Philippines Airlines Requires Boarding Letter from GC Holders
Posted Sep 05, 2003

According to reports received by the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), permanent residents who are not in possession of the plastic "green" card (which has, for decades, been pink and white and no longer green in color at all) have been refused permission to board airlines departing from the Philippines. These individuals had the I-551 "temporary evidence" stamp in their passports. This stamp is temporary evidence of lawful permanent residence, issued as proof of permanent resident status until the issuance of the physical, plastic card. The I-551 is valid proof that the individual is a permanent resident and authorized to work and travel. No additional proof of status is required at the Port of Entry. This notwithstanding, the airlines departing from the Philippines have been insisting that such individuals have "boarding letters," which must be obtained at the U.S. consulate abroad.

A boarding letter is a letter issued by the U.S. Embassy or Consulate, directed to the transportation company and the Port of Entry officials. It confirms that the individual named in the letter is a permanent resident and that the individual's permanent residence has been verified by the BCIS. It is typically used by individuals who, for some reason, do not have other proof of permanent residence. This is usually because the physical card identifying her/him as having permanent resident status has been lost or stolen. The letter should not be necessary if one has proof of permanent resident status, such as the I-551 stamp.

A boarding letter states that the transportation company may transport the foreign national to the U.S. without danger of being subjected to certain fines for bringing persons with improper immigration documents to the U.S. Although no explanation of the airlines' reasons for requiring the boarding letter has been provided, the likely reason is that the airlines fear incurring these fines, which can be $3,000 per foreign national. They may be concerned that the I-551 stamps, which are rather simple in appearance, may be forgeries.

These airline policies could be problematic for people with I-551 stamps, who have been correctly advised that the stamp is adequate proof of their lawful permanent resident status for all purposes. The stamp is unique and actually difficult to forge. At this time it is unclear whether the embassy or consulate would be willing to issue the boarding letters for these individuals, in light of the fact that they have valid and legally sufficient evidence of lawful permanent resident status. At the very least, it is an extra burden on the foreign national and the U.S. Embassy or Consulate.

We certainly hope that this practice is not begun in other locations, and that it can be resolved quickly. Anyone planning to travel through the Philippines with only the I-551 stamp should understand that there is potential for a delay and should possibly consider rerouting flights to avoid this problem, or ensure the ability to obtain the boarding letter from the consulate or embassy.