old ssn

[mtlguy 59]

I'm new to VJ. I'm certain my question has been asked repeatedly in the past, but here's my twist:

back in the 94, I lived attended college in the states, on a j1 visa. I worked there for a while, and of course had my own ssn.

I left the states in 97, and never lived there again. Fast forward to the present day, where I met my wife. She's pushing me to

move to the states for family reasons. I started looking into the process and found out that the ssn (if any) should be mentioned on

the immigration forms.

Unfortunately, I suspect my identity was stolen after i left the states in 97; a quick google search resulted in my old addresses

where I actually lived, and another address in a totally different state. needless to say, my financial status back in 97 was a mess,

and I left the country without tying out loose ends.

So, the question is, should I re-use that same old ssn, where I know for a fact it might have been compromised?

if yes, would that affect my application?

Thanks for any replies.

cheers.

[aoifemc 2]

I've just posted a topic about how much I regret not tying up lose ends when I left! Very frustrating. Best of luck.

[Hypnos 6,576]

Yes, since, once issued, a social security number is yours for life. You must disclose it on any immigration applications where it is asked for.

Having your identity stolen would be a separate issue that you should address separately.

Edited October 1, 2012 by Hypnos

[aaron2020 11,651]

I'm new to VJ. I'm certain my question has been asked repeatedly in the past, but here's my twist:

back in the 94, I lived attended college in the states, on a j1 visa. I worked there for a while, and of course had my own ssn.

I left the states in 97, and never lived there again. Fast forward to the present day, where I met my wife. She's pushing me to

move to the states for family reasons. I started looking into the process and found out that the ssn (if any) should be mentioned on

the immigration forms.

Unfortunately, I suspect my identity was stolen after i left the states in 97; a quick google search resulted in my old addresses

where I actually lived, and another address in a totally different state. needless to say, my financial status back in 97 was a mess,

and I left the country without tying out loose ends.

So, the question is, should I re-use that same old ssn, where I know for a fact it might have been compromised?

if yes, would that affect my application?

Thanks for any replies.

cheers.

Your SSN is yours for life.

The financial mess you left behind may or may be a problem. Without knowing the nature of the mess, it's impossible to say.

If someone else is using your SSN, then you've got a bigger mess. USCIS may suspect that you have been living in the US illegally. There's nothing you can do about this except prove that you were in Canada, so it could not have been you. You can explain this at the interview.

[mtlguy 59]

Your SSN is yours for life.

The financial mess you left behind may or may be a problem. Without knowing the nature of the mess, it's impossible to say.

If someone else is using your SSN, then you've got a bigger mess. USCIS may suspect that you have been living in the US illegally. There's nothing you can do about this except prove that you were in Canada, so it could not have been you. You can explain this at the interview.

Thanks for your input. Proving I was in Canada is quite easy! I have a whole life worth of paper trail that shows I was here all the time, and that I never overstayed my visa.

The question now becomes, how on earth can I be certain if someone has been using my ssn all these years? I tried asking for a credit report, but that requires a US address. which I have none!!

anyone familiar with this process?

[Jasontnyc 9]

Thanks for your input. Proving I was in Canada is quite easy! I have a whole life worth of paper trail that shows I was here all the time, and that I never overstayed my visa.

The question now becomes, how on earth can I be certain if someone has been using my ssn all these years? I tried asking for a credit report, but that requires a US address. which I have none!!

anyone familiar with this process?

I used a family members address to get my credit report - it was only used to send a hard copy to.