Entering USA after a 9 month stay

[hcdeliwala]

Hi all,
We got our green card on 10/27/2004 and it expires after an year which is 10/27/2005.
Now since April 2005 we have come back to India and want to stay here till Jan 2006 which is approximately 9 months stay. We did apply for re-entry permit however because of an address change we did not get them and we will have to reapply them.
Anyways, assume that there is no rentry permit.
Now when we decide to enter USA in Jan 2006 our GC would have expired. According to the law it says we can enter in USA within 1 year of outside stay. But would that still apply if my GC has expired.

Gurus -- Your help is really appreciated since that way we can decide to stay back till Jan or leave early.

-Thanks
HCD

 

[hipka]

Hi all,
We got our green card on 10/27/2004 and it expires after an year which is 10/27/2005.
Now since April 2005 we have come back to India and want to stay here till Jan 2006 which is approximately 9 months stay. We did apply for re-entry permit however because of an address change we did not get them and we will have to reapply them.
Anyways, assume that there is no rentry permit.
Now when we decide to enter USA in Jan 2006 our GC would have expired. According to the law it says we can enter in USA within 1 year of outside stay. But would that still apply if my GC has expired.

Gurus -- Your help is really appreciated since that way we can decide to stay back till Jan or leave early.

-Thanks
HCD

No green card is valid only for a year, what you are referring to is the stamping. Just tell them you did not get the plastic card by mail and were forced to leave to india

 

[ginnu]

Hi all,
We got our green card on 10/27/2004 and it expires after an year which is 10/27/2005.
--------------- Green Card is valid for 10 year, it seems you had passport stamps and not actual cards
Now since April 2005 we have come back to India and want to stay here till Jan 2006 which is approximately 9 months stay. We did apply for re-entry permit however because of an address change we did not get them and we will have to reapply them.
Anyways, assume that there is no rentry permit.
Now when we decide to enter USA in Jan 2006 our GC would have expired. According to the law it says we can enter in USA within 1 year of outside stay. But would that still apply if my GC has expired.

Gurus -- Your help is really appreciated since that way we can decide to stay back till Jan or leave early.

-Thanks
HCD

1 It seems you had passport stamped and that stamp is valid only for a year from date of stamp, you need to be back before the stamp expires. I think you can also get travel permit from US consulate if the stamp expires while you are out( I am not sure about this others will guide you)
2 if you have plastic Permanent resident Cards then the card is valid for 10 years
3 you can apply reentry while you are in US and can give address of US consulate of your country and you can colect Reentry permit from US consulate

 

[hcdeliwala]

Yes, I was looking at the stamping date. My GC is valid for another 10 years. So, I guess I should not have any issues with a valid GC.
Thanks for your replies.

 

[sg_orl]

If you have a plastic green card, then you can travel back to US in January 2006. But since you will be coming back after a visit abroard of > 6 months, you will most likely be subjected to secondary inspection at the POE. Be prepared to justify with documentation why you were away for a long time and keep some proofs handy to show that you did NOT abandon the permanent residence in the US.