A road sign is a board standing on the side of the road that provides information or instructions to travelers. Whether you are driving to the Grand Canyon, biking to work, or walking to a grocery store, you will see road signs everywhere. They are easy to understand. But if you are marching (or crawling) toward a green card, the signs you see along the Immigration Road may have different meanings:
I-485 | |
I-485 is a busy freeway: most people in the U.S. choose this route to get their green card. Unfortunately it has a speed limit of 10mph. | |
Speed Limit | |
0mph speed limit doesn’t make much sense, but if you are travelling on the Immigration Highway, don’t be surprised if you see it more than once. | |
Stop Sign | |
Stop right there, and wait for further instructions. Department of Labor once put up a huge stop sign so that they could “centralize” all labor certification applications; it only took a couple years before traffic was moving again. | |
Road Closed | |
If you pick the wrong route, or have a late start, you will see the road closed sign eventually. You need to find an alternative as soon as possible. | |
Traffic Lights | |
The Department of State uses traffic lights (aka visa bulletin) to control who gets to proceed, and who has to stay. Unlike regular traffic signals, a red light here could last 10 years or more. | |
Road Condition | |
Slippery | |
Bumpy | |
Flooded | |
No Honking! | |
Nobody would listen anyway, why bother? | |
Directions | |
USCIS sometimes gives out better, less confusing instructions, but not always. | |
Car Pool | |
If you married a U.S. citizen and the two of you are travelling together, you can take the carpool lane. There are multiple check points though, and people who get caught with only a dummy on the passenger seat will get into trouble. | |
Toll Booth Ahead | |
Every road is a toll road. Journey to green card is expensive. | |
Welcome! | |
You have reached your destination. |
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