Stage 8: Travel & US Entry
Stage 8: US entry. You have your visa and are travelling. You are admitted as a lawful permanent resident the moment you present your passport and immigrant visa at the port of entry, by air, through preclearance or at a land border. Your green card is mailed once the $235 USCIS Immigrant Fee is paid. Do this first: pay the Immigrant Fee, and confirm your US address with the CBP officer.
Action list
- Beneficiary: Pay the $235 USCIS Immigrant Fee at my.uscis.gov. The green card cannot be processed until it is paid.
- Beneficiary: At the port of entry, confirm or update your US address with the CBP officer. This is where your green card is mailed.
- Beneficiary: Sign up for USPS Informed Delivery immediately after arrival.
- Beneficiary: If your SSN card has not arrived within 10 business days of entry, go to your local SSA office with your passport with visa stamp and foreign birth certificate.
- Either: If you move, update your address with USCIS within 10 days. The petitioner and any joint sponsor must also notify USCIS of their own address changes.
Reached a milestone in this section? Add your date of entry to the US to the community tracker →
Present your passport with the immigrant visa at the port of entry. You are admitted as a lawful permanent resident from this moment.
At the port of entry
- Confirm or update your US address with the CBP officer: this determines where your green card is mailed
- London processes documents digitally. Your visa will show "IV Docs in CCD", meaning your documents are available to CBP electronically at the border. You do not need to present a sealed envelope to CBP. Note: some other embassies still issue a physical sealed envelope to present at the border. London does not.
- If you have Global Entry, inform Global Entry in person of your change of visa status: easiest to do as you enter as a green card holder
Several airports outside the US have CBP preclearance facilities. Clearing here counts as your official port of entry. You arrive in the US as a domestic passenger with no immigration queues on arrival. All are valid for immigrant visa holders.
07:00–16:30 IST
Shannon (SNN)
09:00–17:00 IST
Vancouver (YVR)
Montreal (YUL)
Calgary (YYC)
Edmonton (YEG)
Ottawa (YOW)
Halifax (YHZ)
Winnipeg (YWG)
Note: AUH no longer issues physical entry stamps. Contact deferred inspection on arrival if needed
Benefits: Arrive as a domestic passenger, no immigration queues on arrival. Typically faster, more predictable processing. Global Entry available at most locations.
Drawbacks: Limited options after clearing (especially Shannon). Fewer backup flights if delays occur. Restricted movement once through preclearance. Irish preclearance has fixed hours: flights outside those hours clear CBP on US arrival instead.
Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands are US territories. Entering via San Juan (SJU) or other territory airports is a valid port of entry for immigrant visa holders. You activate your green card there, exactly as you would at a mainland US airport.
If you are settling in a territory rather than a US state, note that some USCIS processes and SSA procedures may differ slightly from the mainland.
You do not have to fly in. If your travel takes you through Mexico, or you are driving or walking across: any staffed Class A land port of entry on the US–Mexico border is a valid port of entry for immigrant visa holders. You present your passport with the immigrant visa to the CBP officer and are admitted as a lawful permanent resident, exactly as at an airport. All four US border states have crossings; the busier ports below have the most predictable staffing and hours.
Tijuana: busiest in the hemisphere
Otay Mesa
Tijuana
Calexico
Mexicali
Tecate · Andrade
Nogales, Sonora
San Luis
San Luis Río Colorado
Douglas · Lukeville · Naco
near Ciudad Juárez
Columbus
Palomas
Antelope Wells
Ciudad Juárez
Laredo
Nuevo Laredo
Hidalgo · Eagle Pass · Del Rio · Brownsville · Presidio
Good to know: There is no CBP preclearance on the Mexican side: inspection happens at the US border itself, so you may queue. Pedestrian and vehicle lanes can have very different wait times. If your visa was issued as a physical sealed packet, keep it unopened for the officer; London-issued visas show "IV Docs in CCD" and are read electronically at land borders too.
Confirm or update your US mailing address with the officer at inspection. This is where your green card is sent, whether you enter by land or by air.
Sources: CBP Border Wait Times · BTS Border Crossing data
The same principle applies at the northern border: any staffed Class A land port of entry from Canada is a valid port of entry for immigrant visa holders. Note this is separate from the airport preclearance listed above: at a land crossing, CBP inspection happens at the US border itself, not before you leave. The major crossings run across every northern border state; the busiest passenger gateways are below.
