Continuous Residence Issue

C

citizen2008

Registered Users (C)
Hi

I have a question regarding continuous residence

I was visiting overseas (my country of birth)

june, 2005 - may 2006 (about 11 months in total)

Now my question is:

If I apply on 01/01/2009, and going backwards 3 years (based on marriage)
that will be 01/01/2006 and if you look closely it will be in the middle of my 11 months trip. Now when I answer the question on naturalization form about the trips I made or how many days I was out of the US for each trip, what do I need to mention? the whole 11 months or part of the trip starting from 01/01/2006? If I answer the 2nd option, I was away for only 5 months which put it below the 6 month eligbility requirement.

Do you have any suggestions about this? Please reply
 
I'm confused ..you're asking about applying in 2009 but your signature timeline shows you already applied last year?
 
You are expected to list ALL your trips of more than 24 hours outside the US since becoming a permanent resident, not just trips of the last 3 years or 5 years. Unless your green card was approved while you were away on that 11 month trip, you have to list the start and end dates of the entire trip and count all the days of the trip (except the dates you left and entered the US, since partial days within the US don't count as days outside). If your application was approved while outside the US, your permanent resident status would begin on your first entry to the US since approval, and you would list all trips you made after that entry date.
 
citizen2008 said:
I am thinking of re-applying since I am stuck in name check.
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Reapplying won't get you around name check delay..if you apply again you're name will likely get flagged down in the system again. Your application is still within the posted processing times. You might want to consider filing for WOM after 12-16 months from PD if you don't see any movement on your case.
 
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Jackolantern said:
If your application was approved while outside the US, your permanent resident status would begin on your first entry to the US since approval, and you would list all trips you made after that entry date.
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Does this apply even if my GC was predated? I was abroad when my GC was approved in March of 06, but it was predated to March of 05. I assumed that, in this case, I would have to list all trips after the predate, i.e., the date on my GC. Am I right?
 
Citizen2008, unless you can overcome the presumption that you broke continuous residence during your 11 month trip, I think it very likely that your existing N-400 could be approved. You will become eligible to reapply in May 2009, less the 90 days early application benefit.
 
Jackolantern said:
You are expected to list ALL your trips of more than 24 hours outside the US since becoming a permanent resident, not just trips of the last 3 years or 5 years.
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What is the point of listing trip from 10 years ago? They are interested to see only trips taken within statutory period (3 or 5 years). Any trip outside of this range has no influence on application.
 
The reason they ask you to list all trips since becoming a permanent resident is to ensure that you have not violated any conditions of being a permanent resident, which is a pre-requisite for becoming a naturalized citizen.
 
cafeconleche said:
Does this apply even if my GC was predated? I was abroad when my GC was approved in March of 06, but it was predated to March of 05. I assumed that, in this case, I would have to list all trips after the predate, i.e., the date on my GC. Am I right?
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Yes that is correct. As AS6 or RE6 - which are backdated depending on the class of admission - your time as a permanent resident begins on that backdated date. So if you were abroad at the time of approval, you will need to include your time out of the country from that point on in your application.
 
im50 said:
What is the point of listing trip from 10 years ago? They are interested to see only trips taken within statutory period (3 or 5 years). Any trip outside of this range has no influence on application.
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That is not true, they have the right to ask you about ALL of your trips during your immigration journey. At the time of citizenship they look to see not only whether you have met the requirements for naturalization, but whether or not you have lawfully obtained the permanent residence status and maintained it as well at any time. So if you were a PR for 20 years, they have the right to look back 20 years and see if you have abandoned your PR status at any time within those 20 years. Just because USCIS overlooks this and just focuses on the last 5 years doesn't mean the law isn't on their side when they decide to go back in time.
 
none of my trips outside the US were more than six months, however last year after i filled my N400 in Jan 07, my wife gave birth and the delivery was risky and the newborn get very sick so i had to stay five months and 21days straight from Jun 1 to Nov 22.I then stayed in the US two weeks then went back for three more months and came back in March 2008.
Should i be concerned?
Thank you
 
nyccitizen said:
none of my trips outside the US were more than six months, however last year after i filled my N400 in Jan 07, my wife gave birth and the delivery was risky and the newborn get very sick so i had to stay five months and 21days straight from Jun 1 to Nov 22.I then stayed in the US two weeks then went back for three more months and came back in March 2008.
Should i be concerned?
Thank you
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Possibly so. IOs aren't usually stupid, and they can definitely interpret two "individual" trips to the same location and just 2 weeks apart, as a real absence of 8+ months. Make sure you have proof of close ties to the US during your trip. Medical necessity won't really cut much weight, as your wife could very well have given birth in the US.
 
thank you for your response, there was no way my wife could have given birth in the US cause she can't get an immigrant visa yet.
as far as ties i have the lease for the apartment, my bills and bank statements. of course i lost my job during all that time.
 
cafeconleche said:
Does this apply even if my GC was predated? I was abroad when my GC was approved in March of 06, but it was predated to March of 05. I assumed that, in this case, I would have to list all trips after the predate, i.e., the date on my GC. Am I right?
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I don't know ... because continuous residence for naturalization is another matter. The start of your continuous residence isn't necessarily the same as your approval date (or backdated approval date). When did you get married, and were you in the US since March 2005 until that long trip?

However, you may have other problems. It sounds like yours is an asylum case, given the backdating. Going back to your country of birth raises the suspicion that like you lied to qualify for asylum (unless your country of birth is not your country of citizenship or things have changed significantly in the country since you were granted asylum).
 
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Jackolantern said:
I don't know ... because continuous residence for naturalization is another matter. The start of your continuous residence isn't necessarily the same as your approval date (or backdated approval date). When did you get married, and were you in the US since March 2005 until that long trip?

However, you may have other problems. It sounds like yours is an asylum case, given the backdating. Going back to your country of birth raises the suspicion that like you lied to qualify for asylum (unless your country of birth is not your country of citizenship or things have changed significantly in the country since you were granted asylum).
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I never said I was in my COP. I was just abroad. And, I went abroad in September, which was 6 months after my predated start of LPR status. But, I had no idea that I was going to be approved when I was abroad, but, luckily, I wasn't out for too long (I was back in the country and then was abroad again). And, I am not married. I think you've confused me with the one who started this thread.
 
cafeconleche said:
I never said I was in my COP. I was just abroad. And, I went abroad in September, which was 6 months after my predated start of LPR status. But, I had no idea that I was going to be approved when I was abroad, but, luckily, I wasn't out for too long (I was back in the country and then was abroad again). And, I am not married. I think you've confused me with the one who started this thread.
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Yes, you're right I thought you were the original poster.

Your situation is different ... you'll get more answers if you start another thread and provide more information.
 
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