Airport Question

Because it has been a while since living in the US and visiting the UK, we have a question about going through immigration at the airport. We're off to visit hubby's fam in two weeks. When we arrive in Manchester, do we go to separate lines, with him being a UKC with a US permanent resident card, and me being a USC? Do I go with him since we are a family and he is UKC, or does he come with me because I am a visitor and he lives here, and we are a family?

This should be such a simple thing, but it trips us up every time. 

You are travelling together and he has a UK passport (I'm assuming), therefore, everyone goes through the UK line in the UK, and then the US line when returning to the States. DH and I both live in the UK, but that's how we've always done it.

I think it's best to ask one of the attendants before you queue (if you see one). They'll tell you which line to go through (UK or non-UK) and then the IO can't tell you off for going through the wrong line.

We've been told off when doing immigration in US (BOS) for going in separate lines, so now I go with him in the alien line.  It's to do with the customs declaration form -- they only want one per family and get bent outta shape if they get two.  I don't know what immigration at MAN is like as I've always done it at LHR before transferring to MAN.  As TF says ask someone official.

We travel back to the UK typically twice a year - initially I used to ask each time and each time the IO told me if I am traveling with DH to go through the UK line.  And as long as I'm with him or one of my daughters (both have their UK passport) then I'm fine to go through...but I can't if by myself.

Ask the attendant in the immigration hall.  They will direct you to the right line.

I was thinking it was me go with him on that end and him go with me on this end, but I couldn't remember. We will ask to save grief though. We've been barked at in Chicago for going separately, which wasn't fun. He acted as if we'd inconvenienced the entire country for doing so. I kept waiting for him to send us to the corner for a time out.

When I flew back with my husband in January of this year we asked the attendant who directed us to the 'All Other Passports' line.  This was fine with me because there were about 5 people in the foreigners line and about 70 in the EU line.  He didn't have to fill out a landing card because he is a UKC but I had one.  I would second the ask when you get there notion because then you can blame an employee if the IO gets a bit annoyed, at the very least.

In the US, we always went through the 'citizens' line (before DH got US citizenship) per instructions. Also, as Boston Diner pointed out, the customs declaration is one per FAMILY. Only once did a US immigration officer give us some grief, but he was truly a nasty person who also asked me how long I intended to be in the US. Well, I was born there, so pretty much as long as I want to stay, but I smiled and said "two weeks". He also couldn't find my name change page for some reason, but got really sarky when I said "page 23".

In the UK, we have always been told to go through the non-EU line together. Never had an issue with that on this side.

I've actually had different experiences depending on the airport - coming in to LHR (on my spouse visa with my US passport, with UKC DH and both UKC DDs) we were told to stay in the UK line as a family. So the next time, at MAN, we all just got in the UK line and got seriously told off. (Not by the IO at the desk, but by someone monitoring the line.) When I explained that it's what we were told at LHR, we got "LHR does things their own way, here at MAN we do things the right way."

Long story short, ask every time!!

Come to think of it, once when asking at MAN, the lady was nearly shouting at me that I had to go to the one for foreigners (her way of putting it) because I had no right to abode, and therefore no right to go to the EU line. She was truly crappy about it, and it felt like she was trying to make me feel a lesser person because I was from another country. She's probably one of those who hate all things American and all Americans but LOVES to spend her holidays at Disney, LA, NYC or Vegas. Because, after all, those aren't the crappy parts of America. It amazed me how many people I ran into who hated Americans and all things American, but went to America every year for holiday. 

Definitely going to ask when we get there, to be on the safe side.

Isn't it wonderful how many IO's just love yelling at people who have just gotten off long-haul flights and are totally bewildered.  Last time we arrived at BOS must have been about six flights from Europe just in and the queue for "foreigners" was longer than I have ever seen it in my life.  We shuffled along for over an hour before being glared at and passed through.  This one didn't yell but if he had I would have hauled off and given him what for.

In 2004 on a return trip from the UK, I had an IO in Philly grill me, wanting to know WHY I went to the UK, what I did while I was there, who I spent time with, and all kinds of questions that didn't have anything to do with him, or my return home as a USC. He was using a very demanding tone, as if he was going to get all my information. I kept my answers brief and vague, because it was none of his business I'd gone to visit my fiance, and we visited friends, went to the pub, watched tv, ate too much etc. Had I met with some shady characters and plotted against the US or UK government, then maybe he needed to know.