2 Questions for a newbie in New York (TN)

Hi all,

As a scientist, I got my first TN visa and I am officially starting work in the State of New York on the 1st of August. I have two questions.

1) I need my SSN, what documents should I bring besides my passport (Identification, Origin) and my employee card from work with photo/name (Identification). My birth certificate is in Polish and I had a slight name change since then so it may be confusing for them.

1)I want to take my Canadian car with me which means that I have to get a NY Driving License and register my car. Is there anyway to get temporary insurance during the time I try to get that done? (My Canadian insurance only gives me 21 days)And how tough are the inspections (My car has an aftermarket exhaust, etc.)


Thank you for your help.

Driver's License

Well you can't get a driver's license without a social. If you are going to be there for a long period of time, then yes you should probably get one but you wil also need to transfer your plates and your title.

If you want to know some stuff about insurance, I would either look at some popular insurance carriers here like Geico or I would look on the new york state dmv website. If you are going to transfer your car over, you are going to need insurance to do so. Therefore, I wouldn't look into temporary insurance, if that even exists.

The inspections where I live are pretty tough. (i live in nj) So I would assume they are tough in ny state as well. As long as nothing is accident causing or harmful though, I'm sure you will be fine.

SSN

Just a note about your birth certificate. If it is in polish, you will have to have in translated if you don't already. To get an SSN, bring your ID (passport, birth cert, any other ID you have), you will also need to bring the TN visa as proof of your status. You also need to send in the application (form SS-5) with all this id. Just so you know, they aren't issued on the spot. You will have to wait. If you have a slight name change you are going to have to have some sort of document notarizing that name change. They won't be confused but they will not accept different names on different forms of ID. YOu can bring them for the notice of name change:

-marriage certf. if your name changed by marriage.
-divorce decree if your name went back to your surname post-divorce
-cert. of naturalization from Canada when you came from Poland that states your new name
-court order for a name change.

To be honest, I don't even know if you can apply for a social with a TN visa because the visa is technically on a year by year basis and only for a specific job. Since a social lets you apply for any kind of work, I don't know if you can apply for it. Blah, someone answer this one! haha

Of course an SSN will be issued for someone in TN. TN authorizes work in US.

Things to remember, once you actually look at the SS-5 (download it), you will know exactly what you need. you'll need to show your i-94 as well. I would do this in person if I were you. Almost every medium burg has an SSA office.

as lulu sez, it will take weeks to get this SSN.

But this does not mean you can't work. many employers mistake SSN with work authorization. Your TN is your work authorization. The SSN is merely to co-ordinate your tax withholding and other benefits. Don't let them delay your job start based on not having SSN. Apply for it, you will get receipt, and SSA is quite clear that this allows work while being processed.

Thank you very much for the fast response. I checked out the SS-5 pdf before so I knew that the birth certificate/current name may be an issue. I hope to not have any problems with the SSN, I need to get paid. I imagine that if there' s a need for additional documentation, I can still get paid in the meantime. They will just collect all that tax money later from one paycheck.
In essence, if I brink my passport woth the I-94 and my employee card (with picture), it should be enough, right?

As far as the work is concerned, I am starting next week! Any additional advice for the SSN?

regards,

Hi, one more question.

I bought my car (not a lease) but I still have 8 months of payments left on it, is this a problem of any sort when I take it with me to New York and register/plate it?

thank you for any advice,

That is something I don't know. If no one on here can give you an answer, I would contact the DMV of the state of new york and ask them.

Regarding your car -- contact the manufacturer's headquarters in Canada (ie. if it's Honda, contact Honda Canada) and ask them if you car meets the U.S. safety and emissions standards. If it does, have them provide you an official letter stating this. Use this at the border or the DMV as required.

Hope this helps
Good luck.

Thank you very much for your input, it is greatly appreciated. I contacted the US customs and they said I may be "ok" to take it just with a proof of ownership since I am only temporarily in the states, i.e. no need for a letter and EPA stuff. I will, however, still contact the car manufacturer- just in case.

Here's what I found:

"
B. Individuals with immigrant, worker or student status

All Canadians with documented immigrant status, or worker or student status in the U.S. exceeding one year are eligible for an exemption to import their Canadian vehicles. The importer must have proof that the vehicle is a Canadian version and that he or she owned the vehicle prior to changing residence. Adequate proof may be a copy of the Canadian title or registration, or vehicle insurance information in the name of the importer.

Importations for resale are not permitted under this exemption.

No Customs bond or approval is required by EPA.

The importer must file with U.S. Customs, upon entry, an EPA Form 3520-1, declare code "M" on that form, attach proof of immigrant, worker or student status and proof that the vehicle is a Canadian version and that the importer owned the vehicle prior to importation (such as a copy of the vehicle registration or title in the name of the importer).
"

That being said, is there any Canadian insurance company that would insure me for a year or two in the states?

Note: regarding payments left on the car, the customs do not care about it.

You have hit on te exact problem why NOT formally importing the car is NOT a good solution.

First, I'm quite sure you did not take this TN job for only one year. Why would you disrupt your life so much just for that. Your hope is to make this a careeer. So, in a years time you will be needing to import the car anyways, why wait.

Second, TN is not like snowbird or even student, since the local state views you as a resident, which thus requires that you register and plate your car (and get DL) as a resident. In many states, plating requires that you demonstrate formal importation.

Third, and this is where you face the greatest risk, is that NO Cdn insurance firm will accept your existing policy as covering you when you LIVE in US. You are no longer visiting US, you live there and your insurance should reflect this.

Fourth, if you manage to get past all these barriers without importing, then you still have the problem of not being able to resale your car. You don't want to resale your car, you say? Fine. But what if you total it in an accident? Your US insuarnce would love to pay you off, however, you are not allowed to transfer the ownership to them, since you didn't import the car. Now what?

Get the letter from the Cdn maker, import the car formally, and you are done. It costs nothing.

You will need to contact that bank where your loan is to make arrangements to continue payments. They may require that you pay off the loan before you leave.