Surrey, BC
Sumas · Lynden
Eastport (ID)
Sweetgrass (MT)
International Falls
Fort Frances, ON
Baudette · Grand Portage (MN)
Windsor, ON
Port Huron (Blue Water Bridge)
Sault Ste. Marie
busiest northern passenger gateway
Champlain · Alexandria Bay (NY)
Derby Line (VT) · Calais · Houlton (ME)
Good to know: As with Mexico, there is no CBP preclearance at land crossings. You clear inspection at the border and may queue. Present your immigrant visa (sealed packet unopened, or "IV Docs in CCD" read electronically) and confirm your US mailing address so the green card reaches you.
If you later hold a green card, Global Entry / NEXUS lanes speed up re-entry at many of these northern crossings.
Sources: CBP Border Wait Times · BTS Border Crossing data
Green card
Green card (Form I-551) production begins once you pay the $235 USCIS Immigrant Fee. Delivery timelines per USCIS:
| Entry | Fee timing | When to expect card |
|---|---|---|
| Entered on immigrant visa | Fee paid before entry | Up to 90 days from entry date |
| Entered on immigrant visa | Fee paid after entry | Up to 90 days from payment date |
| Entered on immigrant visa | Fee not yet paid | Card cannot be processed until fee is paid at my.uscis.gov |
Source: egov.uscis.gov: When to expect your Green Card
Your green card is mailed to the address given at your visa interview, or the updated address at port of entry. If you move after arrival, update your address in the beneficiary's USCIS account (or by mail via AR-11) within 10 days. This is a legal requirement. The petitioner and any joint sponsor are also legally required to notify USCIS of an address change.
One community member's card was delivered to a previous address despite having updated it: the landlord forwarded it, adding a week's delay. After entry, take a screenshot of your address in your USCIS account to confirm it's correct.
Tracking numbers often don't appear in USCIS online status. To get your USPS tracking number contact USCIS directly: Ask Emma chat at uscis.gov, or call 1 (800) 375-5283 and request a live agent.
Some members receive an I-797C notice after entry requiring an Application Support Center (ASC) biometrics appointment before the green card is issued. This is not standard but has been seen where USCIS cannot use biometrics already on file: known triggers include prior green card holders (previous biometrics expire after 15 months) and photo or fingerprint quality issues from the embassy interview.
If you receive this notice: bring the I-797C, valid photo ID, and passport with visa stamp. Card production typically follows within days of the appointment. Do not skip it. The green card will not be produced until biometrics are completed. This does not indicate a problem with your case or PR status.
The Service Center code on the notice (e.g. FCE = Florida) reflects the processing center, not your state of residence. The TCR field may be blank. This is normal.
Social Security Number
The SSN card is initiated automatically if you selected that option on the DS-260, no separate action required. [SSA: SSN for Immigrants] There is no way to track the card once it is in the mail.
If your card hasn't arrived within 10 business days of entry, go to your local SSA office. Several members found the SSA had no record of their application despite having selected the option on the DS-260: in those cases, staff processed a new application on the spot. Bring your passport with visa stamp and foreign birth certificate.
Some people book an appointment with the SSA in advance in case they don't receive the SSC within 10 business days.
If the officer is unfamiliar with immigrant visas or asks for an I-94, the SSA's own policy manual explains how to process IV holders. It can help to bring a printout: secure.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0110211025
Walk-ins are accepted at some offices. Check Google reviews for your local office before going. Make or change an appointment here.
Common issues: card sent to wrong address, apartment number not recorded, card not initiated despite DS-260 selection. Confirm your full address including apartment number explicitly with SSA staff.
USPS Informed Delivery shows you scanned images of arriving mail before it's delivered. Sign up immediately after arrival: you'll see the green card and SSN card coming before they land in your mailbox.
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↑ Back to topBefore you move on
- Beneficiary: I have been admitted, and my passport shows the visa stamp.
- Beneficiary: The USCIS Immigrant Fee is paid.
- Beneficiary: My address in my USCIS account is correct, and I have a screenshot of it.
- Beneficiary: My SSN card has arrived, or I have visited my local SSA office.
- Beneficiary: If I received an I-797C biometrics notice, I have attended the appointment.