Immigration Efficiencies

It appears that the US has decided to continue to allow one of its sassy Canadians to continue to live in the country, pay taxes, support the economy, contribute to the GDP, and not vote. What sassy Canadian might that be? ME! Thanks US! I like earning American dollars (although I have to pay for my own healthcare).

Surprisingly, the greencard renewal process has been relatively painless. You go to the US immigration website, search for the correct form, apply online, shell out $185 for administrative fees, then set up an appointment to visit the local immigration office for fingerprinting and photos. Here's the catch. When I showed up for my appointment back in March, the entire office was filled with people, and there was a 100-person line-up outside the office. Looked like any Virginia DMV on a Saturday morning (or any other morning...or afternoon). I brought my appointment verification to the desk and the lady laughed at me, saying "Sweetheart, we close in 45 minutes and there are 300 people in front of you. You can come back any time though; you don't need to schedule another appointment."

Of course, out of sheer laziness, I didn't go back until today (taking the 'come back anytime' to the extreme). Just didn't have the desire to spend four hours in line until today, when I didn't have a choice because my greencard had already expired a month earlier and I'm leaving the country in three weeks for a cruise of the Mexican Riviera. Would probably make sense to have a valid greencard before embarking on that journey. Procrastinate much? Wonder if my company knows it's been paying me for a month on an expired greencard? Does that mean I don't officially owe taxes for the last month either? KIDDING!

So I woke up before the crack of dawn, determined to get to the office before it opened (8 am, but as far south in BF-Alexandria as you can go), hoping to salvage at least a half-day at the office. I was relieved when I arrived at 8 to see no one outside the office in a line, and about 25 people inside. I filled out my forms, grabbed a seat, and had the privilege of watching the immigration officers at work. Honestly, I was truly blown away by their efficiency. Not lying. Each officer (in jovial spirits even) called a person's number, verified the person's form, took electronic finger prints, snapped a digital photo, told the person what the next step was, sent him/her home and called the next number. Felt a little bit like a supermarket deli. When my number was called, I couldn't believe how painless the process had been compared to what I had expected (minus the hideous commute to get there and the even worse commute back to the city for work). Within 3 minutes, I was given a sticker on my greencard to extend the validation until my new card arrives. That was it. Painless. Efficient. I then made the mistake of asking when I might expect my new card, and the officer responded "between two weeks and a year." Say what? What kind of time frame is that? Any disillusionment I had up to that point about an efficient government process (pronounced proh-sess in 'Canadian') immediately went out the door...I knew there had to be a catch. Still though, mad props to the officers who were truly kicking butt at their jobs. If I had to take people's fingerprints all day long, every day, I'd go slow on purpose to make the job more fun. Or maybe that's just a Canadian thing...