Do we need to carry GC all the time with us?

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nlssubbu

Registered Users (C)
Hi,

I got my GC recently and it is said that we need carry them all the time with us? Is this true?

Can we have a copy of it with us rather than carrying the original? It will be big hassel, if we misplaced it.

Thanks
 
nlssubbu said:
Hi,

I got my GC recently and it is said that we need carry them all the time with us? Is this true?

Can we have a copy of it with us rather than carrying the original? It will be big hassel, if we misplaced it.

Thanks
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That's the law. Its upto you whether you want to follow it or not :D

Think about it this way .... replacing your DL/credit cards etc is also a hassle - do you not carry them with you ?
How many times in the past 6 years (say since your PD ;)), have you lost your wallet ?
 
Loosing a credit card is not that much of an hassle. Just call them up and you get it in within a week. I-90 for GC takes around 6-8 months, so loosing it is a trouble, esp when you have international travel around the horizon.

By law you are supposed to carry it, but how many times have you been stopped and asked for proof of status in the US since you have been here? If you are living in the border areas, then it makes sense to carry it.

I never carried with them and never been asked. In my state and probably most other states, they can pull up your immigration status from your DL (remember you need to show visa status to get renewal nowadays).
 
rpranesh said:
Loosing a credit card is not that much of an hassle. Just call them up and you get it in within a week.
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If you think that's the end of your hassle, you've obviously never lost your wallet. :)

In my state and probably most other states, they can pull up your immigration status from your DL (remember you need to show visa status to get renewal nowadays).
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That may be true, but that doesn't release you from the obligations of the INA. If the police officer is authorized to enforce federal immigration law (which is starting to happen in more and more states) he can arrest you based on that alone.
 
You can never make a duplicate of your green card and use it as the real one, it's illegal.

Well, here's how I see it - theoretically every single person should carry a proof of residency with him all the time, no matter what your status is. How often do you see a citizen carrying a passport/birth cert with him?
 
No sensible person would use the copy as the real one, it would only be initial evidence that a real one exists. If you are detained, they could scan it or fax it and ask Immigration to verify whether there a genuine one was issued that looks like it with the same information.

Ultimately, although you might be detained you are not going to be deported because you merely didn't have the card on your person. And police are not allowed to go up to random people and ask them about their immigration status.
 
Citizens have more rights and less obligations than PRs.

Well.. what I do: carry with me black-and-white copy of my GC all the time, keep original home; carry original with me when traveling, even domestically and even by car, if away from home overnight. My wallet was never lost/stolen while in US (last 10 years).

What my spouse does is opposite: has original GC in the wallet all the time, even though the wallet was stolen once (before getting GC).

What my daughter does is another opposite: has original GC home and does not carry any copies with her - so I did a copy for her (black-and-white) and asked to carry in her wallet all time. She of course does carry original with her while travelling.
 
By law all LPRs need to carry proof of their LPR status. So it boils down to the actual card, or one's passport with an I-551 stamp. I carried my GC in my wallet for 3 years. The only time it came out was at POEs for inspection. Never left my house without my wallet, so I always had proof of LPR status on me. I actually miss my physical GC since my wallet now has an empty sleeve with just a slight indentation and discolouration reminding me of that card :)
 
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cutipie721 said:
Well, here's how I see it - theoretically every single person should carry a proof of residency with him all the time, no matter what your status is. How often do you see a citizen carrying a passport/birth cert with him?
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There is a small but important difference - citizens do not need to cary proof of status or residency, non-citizens do. If you're a citizen and are queried for your status, you can merely assert your citizenship with no evidence and once it's verified, you're OK. If you try to do the same thing as a Permanent Resident, even if your status is legal you can still be arrested for violating the INA.

Ultimately, although you might be detained you are not going to be deported because you merely didn't have the card on your person. And police are not allowed to go up to random people and ask them about their immigration status.
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No, you're not going to be deported, but you probably will be fined. The other thing to remember is that while law enforcement isn't allowed to randomly ask people about their immigration status, it is perfectly legal to throw up a roadblock or checkpoint and ask everyone about their immigration status. There have been plenty of such checkpoints in border areas.
 
TheRealCanadian said:
No, you're not going to be deported, but you probably will be fined. The other thing to remember is that while law enforcement isn't allowed to randomly ask people about their immigration status, it is perfectly legal to throw up a roadblock or checkpoint and ask everyone about their immigration status. There have been plenty of such checkpoints in border areas.
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Of course, in a border area you are more likely to be checked. But in general, do they really expect people to carry their green cards and visas everywhere, like when swimming or running?

When I was on a student visa I took the law literally and carried my passport everywhere. Guess what, eventually I lost it. Luckily, somebody found it on campus a few days later. Replacing it and the visa within would have been a big hassle and expense. After that I just kept it locked up in my room.

I will always make sure it is within a short driving distance; if I am ever detained, somebody can go to my home or hotel or wherever else I am staying and find it. But if I lose it or have it stolen, it won't be anywhere within reach.

It is a matter of balancing one risk against another. For me the risk of losing it if I carry it everywhere is much higher than the risk of being detained or fined for not having it on my person. If I lived near the Mexican border the balance of risks would be different.
 
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