state id

[Sveta & Ron 23]

today took sveta to get a state id/ drivers permit and after getting all the papers together and signing papers at desk state refused the id due to no green card kinda sucks as her passport is sometimes a pain to carry around just to let everyone know be ready for your bride to not be able drive or get state id before green card in this case why need id?

[StarGirl 13]

today took sveta to get a state id/ drivers permit and after getting all the papers together and signing papers at desk state refused the id due to no green card kinda sucks as her passport is sometimes a pain to carry around just to let everyone know be ready for your bride to not be able drive or get state id before green card in this case why need id?

they also refused to issue DL to me when I applied. They said that I needed to provide a document from immigration proving my status in the country. As soon as I got my EAD/AP card, I went to DMV, and they issued me DL valid for the same period of time as my work permit. Once I have my green card, I will be able to renew DL.

[TBoneTX 46,156]

*** Thread moved from main AOS/Family-Based forum to Moving Here & Your New Life forum -- topic is not an AOS-process issue. ***

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

today took sveta to get a state id/ drivers permit and after getting all the papers together and signing papers at desk state refused the id due to no green card kinda sucks as her passport is sometimes a pain to carry around just to let everyone know be ready for your bride to not be able drive or get state id before green card in this case why need id?

State specific. Alla had a Vermont drivers license 2 months after she arrived and 2 months before she had a green card. Vermont only requires that you show you are legal to remain in the state for 180 days in order to get a drivers license.

Alla began driving lessons the day after she arrived using her Russian drivers license (accepted in Vermont for 60 days). Upon applying for her AOS we took her NOA1 to the DMV with her marriage certificate and she took the test for a drivers license. She got the Russian drivers license for a bribe, basically (because she sure did not know how to drive) so that it could be used as a "learners permit" here when she arrived.

Instead of checking the case status reports and Igor's list, I checked our state laws regarding drivers licenses and told her to get a foreign license because Vermont would accept that for 60 days after her arrival and we could use that as a permit and start her driving lessons right away. After going to apply for her Social Security Number the morning after she arrived, adding her to our joint bank account and opening her own account at the Credit Union so she had her very own Credit Card in her own name with a $500 limit...we had a driving lesson that afternoon on the local rural roads. Within 24 hours of her arrival she had an SSN, her own bank account, a joint bank account, her own credit card in her name AND a 50% schlarship for a Masters Degree and her first driving lesson. It was a busy day. She expected no less.

I never had time to check our case status.

These are the kind of things you check on and prepare for, rather than case status and Igor's list, before your bride arrives so she can get started on LIFE right away. I may have mentioned that at an earlier date . These laws vary in each state, learn what they are in YOUR state before your fiancee arrives and plan for how to handle it. Arrange driving lessons if needed, etc. IF she has to wait for an EAD or GC like many states require, then be prepared to send the Adjustment of Status right away and make your fiancee aware of what she will need for that, like an I-94 card. DO NOT leave the POE without an I-94 card! She can also get a foreign license as most states will accept those for vari=ying periods (usually 60-90 days) and those can be used to get her started on lessons and such.

I guess everyone needs to find out what we are doing is here is not a VISA, it is LIFE. The visa is a part of life, a very small, insignifigant part of life. Comparable to the college applications you did. Certainly no one thinks of them when you think about your education. No one hires an attorney to fill out a college application even though they are far more complex than an I-129f, and no one thinks they are the be all and end all of LIFE

Everyone seems to understand that if they were to move from Texas to, say, Oregon they would need to do a lot of things to prepare, including learning about Oregon's laws regarding drivers licenses, utilities, insurance, vehicle registration, school enrollment, taxes, yada, yada, yada, yada

Then we move someone halfway 'round the world to spend the rest of their life with us in a new culture that speaks a different language and we think that all we have to do is mail a few papers and watch a status update site and repeatedly ask "Are we there yet, are we there yet?"

Baffling

Edited February 13, 2013 by Gary and Alla

[jimnlena 8]

Yep no drivers license in Texas till your are legal resident. That is a good reason to carry uninsured motorist insurance! As all the illegals "sorry thats undocumented people" can not get license or insurance!

[jimnlena 8]

Yes Lena drove on foreign license also. Even got a speeding ticket so must be legal here also LOL.

State specific. Alla had a Vermont drivers license 2 months after she arrived and 2 months before she had a green card. Vermont only requires that you show you are legal to remain in the state for 180 days in order to get a drivers license.

