Tweet
Hello,
My mother's passport was to expire on March 27, 2007, so she applied for a new one but did not receive it in time before leaving the US. At the Consulate, when she got her visa with the old passport, she was told (at least, that is how she understood it) that the passport ony needs to be valid when entering the US. At the customs she was told that the passport has to be valid for the whole stay (her ticket back is for April 10th, 2007, which is two weeks after her passport expires) and stamped her i-94 for MArch 27th as the date she has to depart US. At the customs, she was recommended to apply for extension of stay after she got a new passport. So, after she received her new passport in the mail, we filed form I-539. I now have a few questions:
1. The form asked for the original i-94 for those extending their b1/b2 visa status. On this site it said not to send in the original. When I called INS, I was told to follow the form instructions and send in the original. So we did. Did we make a mistake?
2. March 27th is coming up. I was told on the phone with INS that my mother can stay here legally as long as her case is pending. So far we have received the notice of action dated March 2nd. Now we are waiting for the decision. If the decision is not here by April 10th, and my mom leaves, what documents does she need to present at the customs to show that her case is pending?
3. Is my mother going to need her original i-94 when leaving the US. What happens if we can't get it bak in time?
Please help. INS assured on the phone that we are doing everything right, and that she will just need to explain the situation but something tells me that the customs' officers may need something more than a story, plus my mother's English is not good enough to explain eveything in such detail.
Thank you!
My mother's passport was to expire on March 27, 2007, so she applied for a new one but did not receive it in time before leaving the US. At the Consulate, when she got her visa with the old passport, she was told (at least, that is how she understood it) that the passport ony needs to be valid when entering the US. At the customs she was told that the passport has to be valid for the whole stay (her ticket back is for April 10th, 2007, which is two weeks after her passport expires) and stamped her i-94 for MArch 27th as the date she has to depart US. At the customs, she was recommended to apply for extension of stay after she got a new passport. So, after she received her new passport in the mail, we filed form I-539. I now have a few questions:
1. The form asked for the original i-94 for those extending their b1/b2 visa status. On this site it said not to send in the original. When I called INS, I was told to follow the form instructions and send in the original. So we did. Did we make a mistake?
2. March 27th is coming up. I was told on the phone with INS that my mother can stay here legally as long as her case is pending. So far we have received the notice of action dated March 2nd. Now we are waiting for the decision. If the decision is not here by April 10th, and my mom leaves, what documents does she need to present at the customs to show that her case is pending?
3. Is my mother going to need her original i-94 when leaving the US. What happens if we can't get it bak in time?
Please help. INS assured on the phone that we are doing everything right, and that she will just need to explain the situation but something tells me that the customs' officers may need something more than a story, plus my mother's English is not good enough to explain eveything in such detail.
Thank you!
