Questions on working and SSN

[a1188323 0]

Wife just entered on Cr-1 visa, and Ive read a bit on here about a I-551 stamp that would let her work while waiting for her GC, but she didnt get any kind of stamp, is there any workaround for this? Or is she just going to have to wait on the GC to start working? Speaking of which, about how long are the GCs taking to be sent out these days?

Also, for a SSN, what does she have to do? Do they automatically send her one? Or does she have to apply?

[lost_at_sea 995]

She probably did get a stamp - it's just that it doesn't look very exciting. It's just a normal entry stamp, usually on the opposite page to the visa (often overlapping a little) with an expiry date to match the date of the visa, or some random squiggles that are supposed to be a letter code.

Her plastic GC should show up within about 2-3 months.

Her SSN may just turn up by itself if she ticked the box on the visa application form to be sent one. That doesn't always work. If she doesn't get one within a month of POE, go down to your local SSA and ask for it to be sent.