Physical Green card

[Captain Oates 911]

Alan,

Any news on GC? I'll be calling my congressman and senator contact tomorrow to check the status.

M

All quiet - Silas got his welcome letter last week and entered the country 4 days after me. He has not got the card yet but it should be the next few days.

I don't have the welcome letter even.

I know it was 4 weeks at the start of last year and then 7 weeks around xmas and I am now 9.5 weeks.

The fact that Silas still has not got his and the USCIS are not saying that the card was sent out, leads me to believe there is still hope.

I don't suppose I can say that it is lost and submit an I-90 if the USCIS are saying they have not sent it out yet

No social security card either although I went into the Clearwater office December 3 and they said it would be 48 hours to check with USCIS electronically and then 2 weeks max.

I call the Clearwater office and the national SS line but it says they are too busy, call again later, i am a very special person and they are anxious to serve me - and then 'goodbye' - click

All the sugary insincere bull about how they want to serve me just makes it worse and if they said i was an alien and didn't rate in an election year and there was no money in it for them and so just go and get an illegal job in a cotton field, then at least i would appreciate their honesty.

My wife thinks all the wonderful things that people say to you in the U.S. are so courteous and polite and a step up from england, but i would rather be treated offhand and get the cards than be buttered up insincerely with all this 'you are a special wonderful person' stuff and get nothing..

alan

[vylex 0]

My wife thinks all the wonderful things that people say to you in the U.S. are so courteous and polite and a step up from england, but i would rather be treated offhand and get the cards than be buttered up insincerely with all this 'you are a special wonderful person' stuff and get nothing..

alan

Hi Alan, I strongly believe that the welcome letter needs to come first. Has anyone received their GC without a welcome letter?

LOL again at your comments. Come up to NYC and the people here will give it to you straight.

[Captain Oates 911]

My wife thinks all the wonderful things that people say to you in the U.S. are so courteous and polite and a step up from england, but i would rather be treated offhand and get the cards than be buttered up insincerely with all this 'you are a special wonderful person' stuff and get nothing..

alan

Hi Alan, I strongly believe that the welcome letter needs to come first. Has anyone received their GC without a welcome letter?

LOL again at your comments. Come up to NYC and the people here will give it to you straight.

had a freebee once to NY on Concorde and stayed at the Marriott in Time Square...

the guy in the photo shop tried to sell me a camera lens for 900 dollars and said they were new and special and the british airways pilots were taking them home by the box load and selling em for 5k each in london

all i wanted was a T shirt - as i finally left the shop he was shouting 'ok ok 50 dollars - come on 50 dollars !'

I had a slice of toast and a small coffee by room service at 4am (jet lag) and it was 30 dollars - that was 1992

fun place though as long as you laugh at it all...

Yes this welcome letter seems random - some people got the letter with the GC inside. Some got up to ELEVEN welcome letters and no GC ever - some got no welcome letter, just the GC - anything can happen and it can go to any address or they just bin it and say its lost or never produce it and say its lost - or just shake their heads and say WAIT forever...

not being able to manage a good time in a brewery springs to mind...

Still no SS card though i had a restricted one already.. i have phoned 4 times and left recorded messages and written once

Actually I am doing fine - I have a car and florida license and now a florida motorcyle endorsement too ! and 5 US bank accounts and 2 US credit cards and a US cell phone etc etc etc...

I am all set up really but I wont get rid of this ulcer until I get the GC and ss card.

perhaps tomorrow

[Silas 0]

All quiet - Silas got his welcome letter last week and entered the country 4 days after me. He has not got the card yet but it should be the next few days.

Alan,

Just a quick update on my end. Unfortunately, there's nothing new to report. Will keep watching for the postie.

[Captain Oates 911]

All quiet - Silas got his welcome letter last week and entered the country 4 days after me. He has not got the card yet but it should be the next few days.

Alan,

Just a quick update on my end. Unfortunately, there's nothing new to report. Will keep watching for the postie.

zero here too - not even the welcome letter - now 10 weeks on monday

I reckon they have switched staff to all these huge backlogs they have like 18 months now for citizenship and the DOUBLE applications they had at the time of the new fees..and they have to TRAIN 1,500 new staff

If other people were not in the same boat I would be doing my nut and popping my skull by now but I still think all is ok and I am a worryier usually...

GC is usually 11 days or so after the letter ?

just got my check book - wrong address of course - my wife's had a different wrong address on 6 weeks ago

2 wrong out of 2

I told her its the radio active rocks in the US that makes everyone so aggressive and violent and always referring to the latter part of the alimentary canal and administratively incompetent - the admin bit was just a merry joke which I am sure she will come to appreciate as the UK have been fouling things up for me twice in the last 2 weeks and i have received two thousand dollars in compensation from 2 banks in the last 3 days for 2 separate errors over in the UK...

come to think of it I am getting quiet aggressive myself, so it's either the rocks or the life experience here. My wife's brand new sky blue Camry has purple tree resin spots on it which have gone right into the paint and wont come out even with white spirit

I dread to get out of bed most mornings nowadays..

alan

[Silas 0]

GC is usually 11 days or so after the letter ?

