First time entering the US with immigration visa

[PriscaLS 1]

Hi everyone! I hope I am not writing in the wrong section of the forum.

I have recently been approved for my spouse visa and will be entering the US next Monday; however, I am a little unsure about what the procedure will be upon entry.

Can anyone please help me understand what to expect? I will be carrying my passport with the immigrant visa and the sealed folder, plus the medical folder from the medical examination I did before the interview.

I will be entering through Washington Dulles and I was told at the Consulate that I should be in line with the visitors and hand them my folder and the rest of the stuff. How long does the procedure take? Do I have to state anything specific in my customs form? Does anyone have any experience with this they could share with me?

Not sure if this makes a difference but I'll be traveling with a cat, whose paperwork with shots records and good health certificate has already been gathered.

I'm getting a little nervous about missing something, so any help is appreciated :-)

Thanks in advance!

[LionessDeon 2,060]

Did you look at the POE reviews for the place you are arriving in the USA?

http://www.visajourney.com/reviews/poereviews.php

http://www.visajourney.com/reviews/poereviews.php?poe=Washington+DC&dfilter=0

Edited November 1, 2016 by LionessDeon

[PriscaLS 1]

I had not, thanks for pointing it out to me. I hadn't realized they existed!

[KierenHby 899]

We POE'd at Washington Dulles almost exactly a year ago. I'm a USC; spouse entered on CR-1.

We were directed to the USCitizens\Permanent Residents line..

When our turn came, we approached the CBP officer together (who had a couple of officers-in-training observing behind him) and handed over our passports, Customs declaration forms, and the sealed envelope. The Primary officer opened the sealed envelope, reviewed some (medical?) forms, asked a couple of questions about our marriage and checked if the mailing address was still correct. We answered yes, and made some small talk with the guys in training behind. My spouse was digitally fingerprinted and photographed. We were asked if we were bringing any food products or alcohol. We said no food, and showed him the duty-free alcohol bottles. We had expected to be escorted to Secondary, but that did not happen.

Within about 5-7 minutes, our passports were stamped, and the officer welcomed us to the US. On the way out, our baggage was x-rayed at Customs, we had nothing to declare, and we exited out by the International Arrivals area. All in all a fairly smooth process.

PS: I've never traveled with pets, so unsure about that process. I reckon if you have all the paperwork and vaccinations are up to date, you should be fine.

You'll be fine, take a deep breath, relax.

[PriscaLS 1]

We POE'd at Washington Dulles almost exactly a year ago. I'm a USC; spouse entered on CR-1.

We were directed to the USCitizens\Permanent Residents line..

When our turn came, we approached the CBP officer together (who had a couple of officers-in-training observing behind him) and handed over our passports, Customs declaration forms, and the sealed envelope. The Primary officer opened the sealed envelope, reviewed some (medical?) forms, asked a couple of questions about our marriage and checked if the mailing address was still correct. We answered yes, and made some small talk with the guys in training behind. My spouse was digitally fingerprinted and photographed. We were asked if we were bringing any food products or alcohol. We said no food, and showed him the duty-free alcohol bottles. We had expected to be escorted to Secondary, but that did not happen.

Within about 5-7 minutes, our passports were stamped, and the officer welcomed us to the US. On the way out, our baggage was x-rayed at Customs, we had nothing to declare, and we exited out by the International Arrivals area. All in all a fairly smooth process.

PS: I've never traveled with pets, so unsure about that process. I reckon if you have all the paperwork and vaccinations are up to date, you should be fine.

You'll be fine, take a deep breath, relax.

Thank you so much for taking the time to write this!

I think I was told to go to the visitors line because I will be traveling alone as my husband is waiting for me there already, but I could always ask them once I get there whether I can use the other line instead :-) that may save me some time.

Thanks again for the information! I hope it goes as smoothly for me as it did for you two.

[ccece 2]

On 11/1/2016 at 2:14 PM, PriscaLS said:

Hi everyone! I hope I am not writing in the wrong section of the forum.

I have recently been approved for my spouse visa and will be entering the US next Monday; however, I am a little unsure about what the procedure will be upon entry.

Can anyone please help me understand what to expect? I will be carrying my passport with the immigrant visa and the sealed folder, plus the medical folder from the medical examination I did before the interview.

I will be entering through Washington Dulles and I was told at the Consulate that I should be in line with the visitors and hand them my folder and the rest of the stuff. How long does the procedure take? Do I have to state anything specific in my customs form? Does anyone have any experience with this they could share with me?

Not sure if this makes a difference but I'll be traveling with a cat, whose paperwork with shots records and good health certificate has already been gathered.

I'm getting a little nervous about missing something, so any help is appreciated 🙂

Thanks in advance!

I Know this post is old but im in the same situation i have to travél by myself With a cat and my husband is going to be Waiting for me at miami poe. How Was ur experience With the pet!? They asked u for your vacination récords? 

Thanks

[PriscaLS 1]

3 minutes ago, ccece said:

I Know this post is old but im in the same situation i have to travél by myself With a cat and my husband is going to be Waiting for me at miami poe. How Was ur experience With the pet!? They asked u for your vacination récords? 

Thanks

Hi! The trip was definitely veeeeeery long and the cat complained quite a bit, but not impossible to bear. I was so stressed about it, worried about all kinds of terrible scenarios (including her dying from stress – I know it sounds absurd!). Luckily, the cat recovered super fast. Basically she went from absolutely mad and miserable to "this whole house is mine!" as soon as I freed her from the carrier. It was such a relief! She was on the old side (10 at the time) and not the most patient cat, either.

 

At the airport they looked at the cat's paperwork just as a formality but didn't seem particularly concerned / interested / difficult about anything. They basically just glanced at it and then focused on my own paperwork. I did have the rabies shot certificate, which was the only thing they needed I think.

 

If you have any other specific questions feel free to ask! And good luck about everything :-)

[ccece 2]

12 minutes ago, PriscaLS said:

Hi! The trip was definitely veeeeeery long and the cat complained quite a bit, but not impossible to bear. I was so stressed about it, worried about all kinds of terrible scenarios (including her dying from stress – I know it sounds absurd!). Luckily, the cat recovered super fast. Basically she went from absolutely mad and miserable to "this whole house is mine!" as soon as I freed her from the carrier. It was such a relief! She was on the old side (10 at the time) and not the most patient cat, either.

 

At the airport they looked at the cat's paperwork just as a formality but didn't seem particularly concerned / interested / difficult about anything. They basically just glanced at it and then focused on my own paperwork. I did have the rabies shot certificate, which was the only thing they needed I think.

 

If you have any other specific questions feel free to ask! And good luck about everything 🙂

Thank you so much for your response, im anxious a Well cause im travelling from uruguay and the flight duration is 9 hrs. The cat Will travél under the seat With me. But im worried if he Will freak out and eveeybody Would want to kill me to bring him With me. But im scared to send him in cargo. 

Yours travel in cargo?

Thanks again. 

[PriscaLS 1]

59 minutes ago, ccece said:

Thank you so much for your response, im anxious a Well cause im travelling from uruguay and the flight duration is 9 hrs. The cat Will travél under the seat With me. But im worried if he Will freak out and eveeybody Would want to kill me to bring him With me. But im scared to send him in cargo. 

Yours travel in cargo?

Thanks again. 

You're welcome! My cat also travelled under the seat. I was too worried about letting her travel alone in cargo. I was lucky that my seat mates liked the cat, and she didn't make too much noise. I brought her snacks and she ate them, but she didn't want to drink. Hopefully people are understanding with you guys as well.