Traveling on Extension Letter?

[WeGuyGal 1,052]

48 minutes ago, TabeaK said:

Has anyone travelled with the recently introduced 18 month letter? I received mine just a couple weeks ago.

My next international travel is coming up and I wonder which letter to take - 12 or 18 months, as I now have both and my 12 month letter is still valid till April 2019.

Shouldn't matter. Like Visa or Mastercard; if they're both accepted, pick one. 

[TabeaK 517]

Well, I get that it shouldn't matter - but "should" doesn't really play into interactions with USCIS, CBP & airlines that well.

Just wondering how clued in everyone is on the 18 month letter.

[WeGuyGal 1,052]

So carry the 12-mo letter. CBP/most airline check-in agents are definitely clued in on the 12-month extn letter + expired GC combo. 

 

Edit: On the plus side, the 12-mo is a 1-pg document and this less burdensome to carry. 

Edited August 29, 2018 by WeGuyGal

[hmz 6]

Obviously traveling with the extension letter is not an issue, but using the Kiosk is the major issue. In the old days, it used to be US Citizens/Permanent Resident line, but there isn't one now. We've waited an hour just to approach the damn Kiosk and of course it didn't go through. The idiot worker told us to get in line all over again with all the other immigrants to see the officer at the booth.

[TabeaK 517]

On 8/29/2018 at 1:26 PM, WeGuyGal said:

So carry the 12-mo letter. CBP/most airline check-in agents are definitely clued in on the 12-month extn letter + expired GC combo. 

 

Edit: On the plus side, the 12-mo is a 1-pg document and this less burdensome to carry. 

Sheesh, this is a place to exchange experiences, is it not?

 

Hence travel reports from people travelling on the new 18 months letters will be of interest to the wider community.

[BaoAnh 0]

Do we still need I-551 besides an extension letter and a green card to travel? Any advises?

 

 

[WeGuyGal 1,052]

58 minutes ago, BaoAnh said:

Do we still need I-551 besides an extension letter and a green card to travel? Any advises?

 

No

 

The i551 stamp OR extn letter + expired gc combo for US reentry. 

[mrs thb 331]

1 hour ago, BaoAnh said:

Do we still need I-551 besides an extension letter and a green card to travel? Any advises?

 

 

No,all you need is passport with the stamp.  Think of this stamp as the visa you got put into your passport when you passed your K1 or I-130 visa process.  It's your offical ID authorization giving you ties to USA, 

 

Some say they will still travel with all other documents but that is silly and overkill imo.  The more papers and docs you carry, the more you risk if they are lost or stolen.  Not to mention some CBP officers might get overwhelmed with all your papers and think you're up to something.  Not all CBP officers know all docs and protocols....hence need second opinions....this will just delay your inspection.  Less is best sometimes!

 

[luna_azul0609 6]

Sorry if this is a stupid question, but I can’t find a clear answer- what is the I-131 form for?  Is it only needed if you are traveling outside of the U.S. for an extended amount of time?

[dilip 187]

My wife Indian citizen and green card with extension letter visited Peru.  No issue getting into Peru.  While coming back, at the airport counter, person called a few people to understand the extension letter and took 10 minutes before he issued the ticket.  Getting in JFK was easy and no issue.

[VizaApplicant 0]

Here's a potentially ignorant question regarding this process.  It seems to me that people are getting 12-18 month extension letters after applying for ROC.  For those getting 18 months, are you applying for US citizenship after the 12th month, since you only need to be a resident for 3 years for marriage based GCs?  Or does that just confuse the process with USCIS?

[dilip 187]

Our 12 months extension will expire in Feb 2019.  I took both 12 months and 18 months during our visit to Peru, but only used 12 months extension one, since is more authentic than the 18 months which says courtesy copy not official one.   At the counter of TAME airline, the guy called a few people before he issued the ticket. So everybody is not familiar with the extension letter, but the higher authority in each airline is.  So I see no issue to travel with extension letter, but might need to wait 10- 15 minutes for airline to figure out.  When we entered Peru, the young immigration office told us to wait and discuss with another senior officer and then stamped the passport to get in.   

[bariki 71]

On 4/26/2017 at 9:54 AM, Derwood said:

There have been quite a few posts recently regarding traveling on an expired GC with the one year extension letter.

 

Page 38 of this document provides some reassurance:

 

https://www.cbp.gov/sites/default/files/documents/Carrier Information Guide- English.pdf

 

It also makes clear that the 12 month extension is from the card expiry date, not the receipt date of the I-797.

This thread contains super-useful advice... but the link to the guide is broken.

 

Please update using this permalink: https://www.cbp.gov/document/guides/carrier-information-guide-english

[bariki 71]

I have Global Entry tied to my (soon to expire 2 year conditional green card) and have filed to have the conditions lifted on my residency. ETA: 21 months.

 

Does anyone know if I can still use the Global Entry kiosks at ports of entry back into the United States? I'm guessing 'no' since the machine-readable data in the card will be expired.

Edited September 21, 2018 by bariki

[sharin 41]

I'll be traveling next month to India -

 

1. I plan to travel with Valid passport, expired green card and 12-month extension letter. Should I carry anything else with me?

2. Has anyone been through secondary inspection because I'll be landing in JFK and catching connecting flight which is in 3 hours gap, should bother changing my flight beforehand or 3 hours will be enough?