Traveling on Extension Letter?

[marina1294 28]

I had the worst experience traveling on my extension letter, POE - LAX. I was escorted to a separate room, had to wait for 1.5 hours (and that's after flying for more than 24 hours). Then the interrogation started, the officer was so rude to me, and at the end threw my passport back at me. During the wait I could hear other officers screaming at travelers things like - "Go back to your country", "You are a fraud", and 'learn how to speak English, you are in the US now'. I am still so traumatized, I am not traveling anywhere until I get my 10-year green card or a passport. 

Edited November 30, 2018 by nelya94

[Cougarfalcon83 20]

1 hour ago, nelya94 said:

I had the worst experience traveling on my extension letter, POE - LAX. I was escorted to a separate room, had to wait for 1.5 hours (and that's after flying for more than 24 hours). Then the interrogation started, the officer was so rude to me, and at the end threw my passport back at me. During the wait I could hear other officers screaming at travelers things like - "Go back to your country", "You are a fraud", and 'learn how to speak English, you are in the US now'. I am still so traumatized, I am not traveling anywhere until I get my 10-year green card or a passport. 

I am so sorry that you had to go through it. Can you describe further in your opinion- what led to the secondary? And how long were you questioned in secondary - and did he stamp your passport in the end?

[marina1294 28]

2 hours ago, Cougarfalcon83 said:

I am so sorry that you had to go through it. Can you describe further in your opinion- what led to the secondary? And how long were you questioned in secondary - and did he stamp your passport in the end?

Once I landed and went to the passport control, they told me that since I have I-551 stamp and an extension letter, they have to verify it with USCIS and it's a common procedure. I traveled abroad once before that, my POE was Miami and they also took me to a different room,  but I waited 3-4 minutes, they stamped my passport and that was it. Everyone was super nice there. So I guess it depends on which airport you fly into... 

 

At LAX, I waited close to an hour and a half. There were a bunch of people there sleeping on the floor, so I guess my wait time was not as bad. They called me to a window, they guy rudely asked me if I am still married, where is my green card (USCIS officer took it away during the info pass appointment when I got a I-551 stamp), where do I live, why did I travel. I was talking to him for 5-7 minutes. Yes, I got a stamp then, and they let me go. 

[skeltzer 19]

Hello all - I'm reporting on my spouse's experience flying with the 18-month extension letter this week from Budapest-Amsterdam-Detroit. We flew KLM and Delta.

 

No one asked for the green card and letter at Budapest. In Amsterdam he had an additional passport verification step at the gate and also showed his green card and letter. The agent was more focused on the passport and was aware of what the letter was. Easy peasy.

 

We have Global Entry so went to the kiosks in Detroit. We knew he would have to talk with the passport control folks and got directed to the front of the line (no extra waiting!) to talk with an officer. He was asked what he brought back from the trip and where he was coming from, the officer looked at the letter and green card and sent him through. Took maybe 5 extra minutes and we were on our way.

 

I always hold my breath when we have to go through immigration but no problems so far!

 

[BeanieMissy 4]

Hi, 

 

I had just traveled Dubai-Los Angeles on Emirates today. At Emirates check-in desk, I presented my passport, my expired green card and the 18-month extension letter I received through my attorney. The security officer took a look at the extension letter and said that it was not an original copy but a scanned/photocopied. I then gave him the courtesy notice that I received directly from USCIS. He said it was not an original copy either, but a photocopy. I showed him the envelope that the courtesy notice of extension letter came in (with DHS return address). He took out a magnifying scope and peered into both extension letters, and said they were no good. I told him those were what I received. After 5 minutes, he finally let me proceed with the check-in.

 

At the check-in desk, the lady again was also puzzled by my extension letters, but since I was cleared by the security officer, she proceeded with checking me in for the flight.

 

At the gate, I presented my passport and boarding pass. The boarding agent saw my non-USA passport and asked about my visa. I gave him my expired green card and both my extension letters. Again, he said that both letters were not good enough for me to pass through. In the meantime, I had emailed my attorney and he said that the copy he had mailed to me was an original one. The boarding agent said the extension letter I received through my attorney was not an original copy, and that the courtesy notice is no good since it is not an official copy. He said he will get his manager contact the CBP at LAX to get a clearance for me. So, I sat down for about 15 minutes before a lady called me, and said that they had contacted the CBP and I was granted a 1-time exception to travel and enter the US without my official extension letter, and I was to get my original extension letter. She also gave me the name of the CBP agent at LAX that cleared me, and to mention that name in case I ran into some problems at the immigration.

