I-765/ead

[Redmeke]

I need help with filling out the form I-765 (EAD). I'm filling under the Nationality Category - Citizen of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, or Palau (a)(8) but I'm not sure about what I should write down as an answer on questions 14. Status of Last Entry and 15. Current Immigration Status.

Any help would be much appreciated!
Thank you. 😊

[rayb]

Redmeke,

How did you enter the U.S.? Did you need a formal visa (visitor ?)? Or did you enter with just your passport and no formal visa?
What is stamped in your passport from the Port of Entry?

--Ray B

I need help with filling out the form I-765 (EAD). I'm filling under the Nationality Category - Citizen of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, or Palau (a)(8) but I'm not sure about what I should write down as an answer on questions 14. Status of Last Entry and 15. Current Immigration Status.

Any help would be much appreciated!
Thank you. 

[Redmeke]

I-765/ead

I am from Palau. Palau is an island in the Pacific that's under the Compact of Free Associations with the United States. So when we are admitted here it's with only a passport and I-94. Place of Last Entry was Guam. On my I-94 it say the U.S. Immigration Admitted AGA (Guam) Entry Date (2001) and Class Until and CFA/PAL (Compact of Free Association/Palau).

(Thank You Rayb for replying!)

[rayb]

Redmeke,

Can you clarify the verbiage: "...Class Until and CFA/PAL..." DId you leave something out?

For #14, put "Visitor."
For #15, put "Visitor...," but add any expiration date annotated by the Port of Entry staff.

Be sure and include a copy of your passport ID page, entry stamp and I-94 with your I-765.

Until about 10 years ago U.S. citizens could enter Palau without a U.S. passport, but must now have U.S. passport to be allowed into Palau. If given an I-94, you are considered a "nonimmigrant" entrant, perhaps without a formal visa (much like Canadians entering the U.S., though Canadians can also obtain B2 and other visa types for more formal entry to the U.S.).

--Ray B

I am from Palau. Palau is an island in the Pacific that's under the Compact of Free Associations with the United States. So when we are admitted here it's with only a passport and I-94. Place of Last Entry was Guam. On my I-94 it say the U.S. Immigration Admitted AGA (Guam) Entry Date (2001) and Class Until and CFA/PAL (Compact of Free Association/Palau).

(Thank You Rayb for replying!)

[Redmeke]

I-765/ead

http://qa-env.www.uscis.gov/files/pressrelease/PalauFS.pdf

^ That is the link to the Palau Fact Sheet on the USCIS site but if it doesn't work. Here are a couple of things that the fact sheet says.

-TRAVEL OF CITIZENS OF PALAU TO THE UNITED STATES
Citizens of Palau by birth, and citizens of the former TTPI who acquired Palau citizenship in 1994, are entitled under the Compact to travel and apply for admission to the United States as nonimmigrants without passports or visas. Admission to the United States, however, is not guaranteed. Most grounds of inadmissibility under U.S. immigration laws, such as criminal convictions, are applicable.

If determined admissible under the Compact, citizens of Palau may live, study and work in the United States. They are granted an indefinite length of stay, with their I-94 noted as “CFA/PAL” (Compact of Free Association/Palau).

-TRAVEL DOCUMENTATION
In order to seek admission to the United States under the Compact, a citizen of Palau is not required to have a passport. A Palauan citizen may also be admitted to the United States with other proof of citizenship, such as a certified birth certificate and proof of identity, which may be in the form of a government issued photo-ID card. A valid passport, however, is the best document to establish Palauan nationality, and therefore, eligibility to travel to and seek admission as a nonimmigrant into the United States under the Compact. Palauans are strongly advised to travel to the United States with a valid passport.

A Palauan citizen applying for admission under the Compact does not need a U.S. visa.

-Individuals seeking admission under the Compact (particularly those who are not citizens of Palau by birth or former TTPI citizens) are advised to bring copies of any relevant documentation or other available evidence (such as certificate of residency or evidence of naturalization) that may assist them in demonstrating to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer at the port of entry their eligibility for admission under the Compact.


-DOCUMENTATION OF ADMISSION TO THE UNITED STATES
Prior to seeking admission at a U.S. Port of Entry, Palauan citizens will be asked to complete a Form I-94 (Arrival/Departure Card) issued by CBP. The air carrier generally will provide passengers with a Form I-94 prior to landing in the United States. On the Form I-94, a CBP officer will make a notation reflecting that the person’s admission is pursuant to the Compact.

The exact notation is subject to change, but at the present time it typically states “CFA/PAL” (Compact of Free Association/Palau).

Persons issued an I-94 should take care not to lose the card, as it will serve as their evidence of alien registration. All foreign visitors to the United States over the age of 18 (including Palau citizens) are required under penalty of law to have this evidence in their personal possession at all times. Should a person lose his or her evidence of registration (I-94), he or she will be required to apply for a replacement document as soon as possible (note that an Employment Authorization Document, described further below under the heading “Employment Authorization and Documentation”, is also evidence of alien registration).

The Form I-94 includes a printed admission/departure number, which should be provided in response to authorized requests for the alien registration number for immigration status verification purposes.

P.s. I'm sorry. I know it's long. I just want to get this over with.