Citizenship question

[subr_vas]

Hi all,

I have presented my case here in detail. I know its a little long, but I would REALLY appreciate if Rajiv Khanna or someone elase in the forum could go thro' it and share your knowledge and/or experiences.

My wife and I obtained our permanent resident status on June 21 2001. From then onwards the time periods we have been outside the country are as follows:

Myself -Dec 2001 for 4 weeks, Dec 2002 for 4 weeks, Dec 2004 for 3 weeks, Dec. 2005 (possibly for 4 weeks and accompany my wife back to the US).
Total is about 11 weeks for myself.

My wife - Dec 2002 for 4 weeks, Dec 2004 for 9 weeks (including the current trip when is in India and is returning on March 2, 2005). She plans to go back to India sometime in May of this year, have our child in India (she is currently pregnant) and come back in Dec 2005 (with the child and I accompanying her). This would add another 8 months (from May 2005 to December 2005) (continuos absence of 8 months from US).
Total for my wife would be about 11 months.

Could you please clarify on the following:
- Can my wife can return to the US as per the above schedule in 2005 ? Though any single trip (including the long 8 months from May 2005 to December 2005) would not be more than 1 year, it is necessary to apply for Reentry Permit for my wife just to be safe ?

- The child should be able to enter US with us in December 2005 since it is within two years of the child's birth with documentation showing the parent-child relationship (which I am assuming is a birth certificate ? Is there any specific document needed for this purpose ?) ?

- My wife and I would be eligible for applying for US citizenship 90 days before June 21 2006. The above days of absence would not affect this ?
I read in one of posts here about the following:
The law says to be citizen, you need to meet the following equirement:
maintain your PR status for 5 years - to do so, you need to be in USA for at least 3 months out of any 12 consecutive months.
If so does my wife's 8 months absence from US from May 2005 to December 2005 affect ? Infact I do not understand how to calculate this "any 12 consecutive months" ?

- Child can apply for citizenship with us because child is under 18 at the time that both parent is naturalized then the child becomes a U.S. citizen by operation of law?

Is there anything else that is I need to know to ensure the process of bringing in the child to US and obtaining citizenship for all of us goes smoothly ?

In your expert opinion, with reference to our child, do you foresee any long term "future" immigration/citizenship related legal issues for a US citizen born outside of US vs. US citizen born in the US.

Thank you all for your time. I look forward to hearing from you.

 

[yalag]

- Can my wife can return to the US as per the above schedule in 2005 ? Though any single trip (including the long 8 months from May 2005 to December 2005) would not be more than 1 year, it is necessary to apply for Reentry Permit for my wife just to be safe ?

She does not need a reentry permit. However to be on the safe side....

- The child should be able to enter US with us in December 2005 since it is within two years of the child's birth with documentation showing the parent-child relationship (which I am assuming is a birth certificate ? Is there any specific document needed for this purpose ?) ?

I am not aware of any such rule. Do you claim that the child will automatically "inherit" an immigrant status? I may be wrong but I think that since neither you nor your wife are USC, you may have a problem bringing in the child without processing him with the proper visa.

- My wife and I would be eligible for applying for US citizenship 90 days before June 21 2006. The above days of absence would not affect this ?
I read in one of posts here about the following:
The law says to be citizen, you need to meet the following equirement:
maintain your PR status for 5 years - to do so, you need to be in USA for at least 3 months out of any 12 consecutive months.
If so does my wife's 8 months absence from US from May 2005 to December 2005 affect ? Infact I do not understand how to calculate this "any 12 consecutive months" ?

The Guide to Naturalizatin says she must not be out of the US for m6 consecutive months in the last five years before her application. It seems an 8 month trip will have to delay her application. Also, there is the physical residence requirement, which requires that in thwe last 5 years she was in the US for at least 30 months (not necessarily consecutively). There is no such rule (hat I know of) 3 months out of any 12 consecutive months.
There is some 4 years plus 1 day rule that may be applied to her case - look it up "The Guide".

- Child can apply for citizenship with us because child is under 18 at the time that both parent is naturalized then the child becomes a U.S. citizen by operation of law?

Is there anything else that is I need to know to ensure the process of bringing in the child to US and obtaining citizenship for all of us goes smoothly ?

Notice that your child MUST be a permanent resident at the time or after one of you get naturalized. This brings us back to the isse above. You better be sure that if your child is born in India you can bring him into the US as a PR. This can take sometime for a US citizen (see the thread discussing Direct consular filing). I do not know how much time this takes for a PR. If obtaining the immigrant visa for the child is too long your wife may be stuck in India for much more time than you have originally palnned.

In your expert opinion, with reference to our child, do you foresee any long term "future" immigration/citizenship related legal issues for a US citizen born outside of US vs. US citizen born in the US.

I am no expert. Notice that your child is doomed to not be the US president. Other than that I think there is no other difference in status.

We were in a similar position and my wife chose to give birth outside the USA. However, my wife is a US citizen and therefore it took us only about a month to get the child into the States where he automatically received his citizenship. Consider the fact that as long as your child is not a US citizen he is not entitled to many rights (such as state insurance, some social service benefits - depending on your income).

Congratulations!

Yalag

 

[subr_vas]

Many thanks

Yalag,

Thanks for taking time to answer my questions! I really appreciate it. One of the attorneys I spoke to said this:

"rules regarding returning residents apply to your case, i.e., a child born abroad of legal permanent resident parents may enter the U.S. without a visa provided the child is accompanied by a parent upon that parent's initial return to the U.S. within two years of the child's birth with documentation showing the parent-child relationship. If the child is not brought back to the U.S. when the parents initially enter the U.S. (following the birth) within this time period, the child must obtain an immigrant visa to enter the U.S. In this case, the legal permanent resident parent(s) must file an immigrant visa petition with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

If a child is under 18 at the time that both, or in some circumstances, one parent is naturalized then the child becomes a U.S. citizen by operation of law."

In quite a few posts I have seen a similar thing being said.

But i will defenitely check with an attorney as well. But I defenitely appreciate your response.

Thanks.

 

[yalag]

One more thing. Your wife will not be able to apply for citizenship if sjhe leaves the US for more than 6 motnhs. The Guide states that she must not have any trip more than 6 months in the five years prior to application.

Notice however that there is the 4 years plus 1 day rule that may be applicble. Read "The Guide to Naturalization" carefully.

I am correcting my precious answer.

 

[Rahul Kumar]

She can leave more than 6 months but less than 1 year provided she has AMPLE proof that she did not intend to abandon residency

4+1 rule is only for those leaving OVER 1 year

 

[subr_vas]

Thanks

Yalag, Rahul Kumar,

Thanks a lot, I appreciate your help. Thanks for taking time to answer to my post. I will consult with attorney as well on this.

Thanks again,