 

So, those were two 10-15 nervous minutes.

 

Back at LAX, I was directed into the citizen/PR line even though I said I was going through ROC. I scanned my green card, and obviously it said EXPIRED and I have to be processed through an immigration agent. I presented the immigration agent with my passport, green card and both extension letters. He said, "what are these, don't tell me you are in trouble?". I said I am going through ROC and these were my extension letters. He said, oh yeah. He had me scanned my finger prints. But before he handed back my passport, I asked him whether the extension letter I received from my attorney was an original copy. He said yeah and I related the incidents at Dubai. He said you can see the watermark, then held the paper against the light, and said yes, the Dubai people are correct that this was a copy. He said that I could just get through with the courtesy notice. He was a very nice and polite fellow. He then returned all my items and I was on my way to collect my luggage.

 

So, it was a nervous time in Dubai Airport. Frankly, I do not know what the official extension letter should look like. Mine has a green background but they was nothing on the other side of the paper. My courtesy notice was other written items on the back of the paper. Thank goodness I carried both letters with me as I was initially thinking of leaving the courtesy notice at home. I might go to USCIS local office in LA or OC to get a stamp to avoid such hassle in the future, as I have at least 2 more overseas trip in the next 10 months (I filed by ROC in August 2018).

[exodus 7]

I'm not worried about traveling with the extension letter and expired green card but I am a bit worried about how long it will take to get a bio-metric appointment after sending in the I-751 packet. If I send my packet to Phoenix in early January,  will I have time to receive the extension letter and bio metric appointment before traveling in March? Also, if traveling for three months do I have to be worried about suddenly getting an interview date that forces me to cut my travels short? I just want to understand the timeline of this entire process before purchasing airline tickets.

[FoundingMother 8]

Saw some scary posts (thankfully I didn't find this thread before travelling lol), and I posted this positive one on October filer folder but here it goes:

 

Just for the peace of mind for anybody travelling, I just came back from Bangladesh (10 days) without my hubby. Landed at jfk, showed my expired GC and 18 month extension letter, they did take me to another room for further review but that seemed only for verifying the originality of the letter, no interview or anything like that. Gave me everything back without question after half an hour (there were other people going under further review so it takes a bit). TLDR; As long as your letter is real and your background is clear, travelling into the country is no issue at all 

[jarair75 1]

I am posting this in case it may help someone in the future.

My wife's I-751 was sent to Texas on Oct 17 three days before her green card expired (Oct 20). On Oct 19 USCIS received the the form and on Oct 24th our credit card was charged the biometrics fee and we received a text with the receipt number. Online status also showed that the form was accepted and we should get a notice in the mail (extension letter). I then proceeded to book a flight to go on vacation from Ft. Lauderdale to Cancun from Nov 28th to Dec 2nd assuming the notice (extension) would arrive before the trip. However, we never received the notice/extension letter in the mail and by Saturday Nov 24 (4 days before our trip) I was extremely worried we would have to cancel everything. So I called USCIS and I spoke to a tier 1 agent whom advised me to submit an inquiry (which I did - answer expected by Dec 14th) and she also requested another notice to be sent out to me. I then went online and requested an info pass appointment and was given one for the same day of my flight 1 hour before my flight. After speaking to a friend who is an immigration attorney, he recommended that check back online on Sunday because sometimes people cancel their appointments and an earlier window may become available. On Sunday I did and I there was one available for the Next day Monday 26. On Monday I took proof of my flight, the receipt number I had received via text, and every piece of paperwork I thought I may need and went to the USCIS local office in Hialeah Fl. When I got there I explained my situation and my wife's passport was stamped with a 1 year residency extension. On Wednesday Nov 28th my wife and our two daughters flew to Cancun and returned yesterday Dec 2nd to Ft Lauderdale. When leaving Cancun I showed my wife's expired green card and the stamp on her passport and we were given our boarding pass without any issue what so ever. When we arrived at FLL we went through the kiosk, and everyone except my wife could get a printed receipt. There were two TSA agents that were very nice and explained my wife would need to fill a short form and then proceeded to the immigration officer's booth. We presented all of our passports to the agent, and my wife then had to place her hand on the finger print machine and take a picture (more like for facial recognition) and then we were through in no more than 2 minutes. In my case everything went well and all things lined up. I hope this may help someone with a similar situation in the future.

