Dilemma after 10 months abroad

Vennie1

New Member
I am hoping for some collective advice/input – thank you in advance for your responses !

We (Self, wife and 2 boys) lived in the US from 2005 to 2016. We got green cards in about 2008. Boys did almost all of their schooling there. We all have European passports.

In 2016 we ended up jobless and got a job offer back in Ireland where myself and my wife grew up. We sold our US house and moved over. We did not take any action on the green cards as we thought re-entry was permitted upto 1 year after departure.

Over the summer, the boys are going back to visit their friends (and the youngest -16 - to go on an adventure trip with his US scout troop) and we are in a dilemma as to how we should do that. They will be departing from Dublin and will go through US immigration there.

1. We can say/do nothing and have them use their current passport and the green cards

a. Risk is that UCIS may see (from airline records ?) that they have not been in the US since last August

i. question them and let them through

ii. revoke their green cards and let them through or

iii. revoke their green cards and deny entry on this occasion and possibly for longer

2. We can complete the ESTA form and do it that way

a. Risk is that via name/DOB cross referencing (and possibly biometrics), UCIS will see that they have green cards and ask why they are not using them. Answer will be that their parents told them they were no longer valid (plead ignorance)

i. They may be granted entry without further consequences

ii. They may be granted entry with a comment on their records so an future entry with green card would be stopped

iii. Their green cards may be revoked there and then and they may be granted entry

iv. They may be denied entry, green cards revoked and flag on their passports for future entries

3. We can go through the process to abandon the green cards via an I-407 form.

a. This is arguably the correct thing to do

b. How long does it take them to update their records ?. We may only be able to get an appointment shortly before travel but I assume we will get confirmation of abandonment from the consulate which can be provided to UCIS in case they ask.

c. The eldest (20) may face more questioning regarding his intent. He is planning on looking up and staying with his various friends. He has been saving money all year and we have agreed to provide additional funding as a reward for having made the move.

To be honest, my wife and I have no real intention of returning to live in the US but they boys, especially the eldest, may wish to do so following his studies in Ireland – hence the interest in trying to keep his GC.

I would appreciate any advice from people who may have gone through this.
 
Whatever you do, do not apply for an ESTA for them, they are LPRs. Feigning ignorance is not a solution, it's an outright lie, and that's the last thing you want to do with immigration.

They've been gone for less than one year, they will be let back in. Yes they may question them as to why they've been gone for so long, they just have to answer truthfully. They had no say in the mater, they left with their parents who had a job offer outside the US.
 
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