ForumTitleContentMemberSexCountryDate/Time
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Process & ProceduresQuestion about form 1=1864
Yes its for the day of the interview .. N sometimes they dont even ask for it !! Check the requirements of the amount you need to make if u dont make enought get a sponser
jani_082008FemaleDominican Republic2013-03-31 01:36:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Process & ProceduresQuestion about form 1=1864
it should be affidavit i-134 for the cita..u dont use the i-864
jani_082008FemaleDominican Republic2013-03-31 00:56:00
Removing Conditions on Residency General DiscussionHELP! My wife stuck in Brazil airport (TAM/Rio) with an extension letter (non-original)

That link does not actually directly refer to this situation.


That's helpful. Can you explain the distinction?

http://brazil.usemba...ion-letter.html

At the top it says "Expired conditional green card" and that seems to be the case that applies here.
HolmesNot TellingBrazil2013-03-13 16:17:00
Removing Conditions on Residency General DiscussionHELP! My wife stuck in Brazil airport (TAM/Rio) with an extension letter (non-original)
We contacted our Congressman (McGovern D-MA) who is amazing and has amazing constituent services. They've sent out inquiries and we're waiting to hear.

Also I've fedexed the original letter, so as soon as we can confirm there's no problem with her entering the US, she'll try to get on the plane with the original extension letter, possibly trying another airline.

Any recommendations for airlines that understand this stuff? I think the other options are US Airways, Delta, and American. (TAM is the one that has blocked us).
HolmesNot TellingBrazil2013-03-13 13:21:00
Removing Conditions on Residency General DiscussionHELP! My wife stuck in Brazil airport (TAM/Rio) with an extension letter (non-original)

Transportation letter costs $$ and takes about a week, from what I hear. We all said on here that you need ORIGINAL extension letter.

I also remember a similar case, with Brazil too, where the person took a photocopy of the letter and was denied boarding. Since then, the advice here has gotten even more pedantic and always mentions that you need the original letter, not a copy.


UPDATE FOR OTHERS TRAVELING FROM RIO TO JFK USING EXTENSION LETTERS:

This is second hand (I just spoke with her on the phone after her visit to the consulate) but here's what the consulate is saying:

They said that having the original letter was not sufficient to fly, and that she needed to have requested travel authorization before she left, and that if she had boarded the plane there was a risk of her being denied at the border in New York. This contradicts everything I have seen online about the basic rules and peoples' actual experiences. My wife suspects she would have been allowed to fly with the original letter, and I do too, but the consulate is saying things that flatly contradict this.

ALSO-- ANOTHER IMPORTANT WARNING: My wife said that an older woman with a 10-year green card AND AN ORIGINAL EXTENSION LETTER was waiting in line in Rio going through the same routine after being denied at the gate.

The consulate is saying that she needs to fill out a series of forms, mail them to the consulate (she's in Rio but can't drop them off?) and wait between 5 and 14 days to receive something back, in the mail. Then she can fly. I believe this is the "boarding foil" né "transportation letter" explained here:

brazil.usembassy.gov/immigrant-visas/other-services/transportation-letter.html

Note: I see no mention here that an original extension letter can get you on a plane. (Though again she may have been able to push her way through if she had the letter, although this other woman apparently was not able to, so that's just speculation based on reports here in the forums).

I've seen other posts in these forums saying that people were unable to get any written proof of residency beyond the extension letter even when they asked before traveling, because USCIS said a letter was sufficient (will look up the link later). This seems like a huge problem where airlines are paranoid of being on the hook for the return, and USCIS isn't giving them a reliable way to verify the residency of broad classes of legal residents who reasonably expect to be allowed entry.

The case of the other woman in line with my wife at the consulate clearly establishes the need for either a) some kind of online system for airlines to verify someone's status or b) replacement temporary green cards that you get with your extension letter. Otherwise airlines are going to roll their own criteria independently of USCIS, and it will be difficult or impossible for residents and their citizen spouses to track these special cases.

