Keep GC or give up...need advice

C

Carlos Garcia

New Member
My situation is, I'm Spanish and I'm married to a US citizen. I have my GC since December 2014 as a Conditional Resident, so it expires in December 2016. We have planned to move to Europe for personal reasons, but we don't know yet if it would be now or some time in the short future.
We just want to know which would be our options, so we can take the right decision. If it's better to give up my GC, or try to keep it.

These are my doubts..
- If we leave the US:
. From 1st October 2016, the 90 day period to quit the conditions in my GC will start. If I ask for a reentry permit and I leave the country (before the 90 days period) without quitting the conditions...which will be situation? I assume my reentry permit will expire in December 2016 (as my GC) and my GC will be revoked in 1st January 2017 because I didn't quit the conditions...is it right?

. If I keep the GC through a Reentry permit, would a be excluded from Double Taxation?

. If I give up my GC (as I'm already married to a US Citizen), whenever I decide to come back to US and reapply to get a new GC, would I be charged with the same fees and the process will be exactly the same as when I got the GC at the first time through the Fiancé visa?


- If we stay in the US:
. I know that in Spain, for my wife if she stays for 5 continuous years living there, she could get out of the country for up to 2 years (with no problems) with the permanent resident card.
Which would be my future in US for this aspect? I mean, now as a CR, and if I quit the conditions in the GC and I become a LPR, I can just be out of the country for up to 1 year without reentry permit (but with chances of getting in trouble if I cannnot convince the officers that I didn't intend to abandon US).
If I apply to be a US Citizen, would this change in any aspect? Or because I'm a citizen but really a foreigner, I would still have the same conditions?


Sorry to text this much but I need some clarity in all my thoughts.
Thanks so much in advance.
 
A couple of quick points.

I think by "Double Taxation" you mean having to report global income in USA as well as in the country of residence. That does not necessarily mean that you pay "double taxes" but it is a pain in the...

Your US citizen wife will have to continue to file for taxes in the USA - so that might include you anyway.
 
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If he doesn't apply for Removal of Conditions, his permanent residency will end at the end of the 2 years.
 
Thanks for your answers, Britsimon and newacct.
Yes, by double taxation I meant paying taxes in both countries...I understand my wife will have to because she is american, and in my case if I keep the GC, I guess I'll have to too, but I don't know if all the taxes or part in each country.

If I don't remove the conditions, my GC will end at the end of the 2 years so...it doesn't matter if I apply or not for a Reentry permit, right?
So...if I leave the country without removing the conditions or applying for a reentry, which would be my situation? Obviously I will lose my GC but, could I come back to USA in the future with no problem or would I be prosecuted in some way because I didn't do the things right?

And...does anybody knows about being a LPR or a foreigner that has a US Citizenship if I would have different benefits in terms of having more time out of the country than 6 months per year with no problem?
 
Usually the US has tax treaties between most of the countries you would not get taxed twice.

If you are US Citizen (you are not a foreigner anymore BTW) you can live out of the country as long as you want. All the restrictions are for C/LPRs.
 
Thanks for the reply lvnp.
Ok, I didn't know if applying for the naturalization, I would be a citizen 100% like my wife, or I would still be considered like a foreigner even I'm citizen and if I would leave the country they could still think that I'm abandoning my residence here in the US and revoke it...

I would like to know exactly how it works about those tax treaties but I haven't found anything clear so far.

Anybody knows if I would have problems coming back to US in the future if I leave the country without applying for a reentry permit or removing the conditions on my existing GC?
 
Carlos Garcia said:
Thanks for the reply lvnp.
Ok, I didn't know if applying for the naturalization, I would be a citizen 100% like my wife, or I would still be considered like a foreigner even I'm citizen and if I would leave the country they could still think that I'm abandoning my residence here in the US and revoke it...

I would like to know exactly how it works about those tax treaties but I haven't found anything clear so far.

Anybody knows if I would have problems coming back to US in the future if I leave the country without applying for a reentry permit or removing the conditions on my existing GC?
Click to expand...
If you naturalize you will be a citizen 100% like your wife (other than that you can't be President). Note that you will have to have been a permanent resident for 3 years before qualifying for naturalization as the spouse of a citizen (and you had to have maintained "continuous residence" (generally no trips abroad for more than 6 months) for those 3 years, and had to have been physically present in the US for half of those 3 years), so you still have more than 2 years to go until you can naturalize.
 
Thanks for your reply newacct.
So...for those 3 years before I can apply for naturalization, do I have to be LPR or it counts too the time I've been a CR or the time till I got the GC?
Because I came to USA in December 2013, but I didn't get my conditional GC till December 2014...so I've been living in US for almost 1 year and 11 months, but just 11 months as a CR...and obviously nothing as a LPR.

Does anybody knows if it's possible the double citizenship Spain and US? I've read that US doesn't care if you have 2 citizenships but Spain does so...I don't really know how it would work to fly overseas with 2 passports...
 
Carlos Garcia said:
Thanks for your reply newacct.
So...for those 3 years before I can apply for naturalization, do I have to be LPR or it counts too the time I've been a CR or the time till I got the GC?
Because I came to USA in December 2013, but I didn't get my conditional GC till December 2014...so I've been living in US for almost 1 year and 11 months, but just 11 months as a CR...and obviously nothing as a LPR.

Does anybody knows if it's possible the double citizenship Spain and US? I've read that US doesn't care if you have 2 citizenships but Spain does so...I don't really know how it would work to fly overseas with 2 passports...
Click to expand...
You are an LPR -- a conditional LPR. It counts.

If you are a Spanish citizen by origin, you will keep Spanish nationality after acquiring another nationality as long as you declare you intend to retain Spanish nationality within 3 years.
 
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