After I get my Residence...

J

Jeddomeco

New Member
Hi,
My family and I applied and were granted with Asylum in December 1998.
In December 1999 we applied for the Residence Adjustment (I-485). We were called for finger prints in July 2004 and now we are waiting for our Residence to arrive.
I know that there is a lot to say about the subject, but I know that we will be receiving it within a year! (hopefully).
My biggest concern and this is something that everybody has a different version is:
After I get my Residence Status, will I be able to go back to my home Country?
I know that I must request a Refugee Travel Document even as a resident (since the residence came from Asylum), but I've never heard if I can or cannot go back...Some people say that is ok, some others say that only once a year, and some others say that I won't be able to go back until I become a Citizen.
If someone can help me clarify this I would really appreciate it!

Thanks,
JEDDOMECO
 
I'm not sure if anybody has any guidelines on this issues. Most of the people I talked with including many lawyers says that you should avoid going to your home country untill you get your citizenship. However, I know many of my friends who actually went to their countries after GC and had no problems getting their citizenship (just recently). So, this is a very hard question to answer YES or NO.
 
After observing a lot of discussions, attorney views and past experiences of people I have come to the conclusion that it is a matter of pure luck.. If you are caught, BCIS can give you heck of hard time (might revoke your asylum at worst), but if you are not caught then you would still be among those lucky souls who are on high road to citizenship.

You are gambling on your own luck!

But the point is that you should not want to go back to that country who you bad mouthed in front of an INS officer.
 
Y risk it? Don't mess up the privilege to live and work in this country. Many people don't realize that. You should NEVER go back to the country that persecuted you in my opinion. I wish people who go back, their gc should be revoked. Its just not right.

I will never set my foot in my home country. FOr me to be from that country that persecuted me is a SCARLET letter. I can't wait to get my citizenship so I can disown my home country from my existence...
 
Please be clean and tell us,to begin with ,did you have fear of presecution from your goverment?This doesn't make sense saying you gone go back after getting your GC.This looks like your aim is getting your GC by cheating the INS.THIS LOOKS BAD ON YOU,ON ALL THE ASYLEES.
STOP THIS KIND OF NON-SENSE.
 
I strongly suggest that you can`t use a refugee travel document to travel to your country,I also have friends who traveled to home country with their GC based on asylum now they`re citizens.One thing i know for sure is you can go back to hm country if the situation has changed and you can be able to prove it in case you are ever questioned why you went back home e.g Yugoslavia and Iraq.
 
I think returning to your home country may be considered an abandonement of your asylum-based residency. The word "may" is INS language.

In my opinion, INS uses the word "may" for exception cases, like if you have a family member that is very sick and in a dire situation and that you are the only living family member that is able to arrange for his care or something like that.

I am sure if you have a genuine reason to do that - the US CIS may be willing to accept explanation later on.

I have also known of many people who have gone back to home country after getting the GC. This is done through some crazy trick (like going to a neighboring country first, traveling with both RTD and original passport,etc..etc).

Truly, as mentioned before, it is a risky move though. However, if you need to go for urgent reason - well, you got to go. Just pray that everything will be fine.

If you go back home because you miss home - well, that is too much and unreasonable! It violates the principle upon which you were granted asylum.

My $.02
Lee_Haircut5
 
Guys, my situation is that my home country passport is expired.If i apply for new passport embassy is asking for GC number or EAD number and statement that i have not applied for asylum ,on the form. This has to be notarised. Now i know i can lie for asylum thing and they are not going to confirm it from INS( or may they will??) but what to do for GC number or EAD number. Shall i put the EAD number . Can they find out that it is asylee number.
Now if any of u says that i should not renew my passport. But then even INS considers my a citizen of my home country. What problem should they have in my renewing the passport. thanks
 
lee_haircut5 said:
I think returning to your home country may be considered an abandonement of your asylum-based residency. The word "may" is INS language.

In my opinion, INS uses the word "may" for exception cases, like if you have a family member that is very sick and in a dire situation and that you are the only living family member that is able to arrange for his care or something like that.

I am sure if you have a genuine reason to do that - the US CIS may be willing to accept explanation later on.

I have also known of many people who have gone back to home country after getting the GC. This is done through some crazy trick (like going to a neighboring country first, traveling with both RTD and original passport,etc..etc).

Truly, as mentioned before, it is a risky move though. However, if you need to go for urgent reason - well, you got to go. Just pray that everything will be fine.

If you go back home because you miss home - well, that is too much and unreasonable! It violates the principle upon which you were granted asylum.