 

[TheKingmaker 153]

19 hours ago, exodus said:

I'm not worried about traveling with the extension letter and expired green card but I am a bit worried about how long it will take to get a bio-metric appointment after sending in the I-751 packet. If I send my packet to Phoenix in early January,  will I have time to receive the extension letter and bio metric appointment before traveling in March? Also, if traveling for three months do I have to be worried about suddenly getting an interview date that forces me to cut my travels short? I just want to understand the timeline of this entire process before purchasing airline tickets.

Lol...I don't think USCIS is ever that fast.

[WeGuyGal 1,052]

Our experience traveling with the i-551 stamp:

At the airport check in at Delhi airport, India, the check-in agent was not familiar with the stamp. He asked for the green card. We informed him the stamp serves as a green card.. asked him to verify with his supervisor. He left and returned about 5 mins later with his supervisor, who asked if we have The Letter. Luckily we had the original, watermarked extension letter and showed it. We politely informed them the letter is useless without the expired green card, which may be retained by USCIS when issuing the stamp. The supervisor seemed satisfied with the letter and instructed the check-in agent to issue our boarding passes. The agent remarked how amazing he found the embossed i-551 stamp. 

 

Next step is exit immigration in India. Again, when our turn came, the immigration officer (IO) was not familiar with the stamp. He asked us a few questions about it, we informed him we have a conditional green card and removal of conditions is pending. Didn't quite strike his fancy. He too went to check with his supervisor. He returned within a few minutes and appeared somewhat satisfied, but continued his queries about the stamp, and whether it was multiple entry. He finally stamped both our passports with the departure dates, but reviewed at the i-551 stamp the third time for good measure. Then let us go. 

 

Finally at the boarding gate for the US-bound flight, the security folks had no issue with the stamp. 

 

Arriving in the US, no issues. We were directed to the USC/PR line, and when our turn came, the CBP officer must have been familiar with the i-551 stamp because he asked no questions. No trip to Secondary. Done within 2-3 minutes. 

 

A relatively smooth experience overall. 

[SweetJuls 69]

Hello there,

 

I am sharing my experience with you.

I went back to my home country (Italy) for about two entire months. My PoE was JFK (New York), and everything went smoothly. Gave my extension letter (the original one), my green card and passport looked at it and I was done. No interview, no waiting. It was very easy for me, and seen the previous post, pretty lucky I guess. 

[Ksenia_O 696]

7 minutes ago, SweetJuls said:

Hello there,

 

I am sharing my experience with you.

I went back to my home country (Italy) for about two entire months. My PoE was JFK (New York), and everything went smoothly. Gave my extension letter (the original one), my green card and passport looked at it and I was done. No interview, no waiting. It was very easy for me, and seen the previous post, pretty lucky I guess. 

That's a regular routine with a "combo" of en expired green card & ext.letter.

The "troubles", like secondary inspection, verification on the System and wait, etc,  usually someone, when an individual travels with I-551 stamp only.

 

P.S.  Welcome back  - hope you had a wonderful trip home : )

[paddywex 0]

Hey everyone..I been thinking of traveling to Ireland in March for a week with my wife and 2 kids..I have my out of date Green Card and 2 extension letter ..The last one saying for 18 months ..Im flying out of Orlando ..By what i been reading here ..its all that i need ...do i need to ring USCIS and tell them and if so do i need a letter from them ??...Thank you.

[WeGuyGal 1,052]

9 hours ago, paddywex said:

Hey everyone..I been thinking of traveling to Ireland in March for a week with my wife and 2 kids..I have my out of date Green Card and 2 extension letter ..The last one saying for 18 months ..Im flying out of Orlando ..By what i been reading here ..its all that i need ...do i need to ring USCIS and tell them and if so do i need a letter from them ??...Thank you.

No need to contact USCIS. Travel away (with the expired gc & watermarked letter). 

[dilip 187]

Make sure 18 months extension letter is official one ( thick paper with watermark) not the courtesy copy