Entry Requirements with Green Card

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ari4u

Registered Users (C)
At work today, there was an emergency situation that required me to leave for Japan tonight for a couple of days. After the initial preparations started, the travel agent realized that i am not a US Citizen and i cannot enter Japan with my green card either. This being a very short notice, there was no time to apply for a tourist visa. So in short, someone else was picked to fly tonight. This made me curious as to which countries allow Green Card holders to enter without a visa. I know Singapore recognizes US green cards in place of visas. If you know of more, pls post so as to spread general awareness. Thanks in advance!! :)
 
Depends on country of orogin

The visa requirment is entirely dependand on the country of origin. I think only Canada and Mexico are the only 2 countries that you can travel with the GC, every where else your entry will be controled based on what countries passport you will be using and the diplomatic relations between that country and the country you will be traveling.

In 2003, I was going back home (Bangladesh) after getting my GC, I had a 16 hours lay over in Singapore. I was planning on visiting my cousin who was working there at the time. The travel agent told me that I sould be able to get out of the airport with no problem since I had a GC, and I didnt think to check myself, but when I went to the immigration at the airport they told me I had to be a USC or have a invitation letter/sponsor from a Singapore citizen to be allowed in. Needless to say, I spent 16 hours at the airport.

I would check with the embassy here in the US of the country you would be traveling and they would be able to tell you if you need a visa or not as you are still a citizen of your birth country.

Sorry for the long winded story. Just wanted to share my experience.
 
It depends on your country of origin.

GC is not a passport and the immigration officer of the country you are going to visit will treat you as a citizen of your country of birth since you are still carry their passpost. The GC shows that you are allowed to leave/enter the US legally.

I beleive that UK citizens by birth, who now have GC in US may not need to have a visa to go to EU countries and other countries that they have VWP

sorry, you could not make the trip, another one will come your way soon

cheers
 
ahhh okay. Thanks for clearing that up :), apparently i have been misinformed about using GC in place of a visa for entering some countries. I knew that entry requirements are predominated by the passport used at the time of entry but it was a momentary confusion after the sudden chain of events yesterday and the chaos around.

Its good i did not go, probably this was a blessing in disguise. Trips like this are dreaded by everyone as there is so much expectation involved and its usually a stress trip.

Thanks for the responses y'all :).
 
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ari4u said:
After the initial preparations started, the travel agent realized that i am not a US Citizen and i cannot enter Japan with my green card either.
Click to expand...
And USCs are allowed to Japan and other countries without a Visa??
That's odd.
Anyway, good thing you went to a travel agent. If you had booked a ticket online you might have realized it all too late!
 
Correct, you must check every single country's entries requirements before go to that country independently that you are a green card holder. The entry requirement's are by country of origin or citizenship in some cases not by where you live. There are some countries that make exceptions IF you hold a US or Canadian permanent residency. But not all do that.

Not only US citizens are allow to go to Japan and other countries without a visa (as a short term visitor) but other countries as well.

Countries around the world develop treaties or mutual relationships in terms of entry requirements. And that is why some will allow other nationals to enter in their countries without the need of a visa if your stay is up to 90 days most of the time.

There are other countries that have the bad luck that they are always in every country list of "countries that do need a visa".

At least as Patty said you was through a travel agency and not online.

For sure you can go to Mexico and Canada just for be a US permanent resident. For Mexico you need to carry a photocopy of your passport on the page where your picture is plus your GC, don't ask me why...you know each country has its own 15 minutes of fame hehehe :)
 
Switzerland is another country that allows tourists with a GC and their passport. I am not sure how many countries but I have seen this works with Indian passport (according to the consulate website).

Regards,
 
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