Contributions come to this page from international visitors, administrative staff, scientists -- all are welcome to ask questions or offer advice about living in the East Bay area, going through Consular Processing abroad, coming through Ports-of-Entry and meeting INS, etc. Send us your questions and advice! Levity is welcome.

Contents
Visas and border crossings:

• When would you advise using a B1 instead of a WB or WT waiver?
• My I-94 Card was marked with a specific date (on J-1) Do I need to change it?

About Berkeley Lab:

• How do I claim child care expenses to UC Benefits?
• Does the University of California or Berkeley Lab have a "preferred" moving company?
• What qualifies as "Personal Effects" versus "Household Goods"? Relocation and shipment of household goods (RPM 4.02 and 4.03)

Living in Berkeley:

• Why am I having problems with the DMV? (legal status and driver's licenses)
• How do I prepare to get a driver's license?
• How hard is it to find a place to live in Berkeley?
• Is there a good biscuit in Berkeley?

Question: I know it is easier for a traveler to come on a visa waiver. When would you advise using a B1 instead of a waiver? Thanks!!

The WB or WT can never be extended. They are each 90 days only. One cannot go out from Berkeley to Vancouver or Tijuana with a Waiver and get another one or change to a J1--they are consistently turned down and then must return to their home country.

WT's may be given nothing in terms of reimbursement for ANY expenses. WT's may NOT be given honorarium. WB's may be given honorarium if they speak/lecture/present workshop/consult, and they are eligible for up to the maximum per diem (this year it's about $72/daily). This is audited so you cannot just make up an honorarium if the person provided no service that justifies it.

With 1512 DOE HQ approval through Travel, their airfare may be provided. If their airfare is provided, the division may pay for their required insurance (the Healthcare Plus through UC Health Services). You don't have to go to an embassy to get the WB or WT. But if an international visitor needs a WB and s/he comes through INS at port of entry and INS gives them a WT instead of a WB, it cannot be changed in the U.S., so this person is now ineligible for any support from any U.S. source including us. There have been many such mistakes lately. We were told the U.S. Embassy staff in Paris this month reportedly suggested to one of our international visitors that he need not bother to get a J1 and suggested he come instead on a WT, assuring he could get a J1 in Tijuana after arrival--alas he now will have to go back home to apply for a J1--it's very unfortunate. He chose not to wait in Paris for a J1 because he had in hand a non-refundable ticket to the U.S. So now instead of paying a penalty for changing the ticket, we presume he will have to buy a full fare, no advance purchase, one way ticket to go home to Paris and make application for the J1.

Question: Last year in December I applied for my California Driver License at the DMV office. They gave me a temporary license valid until March this year and promised me to send me the final license within 30-60 days by mail. Recently I received a letter from DMV which says that they are required by law to check with the INS for my legal status, and that they did not receive confirmation from the INS that I am legally staying in the U.S.! Of course I am here legally. What is going on here?

Reply: This happens to everyone who applies who is not a U.S. citizen. INS is very slow and there are circumstances that result in failure of the process. You simply have to do it again, and hand them accompanying photocopies of your current IAP-66 (if the back is not signed, the IRSO office will do that) and your passport (which must be at least 6 months current beyond the end date of you IAP-66) with the front and back of the I-94 card.

If you have travelled at all since you entered the country, to leave the U.S. and have a new I-94, that is frequently the problem. If you surrendered your I-94 in travel, then you were cancelled out of the electronic system and INS would not have been able to affirm that you are here legally. One person here at LBNL from western Europe travels every few weeks and has had to repeatedly apply to DMV after every trip. Only now, after 14 months, has he been able to remain here three months (the time required for the clearance to go through) in order to receive his permanent photo-ID driver's license.

Question continued: Even stranger, they issued me another temporary driver license valid until July 1999. I really feel that they are playing a little game with me, on the one hand they want to have my data on their records, on the other hand they refuse to give me a picture I.D. Needless to say that you are asked for this I.D. almost everywhere (school enrollment, bank, stores etc.) and many of them don't even accept a foreign passport (at least not without problems) . I feel that it would not help to call DMV and complain about their procedure, they would just refer me to their legal rules. What can I do?

We have tried state-wide and through the University of California office of the President to change this procedure, but have been unable to do so. It is a federal requirement, not state. You are right, it does no good to complain to the DMV about their procedures -- their hands are tied by the U.S. Department of Justice that oversees the INS, who use DMV applications and records as tools to "protect the borders" in an effort to control admission and provision of benefits to "illegal aliens." It really has nothing to do with DMV at all. Workers at DMV believe they are doing their duty. The Department of State has restricted their powers and authority and they may do no more than they are.

It is a difficult problem, but INS is not going to change this so far as we know. They are mandated by Congress to do this work, protect the borders, and this is one sure way they have of carrying out that mandate.

It is unfortunate that vendors and other institutions are unwilling or reluctant to accept a passport. We will continue to raise the issue on everyone's behalf, but I fear we can offer no answer that will be satisfactory to you now.

Question: I am paying some money into the dependence care account. Now I would like to claim child care expenses to UC Benefits. Is there a standard claim form, and where should I send the form to?

There is a claim form for this purpose. It is available in the Benefits Office in the Human Resources Department (Promenade Building, 2nd floor) as well as on the web. Any employee can download the form from http://www.ucop.edu/bencom/ and send the form and receipts to the UC Refunds Unit - the address is on the upper right corner of the form.

Question: My I-94 Card Was Marked With a Specific Date (on J-1)
Do I Need to Change It?

Specific Date Stamp
If you are a J-1 scholar and your I-94 was marked by a U.S. INS official with a specific date (i.e. 11/30/98), you do need to change it. Your I-94 card should not have a definite end date. An end date on your I-94 card indicates that you are no longer legally present in the United States after that date. It should be marked "D/S". D/S means "Duration of Status," when your card is marked "D/S" rather than with a date, it indicates that your presence in the United States is legal and valid as long as you are in current J-1 status.

How to Fix It
The process of fixing your I-94 card is rather simple. You will need to visit the San Francisco Immigration and Naturalization Service. Once there, go to the Deferred Inspections Office in Room 221. Do not stay in the main office; go directly to Room 221. An INS officer will help you. Explain that you are a J-1 scholar at the Lawrence Berkeley Lab, and that your I-94 card was marked incorrectly with a specific end date. The acting officer will most likely correct the error on the back of your I-94 card. The correction will note that the date on the front is incorrect and that your I-94 is actually valid for D/S. Changing the marked date on your I-94 is a free service. INS cannot charge you – it is their mistake!

What to Bring
You need to bring with you the original copies of the following documents: valid passport, 1-94 card, IAP-66. Remember that copies will not be accepted: bring the original. Note that you do not need to visit the office personally. Someone else can correct the annotation on your I-94 by following the above procedures and bringing your original documents.

Location
The SF INS office is in downtown San Francisco. The phone number for the Deferred Inspections office is not available to the public. You must inquire in person.
San Francisco Immigration and Naturalization Services
Deferred Inspections Office
630 Sansome Street
2nd Floor, Room 221

Directions from BART
Take BART to the Embarcadero Station. Walk West on Market Street for a few blocks, and then turn right on Sansome Street. The building is just past the fire station.

Directions by Car
Take I-80 West over the Bay Bridge. Take the Fremont Street exit. Turn left onto Fremont Street. Fremont Street becomes Front Street. Turn left onto Pine Street. Turn right onto Sansome Street. The INS office is about ¼ mile down the street.

Question: How do I prepare to get a driver license?