Activating with a BFR?
Are you sure you need to activate your license with a BFR?
You may find that many FBO's from which you might want to rent a plane will insist upon it but certainly when I got my FAA license issued on the basis of my JAR it was not an FAA requirement. I got mine before the changes of last July, but nothing I've seen suggests that that bit has changed, just the method of applying for it.
Incidentally, my permanent FAA license took 5 months to arrive despite the fact that the temporary one expired after 3.