Alla began driving lessons the day after she arrived using her Russian drivers license (accepted in Vermont for 60 days). Upon applying for her AOS we took her NOA1 to the DMV with her marriage certificate and she took the test for a drivers license. She got the Russian drivers license for a bribe, basically (because she sure did not know how to drive) so that it could be used as a "learners permit" here when she arrived.

Instead of checking the case status reports and Igor's list, I checked our state laws regarding drivers licenses and told her to get a foreign license because Vermont would accept that for 60 days after her arrival and we could use that as a permit and start her driving lessons right away. After going to apply for her Social Security Number the morning after she arrived, adding her to our joint bank account and opening her own account at the Credit Union so she had her very own Credit Card in her own name with a $500 limit...we had a driving lesson that afternoon on the local rural roads. Within 24 hours of her arrival she had an SSN, her own bank account, a joint bank account, her own credit card in her name AND a 50% schlarship for a Masters Degree and her first driving lesson. It was a busy day. She expected no less.

I never had time to check our case status.

These are the kind of things you check on and prepare for, rather than case status and Igor's list, before your bride arrives so she can get started on LIFE right away. I may have mentioned that at an earlier date . These laws vary in each state, learn what they are in YOUR state before your fiancee arrives and plan for how to handle it. Arrange driving lessons if needed, etc. IF she has to wait for an EAD or GC like many states require, then be prepared to send the Adjustment of Status right away and make your fiancee aware of what she will need for that, like an I-94 card. DO NOT leave the POE without an I-94 card! She can also get a foreign license as most states will accept those for vari=ying periods (usually 60-90 days) and those can be used to get her started on lessons and such.

I guess everyone needs to find out what we are doing is here is not a VISA, it is LIFE. The visa is a part of life, a very small, insignifigant part of life. Comparable to the college applications you did. Certainly no one thinks of them when you think about your education. No one hires an attorney to fill out a college application even though they are far more complex than an I-129f, and no one thinks they are the be all and end all of LIFE

Everyone seems to understand that if they were to move from Texas to, say, Oregon they would need to do a lot of things to prepare, including learning about Oregon's laws regarding drivers licenses, utilities, insurance, vehicle registration, school enrollment, taxes, yada, yada, yada, yada

Then we move someone halfway 'round the world to spend the rest of their life with us in a new culture that speaks a different language and we think that all we have to do is mail a few papers and watch a status update site and repeatedly ask "Are we there yet, are we there yet?"

Baffling

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Yes Lena drove on foreign license also. Even got a speeding ticket so must be legal here also LOL.

YAY!!!! Legal!

It is not unusual for a state to require a green card and many require either a GC or EAD. Vermont requires only that you show you are legal to remain for 180 days and then they issue a license valid for the period of legal stay.

Just one of those things to know BEFORE they arrive and best to make a "dry run" and meet with the people in the office to find out exactly what you need when you go. I made dry runs to schools, SS office, DMV, banks, credit unions, researched credit cards (she wanted her OWn and she wanted it right away) She got it! It was very easy

The foreign drivers license is a good idea also as it allows them to drive or start lessons immediately. Drivers licenses in Ukraine and Russia can be "bought" so getting one does not require actual training or testing. Just some doh-rey-me

Alla (a Ukrainian) bought/bribed herself a Russian drivers license while on a business trip to Moscow from the friend of a friend (and EVERY FSU woman has friends and friends of friends and can buy a DL) Good enough! She had a document making it legal for her to drive in Vermont for 60 days. By then we had been married and filed for AOS and she had some training and could pass the Vermont test. VOILA! Instant driver's lessons as soon as she arrived!

[Sveta & Ron 23]

who should sveta try for her own cc as only had ss few weeks

[jimnlena 8]

kohl's, penny's and conns ususally easiest cc for mc maybe credit one

who should sveta try for her own cc as only had ss few weeks

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

who should sveta try for her own cc as only had ss few weeks

Check credit unions. Our credit union issues a Master Card with a minimum $500 limit to any member with at least $50 on deposit. Alla received her credit card before she received her SS card in the mail. She had her NUMBER but not the card. (you can go back to the office the next day or later the same day and get the NUMBER by simply asking them)

Sergey and Alla BOTH got their very own Master Card in their own name by placing $50 on deposit. Pasha got a Master Card DEBIT card because he was not 18 and could not get a credit card. Next month he turns 18 and will immediately be issued a credit card, probably for more than $500.

Alla's credit line is now $7,500 on that card. She has many others. She has excellent credit and can buy/charge just about anything she wants. Including a brand new car 2 years after she arrived with very little down payment. She paid off the 5 year loan in 1.5 years. Her credit is in no way connected to mine and we have NO mingled financial items other than one small bank account for bills and the mortgage.