Awesome news

[Sky* 0]

Thanks IstanBulls, Marie09, laura and kyle and everyone here, without you guys I would never get all this done by myself. Thanks for your support. Appreciate it!! :star:

YAY!!!! Congrats Sky!!! I wanna know details as we will be interviewing in Norfolk too!!! I'm so happy for you!!! DETAILS DETAILS!!!

Laura and Kyle, it's different place from the Norfolk application center.. FYI

I thought it would be the same place.. not very far from each other..

Nothing to worry about tho, it went so easy for us. Our interviewer was fairly nice. He asked us to raise our right hands and would tell him all truth.

So, he went thru my files before he asked me all questions. Begin with our address, our name, all questions that you should be able to answer "NO", how we've met. He asked me to give him bank statement of our joint account, lease agreement , affidavit, wedding photo (which we don't have them).

So I was freaked out by that time, b/c I didn't have lease agreement , affidavit, wedding photo. But my hubby told him why we don't have it at this time.

Both of us love shooting, just to begin with. So when my hubby explained him how he fall for me, it's b/c I love shooting competitively. We later found out that my interviewer has 20 guns in his collection.. so we spent a lil bit time talking about that..

Eventually, he said "your application is approved" just make sure that we will have more evidence next time we apply for 10 yrs green card.. e.g. affidavit, photos, bills under our names, lease agreement, photo of us with our family.. and so on.

At the end of my interview, I curiously asked him "Is it true that you really know which couple's is legitimately married in couple minutes you have first met them?" and he said yes, he told us that he could tell from body language and the way they talked to each other.

good luck all November filers!! I'll keep my finger cross for you!!

[noirdior 0]

oh! the places you'll go, it seems tomorrow ill be heading to the uscis office with my esposa here in LA. We're prepared and legitimately in love so i guess we're good to go but it seems foreigner alien male + female usc seems like a recipe for disaster. Nonetheless we are both charmers, honest, and have nothing to be afraid. And there are sooooo many of you with sooo many amazing good news that I just wanna say: CONGRATS fellow permanent residents!!!!!!!! This has been long and at times stressful bit this forum was one of my gretaer reasons for actually enjoying this process, congratulations to all of you fellow permanent residents!!

[noirdior 0]

ha! interview, application approved, and welcome letter, so easy being easy!! mucha suerte people!!! abrazo!!

[lovelyalex 99]

ha! interview, application approved, and welcome letter, so easy being easy!! mucha suerte people!!! abrazo!!

congrats! What kinda things did they ask you?