International Conference on the

Low Energy Electrodynamics in Solids

Information for Foreign Participants

Transportation

It is very important to think ahead about your transportation if you arrive to any of the major airport - the public transportation system is not as developed as in many of the European cities. If no arrangements are made before you leave, getting to the Yacht Club is not going to be easy. See more on our travel page.

The airport terminals have transportation desks, where information is available about the pickup points of various taxi, limousine and bus services. If you arranged for a limousine, it is most likely that they asked for your name, and the driver will be waiting for you (holding a banner with your name) at the point you leave the immigration/customs area.

Phone

Upon arrival, you may want to get in contact with friends or the Conference organizers. Coin-operated pay phones are readily available, but you need to have quite a few $0.25 coins with you. Some phones accept credit cards. For long distance calls the least expensive option is to buy a $5 prepaid phone card, that is available at most airport terminals.

If calling within the same area code it is enough to dial the 7 digit phone number (the local area code and number is usually displayed on the phone). Otherwise, one should dial 1, followed by the 3 digit area code, and then the 7 digit number. Area codes 800 and 888 are for the toll-free numbers. The area codes: JFK is 212, LGA is 718 and eastern Long Island (including Islip airport, Brookhaven Lab and Stony Brook University) is 631.

Visa

Citizens of most countries should apply for visa. The Conference will provide a letter of invitation, if necessary.
Visa waiver program: With stays of 90 days or less visitors from participating countries may be eligible to enter the U.S. on the visa waiver program. This means it is not necessary to obtain a visa stamp from an American Consulate. See the State Department's WEB page for the list of participating countries.
Canadian citizens do not need visas for the USA, and are considered to have B-1 visa status (see below).
Mexican citizens need no visa, assuming they have a "Mexican Border Crossing Card" (Form I-186 or I-586). They are considered to have B-1 visa status.

Reimbursement, honoraria

Support received from the conference, if any, will be in the form of reduced registration fee, and possibly reduced housing expenses. We do not intend to reimburse participants. Nevertheless, some of you may receive support from other sources. You must be prepared for strict enforcement of the rules governing payments to foreign nationals.

Expenses can be paid for all visa types, except:

H-1 ("Employer Specific"): no payment.
F-1 ("Student Status"): payment only if I-20 indicates practical training or off-campus employment approval.

Most of the time you need to provide original receipts to recover the expenses. If airline ticket is involved, this often means that the process can only start after you finished your trip.

Honoraria (fees) are more restricted:

You must have a Social Security number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), which takes 4-6 weeks to get. Check out the IRS WEB page for more, or call the nearest US consulate.
H-1 or F-1: no payment.
B-2 ("Tourist"): no payment.
B-1 ("Business Visitor") or WB ("Waiver of Business"): You must declare your visit as "Business", not "Tourism", when entering the country --- In the inspection area of the American port of entry (or land border, e.g. Canada) you will be required to show a valid passport and a round trip ticket. Whether you are a visitor with a visa or have a visa waiver, the Immigration official will mark the I-94 card (arrival/departure record, green colored for waiver program), which is usually issued onboard the airplane and stapled into your passport at the port of entry inspection, to indicate your classification. Make sure that you tell him your visit is on business, not tourism. Be prepared to show the Conference announcement. If you have a visa, he must write B-1 (not B-2) on the I-94; if you have a visa waiver, he must write WB (not WT). Check the card for the correct mark (B-1 or WB) before leaving the inspection area. This is crucial: You must get the correct classification, and this is absolutely the only time you can get it for this visit; otherwise, your host will be unable to pay honoraria.
J-1 ("Exchange Visitor, Short Term") is needed for payment for more than 9 days.

Visa issuance for third country nationals in Canada and Mexico

For those from countries other than Canada and Mexico who may be planning to apply for a US non-immigrant visa at a US Consular post in Canada or Mexico:

U.S. Consular posts in Canada and Mexico have suspended visa issuance for third country nationals; they will handle visa issuance for residents of Canada and Mexico only.

International students and scholars should check with an International Student and Scholar Adviser before traveling to Canada, Mexico or the adjacent territories of the Caribbean, since there is some question about whether the current practice of "automatic visa revalidation" for stays of under 30 days will apply to nationals of certain countries.