No idea. The welcome letter has the usual stuff about waiting 30 days from the letter's date and if you haven't heard from them then call.

just got my check book - wrong address of course - my wife's had a different wrong address on 6 weeks ago

2 wrong out of 2

It's not Commerce is it? I was in there yesterday sorting out my account and they were keen to send my cheque book to some completely random town I'd never heard of.

[Coco&Kitten 42]

Hi guys!

I guess I am joining the club of NO GC received. I arrived to the US on the 15th of November (POE Chicago) with a CR visa, and I am still waiting for the welcome letter as well. I guess I am in a similar situation as Alan, as we changed our address at the POE, so maybe that suggests that the system gets screw up when we do a change of address... Anyway, keep up the messages, I enjoyed reading them all today as I was really worried for not having received the GC after 8.5 weeks. After reading the postings I don't feel so bad... :-)

And I plan on using my "old" SSN (from a previous J-1 visa when I was living here for 3 years) as the officer told me it was valid, or should I worry about this?

Kitten

[SusieK 3]

All quiet - Silas got his welcome letter last week and entered the country 4 days after me. He has not got the card yet but it should be the next few days.

Alan,

Just a quick update on my end. Unfortunately, there's nothing new to report. Will keep watching for the postie.

zero here too - not even the welcome letter - now 10 weeks on monday

I reckon they have switched staff to all these huge backlogs they have like 18 months now for citizenship and the DOUBLE applications they had at the time of the new fees..and they have to TRAIN 1,500 new staff

If other people were not in the same boat I would be doing my nut and popping my skull by now but I still think all is ok and I am a worryier usually...

GC is usually 11 days or so after the letter ?

just got my check book - wrong address of course - my wife's had a different wrong address on 6 weeks ago

2 wrong out of 2

I told her its the radio active rocks in the US that makes everyone so aggressive and violent and always referring to the latter part of the alimentary canal and administratively incompetent - the admin bit was just a merry joke which I am sure she will come to appreciate as the UK have been fouling things up for me twice in the last 2 weeks and i have received two thousand dollars in compensation from 2 banks in the last 3 days for 2 separate errors over in the UK...

come to think of it I am getting quiet aggressive myself, so it's either the rocks or the life experience here. My wife's brand new sky blue Camry has purple tree resin spots on it which have gone right into the paint and wont come out even with white spirit

I dread to get out of bed most mornings nowadays..

alan

Alan ~~~

As I said to you in a pm, your post keep me going in the morning, afternoon and well for the night, lets keep that one out of it.

Wishing you the best, and hope you get out of bed today to read this and if you dont, oh well sod it, the stains in the mates new Camry will still be waiting for you.

Sorry tis but a joke, but your sense of writing and wording just make me smile, more than FOX News could ever do - BBC is another story, gotta get that accent down.

Cheers

p.s applied to British Consult here in Orlando for a great job - told them I got experience, hell I understand me mate even when he is cursing the US Government.....I mean seriously - that gets me first in line.

[Captain Oates 911]

Hi guys!

I guess I am joining the club of NO GC received. I arrived to the US on the 15th of November (POE Chicago) with a CR visa, and I am still waiting for the welcome letter as well. I guess I am in a similar situation as Alan, as we changed our address at the POE, so maybe that suggests that the system gets screw up when we do a change of address... Anyway, keep up the messages, I enjoyed reading them all today as I was really worried for not having received the GC after 8.5 weeks. After reading the postings I don't feel so bad... :-)

And I plan on using my "old" SSN (from a previous J-1 visa when I was living here for 3 years) as the officer told me it was valid, or should I worry about this?

Kitten

Dear Kitten - welcome to the waiting room !

First your ss is issued for life - i got mine at K1 2 years ago (abandoned aos) , and I have got my driver's license and bank accounts using it - no problem. I have asked for a new one as mine says 'no work' on it - but it's valid for all other purposes. As a CR1 you can work without a SS number. Even I could work if i wanted but i have asked for a new card just to be neat.

Silas and I are very glad you have popped up on this forum and don't you dare go away !

ok there are now 3 of us in exactly the same position with similar timelines and that is a great comfort as it means we are not alone and it is a VERY strong indication that the USCIS are VERY slow on GC's just now.

I am really pleased we a have 3 identical cases and timelines -

the ONLY time a change of address is a factor is of you put a 'forward' on your mail. If the person at your previous address will send your mail to you then the card will not be returned to the USCIS

So everything is ok and there is strength in numbers are now we 2 are 3 !!! ok let's stick together and wait patiently like male emperor penguins waiting 6 months through the antarctic winter for the female to return and take over the egg - that's faith

alan

Edited January 14, 2008 by saywhat

[Silas 0]

Silas and I are very glad you have popped up on this forum and don't you dare go away !

Quoted for truth.

Hi Kitten. Glad you found this thread.