My $.02
Lee_Haircut5
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Do you mean that after I get Green Card I won't be able to visit my homecountry?And after naturalization?
 
First of all, thank you all for your opinions.
As I told you before, is just something that I have never had a clear answer "A legal answer".
Secondly, I am not planning to go to my home country any time soon (hopefully not before becoming a citizen), I just want to know that if in a case of emergency (which we all have), I will be able to go.
I know this is a hot topic, everybody has very different opinions, but I consider that what is important is to do things in a legal matter. Your feedback is great.

Thanks!!
 
Minsk said:
Do you mean that after I get Green Card I won't be able to visit my homecountry?And after naturalization?
Click to expand...


Yes, in general people who got their green cards are not supposed to visit their countries of alleged persecution.

Think about it and use common sense.
 
Asylee13 said:
Guys, my situation is that my home country passport is expired.If i apply for new passport embassy is asking for GC number or EAD number and statement that i have not applied for asylum ,on the form. This has to be notarised. Now i know i can lie for asylum thing and they are not going to confirm it from INS( or may they will??) but what to do for GC number or EAD number. Shall i put the EAD number . Can they find out that it is asylee number.
Now if any of u says that i should not renew my passport. But then even INS considers my a citizen of my home country. What problem should they have in my renewing the passport. thanks
Click to expand...

Why on the planet would you want to have your passport renewed????? What good would that do to you, in light of the potential harm????
 
Guys, help me out here.

You got your asylum claim approved because you had a believable fear of persecution in your home country, in other words your life would be in danger if you had to return to your home country.

Why the ____ would you want to put your foot back into the country that wanted you harm in the first place ??


(granted, a couple of oppresive regimes have been toppled and politics do change but still ?)
 
hadron said:
Guys, help me out here.

You got your asylum claim approved because you had a believable fear of persecution in your home country, in other words your life would be in danger if you had to return to your home country.

Why the ____ would you want to put your foot back into the country that wanted you harm in the first place ??


(granted, a couple of oppresive regimes have been toppled and politics do change but still ?)
Click to expand...

We live in an ever changing universe. THINGS CHANGE MY FRIEND, EVERYTHING IS CHANGING CONSTANTLY. YOU AND ALL OF THE RADICALS IN THIS FORUM SHOULD KNOW BETTER!
 
Ok, so if things change in your country, how about going back for good ?

Or how about giving up your asylee status and going through the usual moves of getting your PR status if you want to be able to travel back ?
 
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hadron said:
Ok, so if things change in your country, how about going back for good ?

Or how about giving up your asylee status and going through the usual moves of getting your PR status if you want to be able to travel back ?
Click to expand...

Those are constructive comments, with real options, the kind that we all need within this forum. Much better!
 
I still don't get it.

You guys get the privilege of asylum because your home country wants to harm you so bad that you can't go back under any circumstance.

And the first thing you want to do: Go back to the place that supposedly wanted you harm !

For once I have to agree with the goverment. You can't have it both ways.
 
I want to thank Hadron for his posts. It is ripe time for an outsider who is NOT an asylee to state how absurd the idea of going home or renewing home passport is. This contributes to the cynicism with which so many people greet asylum cases. It gives fodder to organizations like FAIR which say that asylum seekers are nothing more than economic migrants.

I just hope that the vast majority of asylees/refugees are genuine, but visiting this site does not build confidence on this score.


hadron said:
I still don't get it.

You guys get the privilege of asylum because your home country wants to harm you so bad that you can't go back under any circumstance.

And the first thing you want to do: Go back to the place that supposedly wanted you harm !

For once I have to agree with the goverment. You can't have it both ways.
Click to expand...
 
Hadron,

Quite a few people here obviously filed false asylum applications and cheated the American people. Let us all hope that sooner or later they will be punished to the full extent of the law. Making up an asylum story is not a fib. It is a crime for which you will be sent to prison.
 
I am not alledging that anybody here has filed a false asylum claim. I just don't understand the concept of going back to the place that persecuted you in the first place.

There is nothing wrong with beeing an economic migrant. I am one myself. But if you come here as an economic migrant, go through the same hoops as everyone else.

I happen to be from a place free of political persecution, and I am happy about it. Back home, we have exactly the same issues with asylees as the US. (my folks kept busting their a++es to help a lebanese couple finding jobs and housing. He seemed to be a genuine political asylee and they were industrious people. First thing after he started working at my dads company, the family went back to Lebanon for a family vacation.......)
 
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