Two Social Security Numbers

[mc962 55]

My wife immigrated on a K1 visa, and applied for a Social Security Number while her I-94 was still valid, and ultimately it was approved (albeit with a couple month wait). 

 

When she filled out the I-765 (together with I-485) form for AOS, the box requesting a Social Security Number was checked, since SSA was taking their time issuing her a number at the time, and I think she was worried about a rejection for the K1-based SSN, so we figured it made sense to check the box on the I-765 , figuring that SSA would check their records / check against USCIS' records before issuing her a new card .

 

A couple weeks after getting her EAD, she now received a new card, with a new number (likely because the name on the visa/original SSN card was in a different order than what she intends to have on the green card, due to how her country prints passports).

 

I think the process in this case would be to go down to SSA again 😬, with both cards, EAD, and passport, and possibly a new SS-5 or something like that, and get them to check their records and fix it? 
Her Green Card Interview is in less than 2 weeks...should we rush to get it fixed before then?

I was thinking it would make sense to just do it right after we finish the interview since we're in the area and don't have anything else planned for the day and it's more convenient to do so, but obviously I don't want to cause problems at the interview. I can only the image the look on the USCIS officer's face when he asks for her SSN, and she asks 'which one' 😆.
I'm also not sure if there's any sort of 'time limit' that they want updates to be submitted by, like USCIS' 10 day address change rule.

EDIT: Apparently there's a whole report from 2012 about this issue  https://oig.ssa.gov/sites/default/files/audit/full/pdf/A-06-10-20155_0.pdf

Edited July 27, 2019 by mc962

[Hypnos 6,578]

Your wife should definitely visit the SSA in-person (bringing all documents, including both SS cards) and get this resolved ASAP. It can lead to big problems down the line, so fixing it now is highly recommended.

[mc962 55]

Right, that's the plan, to do it some time within the next 2 weeks.

Mostly I'm trying to figure out if it's something that has to get done before the AOS interview in less than 2 weeks to avoid any sort of problems there, or if it's something she can potentially do after the interview (likely later that day after the interview). 

 

I know it's something that will need to get straightened out to avoid tax/job/etc. weirdness, but I want to try and figure out if it's something that she needs to rush out and submit first-thing Monday (7/29) morning, or if it's something that can be rolled into other plans (I think the SSA office is actually right across the street from the USCIS building in our case, so that'd be really convenient to just do it all at once).

[Pitaya 2,577]

Just get it done promptly, if not sooner.....

[Joyoussinger 1,427]

Convenience isn't as important as getting this sorted out before the interview. You need to be there tomorrow, as soon as they open.

[mc962 55]

4 hours ago, Joyoussinger said:

Convenience isn't as important as getting this sorted out before the interview. You need to be there tomorrow, as soon as they open.

Makes sense to me...I'll tell her to get it done tomorrow then.

 

Hopefully SSA is prompt with fixing it, and it doesn't cause issues at the Green Card Interview.

 

I'll make a copy of the second number as well in case they want to see it at the interview.

 

 

As far as documents to bring, I assume it's the usual: Passport, K1 Visa, I-94, Social Security Card(s), EAD card (in this case). I think she should also fill out a new SS-5, since she'll probably need to get her initial SSN card matching  her EAD anyway?
 

[WandY 430]

On 7/28/2019 at 12:46 AM, Pitaya (火龙果) said:

Just get it done promptly, if not sooner.....

Yes. Great advice. Two SSN's will - at some point - bite you. And it will hurt for a long time. Fix it!

[mc962 55]

She went first thing today, and they took care of it (and even updated her name to match her EAD while she was there).

Apparently they said that the second one wasn't even valid in their system 😕

[Hypnos 6,578]

Great that it was resolved so swiftly.