Been having a look round VJ and a lot of people appear to be in a similar situation; it seems we might go from being the three amigos to the dirty dozen.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...=102894&hl=

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...=102742&hl=

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...=103053&hl=

edited due to links that didn't work

Edited January 14, 2008 by Silas

[Captain Oates 911]

YABBERDABBERDO !

my pal in Georgia says my welcome letter just arrived !

So as we thought chaps and chaplettes, the system is working but very slowly - I expect the GC is about 11 days or so....

I put my friends name down on the immigrant visa application all those months ago in England so they treat him like an immigration attorney for receiving my GC... we knew we would be moving so we used the question 'where would you like your green card to be sent if a different to your intended address'

phew well the system is as we thought - so you folks who arrived November and since - (I was november 5) don't sweat coz they are well behind but the system is ticking slowly

alan

[Silas 0]

YABBERDABBERDO !

my pal in Georgia says my welcome letter just arrived !

So as we thought chaps and chaplettes, the system is working but very slowly - I expect the GC is about 11 days or so....

I put my friends name down on the immigrant visa application all those months ago in England so they treat him like an immigration attorney for receiving my GC... we knew we would be moving so we used the question 'where would you like your green card to be sent if a different to your intended address'

phew well the system is as we thought - so you folks who arrived November and since - (I was november 5) don't sweat coz they are well behind but the system is ticking slowly

alan

Congrats, Alan!!!

That must be a huge weight off your mind.

Hopefully, we'll be getting the actual card any day now.

[Coco&Kitten 42]

Hi guys!

Congrats Alan!! this suggests as you said the system is slow but moving (more like creeping I guess)... And we are 3 identical cases, and probably there are more somewhere lost in this forum.

Today my husband called the famous 800 number, after half an hour waiting (it is amazing, it was exactly 30 minutes as they said) a lady answers and after looking at my case says I am not "yet" in the system and that they are running really slow, so it is normal not to have received the GC. Yep, we figure that out... But at least we know the GC has not been lost in the mail, which it really worried me for a while.

On the SSN issue thanks for your answer Alan. But actually mine says "valid for work only with INS authorization", I guessed I automatically had the INS authorization by being a CR visa holder, or not? I ticked the box asking for a new card on the DS-230 form... but of course they never arrive. I am confused now... I don't know if I can use it for work or not if it says that on the card...

Kitten

PS. Oh, I guess I would be the female Penguin waiting for the male to replace me... :-)

[Captain Oates 911]

Hi guys!

Congrats Alan!! this suggests as you said the system is slow but moving (more like creeping I guess)... And we are 3 identical cases, and probably there are more somewhere lost in this forum.

Today my husband called the famous 800 number, after half an hour waiting (it is amazing, it was exactly 30 minutes as they said) a lady answers and after looking at my case says I am not "yet" in the system and that they are running really slow, so it is normal not to have received the GC. Yep, we figure that out... But at least we know the GC has not been lost in the mail, which it really worried me for a while.

On the SSN issue thanks for your answer Alan. But actually mine says "valid for work only with INS authorization", I guessed I automatically had the INS authorization by being a CR visa holder, or not? I ticked the box asking for a new card on the DS-230 form... but of course they never arrive. I am confused now... I don't know if I can use it for work or not if it says that on the card...

Kitten

PS. Oh, I guess I would be the female Penguin waiting for the male to replace me... :-)

those lady penguins sure have the males trained !

my ss says same as yours but the permanent residence status is what authorises you to work and the SS card is all about pensions and social security (American readers please note that 'social security' means 'welfare' in the UK so i always chuckle)

The employer wont ask for your ss card i bet - just tell em the number

i did that for driver's license, bank accounts credit cards etc etc - nobody wanted to see the card - they just want a valid number

I have turned into an 'authorisation' collector and thats why i just passed my motorbike test here in florida and why i want a 'clean' ss card with no endorsement about work.

I don't want to feel that I have less here than I had in the uk so i just keep going forward getting more and more authorisations until i don't feel 'second class'

I will open stockbroking and mutual trusts and frequent flyer etc next week just for the heck of it...

Apart from the passport, I will soon have more authorisations than my USC wife !

I don't want to feel like an 'alien'. A registered 'alien'. The U.S. doesn't mind 'aliens' forming a coalition with them in Iraq - oops off I go again - they will do a Charlie Chaplin or a John Lennon on me if I don't shut up. I think we should have a competition on VJ to find a less offensive term than 'alien'.. how about 'non US citizen' and just kill off 'alien' - then change the 'A' number to a 'R' number which can mean ' registration number'

Does anyone else resent being called an 'alien' ? When Americans visit York i don't refer to them as 'aliens' even if they are wearing check pants and jackets and have triangular faces with big eyes...

[Silas 0]

Got the Green Card this morning!!!!

Seems fine: right name, right photo, dates, A#.

So they're definitely on track, just slow in getting it out.

The only odd thing was that I also received a second welcome letter. This wasn't part of the GC but it was in a seperate envelope.