Edited by Holmes, 13 March 2013 - 01:18 PM.

HolmesNot TellingBrazil2013-03-13 13:17:00
Removing Conditions on Residency General DiscussionHELP! My wife stuck in Brazil airport (TAM/Rio) with an extension letter (non-original)

As you have found out, you must present the expired, original, green card, and the original extension letter / NOA; copies will not cut it.

It's highly unlikely you will be able to persuade the airline to accept a copy of the letter, it absolutely must be the original.

You will not require a Boarding Foil / transportation letter if you have the expired green card and the original extension letter.

It sounds like it will be faster to obtain the original extension letter than to receive a transportation letter.


Thanks for this. I'll base my work on this from here out, but the letter will take 36 hours to arrive with Fedex so it's not ideal. Can you tell me a little bit more about how confident you are this is true, and why? Experience in other countries / airports? Other threads on this site?

Have you tried to get one of these "boarding foil" things or been in a similar situation in Rio?
HolmesNot TellingBrazil2013-03-13 07:54:00
Removing Conditions on Residency General DiscussionHELP! My wife stuck in Brazil airport (TAM/Rio) with an extension letter (non-original)
Hey everyone--

TL;DR: Help! My wife is stuck in Rio with an expired greencard and a copy of her extension letter. What do we do?

My wife is currently stuck in Rio (not her departure city) because a TAM employee at the gate wouldn't accept a greencard and a *copy* of the extension letter. From other posts, it seems we messed up. She should have had the original extension letter though that may not have worked.

The airline is sending her to the consulate in the morning. Looking around a bit, I found something on the Brazilian embassy site that says anyone who is "removing conditions" needs to get something called a "boarding foil" (formerly a "transportation letter") if they want their airline to let them leave Brazil. I think this is what they are sending her to get.

(Warning to others: this contradicts many posts on VJ saying a green card and an original extension letter are fine.)

Worse, the site says it may take *5 days* to verify your immigration status and give you a "boarding foil". This is insane. LINKbrazil.usembassy.gov/immigrant-visas/other-services/transportation-letter.html (I don't have permission to link yet, I'm a new user)

Five (business?!) days is totally not okay for us. So I'm wondering if there's anything we can ask for that will speed this up.

Questions:

A. Has anyone been through this "boarding foil" process in Rio (or Brazil)? If so, could you describe what happened and what the time frame
was? Has anyone talked their way through this with the airline after running into a similar barrier?

B. Do airlines have any ability to verify immigration status electronically? Can we put down a large deposit covering the cost of her return if she's sent back (which we know she won't be)?

C. Is the following our best plan?

1) Visit the consulate in the morning and see what they say (particularly re: wait time)
2) If the turn around time is more than two days AND the airline commits to accepting the original extension letter, consider Fedexing the original (which can arrive in two days).
3) Keep pestering to get the airline to accept a copy of the extension letter, or give us another option (though I'm not sure what else we should be asking them for).

D. Does anyone have any other suggestions or information on what to expect?

Thanks!
HolmesNot TellingBrazil2013-03-13 02:02:00
Removing Conditions on Residency General DiscussionExpired Green Card and boarding issues
My wife just got denied entry to a flight with her green card and a copy (not original) of the extension letter. It's not clear how much the lack of original was a problem, as opposed to the green card.

It was some people from TAM in Rio who let her check in on an international flight in her departure airport (Belem) but then blocked her at the gate in Rio. Not a great experience.

The airline is telling her she needs to go to the consulate, which must be for this "transportation letter" or "boarding foil" (see link above... I'm a new user so I can't post links).

Hopefully she'll be able to get this "boarding foil" thing quickly. On the site it says it can take *5 days* (which is insane; they have access to the same computers the border guards do, so it should be instantaneous).

Edited by Holmes, 13 March 2013 - 01:09 AM.

HolmesNot TellingBrazil2013-03-13 01:08:00