Filing N-400 based on 2010-2015 presence but don't have 2010 Tax Return

T

taimoor37

New Member
Hello,

I have been a US Permanent Resident since April 2010. I got immigration visa under the F4 category (U.S. citizens foreign national brothers and sisters unmarried children who are under the age of 21). I came to US in April 2010 for the first time, got my Green Card, stayed for 30 days and went back to my country of origin to take care of affairs in order to make a final move to the US. I remained outside of the US for 11 months and came back permanently before the 1 year staying abroad limit. Since April 2011, I have lived in the US continuously with like 3,4 days trip to Canada to visit family or Caribbean for vacation. Now I have completed 5 years since I have had my green card, my 5 years are up in April 2015 and following the 3 months advance filing rule I am thinking about applying for US Citizenship now.

The problem I am running into is the year of 2010, when I stayed outside of the US for more than 6 months and I don't have a Tax Return filed for that year since I did not make any income. I am concerned, if I file now, can my application be denied because I was out of the US for more than 6 months in one of the years that I am putting in my application and I don't have anything like a Tax return for that year to show my ties in the US for that yr?

I think I have two options here:
First, file the application as is right now without any proof of ties for the year 2010 but because I have resided continuously in the US from 2011 to date and have had all the ties (tax returns, W2s, Paystubs, rent receipts etc) and hope that will not be a problem with USCIS.
Second, wait for another year and file my application in 2016 which will definitely mean that I can show continuous 5 year presence in the US with all the tax returns and other proofs. I know this route might seem safer but I really need to be a US Citizen asap because of my job, The industry I work in requires most of the employees to be US citizenship and I am running into career roadblocks because of not being a US citizen.

So if experts here think that not having a tax return for the year of 2010 in my case will not make a big difference then i'll go ahead and file my application.

Thanks in advance

T.J.
 
File in 2015 based on the 4 years and 1 day rule, which makes you eligible for naturalization if you file 4 years and 1 day after your last long trip (provided you have met the other requirements such as good moral character, living in the district/state for 3 months etc.). Then the 11 month absence will be outside the 4 years and 1 day, so you won't have to show evidence of ties to the US during your 11-month absence.

But make sure you file after completing the full 5 years as a permanent resident (you don't get to use the 90-day early filing with the 4y+1d rule). And on the N-400 select "Other" as your eligiblity reason and write "4 years and 1 day Section 316.5(c)(i)(2)."
 
Thank you for your reply. Honestly, I did not know about this 4 year and 1 day rule until your comment.
O.K. So what I understand is that I can't utilize the 90 days advance filing if I am using 4 year and 1 day rule, so in my case I'll have to wait till April 2015. Regarding the 4 year 1 day rule, do I need to be in the US for actual 4 year 1 day (meaning 4 x 365 + 1) or does it mean that I need to have a continuous residency for 4 year and 1 day (meaning I could have trips outside of the US which lasted less than 6 months and I can show proof of ties in the US for all these years).

This is my particular situation:

Date left the US: 2/7/2014; Date returned to the US: 2/10/2014; The trip did NOT last more than 6 months; No. of Days outside of the US = 03

Date left the US: 12/25/2013; Date returned to the US: 12/29/2013; The trip did NOT last more than 6 months; No. of Days outside of the US = 04

Date left the US: 4/29/2011; Date returned to the US: 8/16/2011; The trip did NOT last more than 6 months; No. of Days outside of the US = 116

Date left the US: 4/29/2010; Date returned to the US: 4/12/2011; The trip DID last more than 6 months; No. of Days outside of the US = 349

Total number of days I spent outside of the US in the last 5 years = 472 days in 4 trips. So based on my situation do I still qualify for 4 year 1 day rule?

Also, you wrote if I meet other requirements such as good moral character, living in the district/state for 3 months etc. I have lived in my district for more than 3 months and as far as I know I have met all other general requirements unless 4 year 1 day rule has other special/unique requirements?
As far as a good moral character goes, I don't have any criminal records, any arrests or anything like that but I do have "some" speeding tickets. I know it has been a question of controversy whether to list speeding tickets or not and I read quite a few posts on this topic but I am still confused what's best in my particular situation. I have been cited a total of 8 speeding tickets in the last 4 years but none of them were over $500, none of them lead to an arrest or reckless driving, none of them were DUI or drugs related, all of them were just general speeding tickets that I got in 2 different states. So should I say "Yes" to the question which asks "If you have ever been arrested/cited...etc" and list all my traffic citations, I am concerned that by doing so and listing all 8 tickets can lead to a negative impression to my USCIS officer and ultimately a reason for denial to my N-400 application. OR should I say No to that "If you have ever been arrested/cited..etc" question and not list any of my traffic citation because I was never arrested and all my tickets were below $500 fine.

Thank you for all the help.
 
Last edited:
taimoor37 said:
Thank you for your reply. Honestly, I did not know about this 4 year and 1 day rule until your comment.
O.K. So what I understand is that I can't utilize the 90 days advance filing if I am using 4 year and 1 day rule, so in my case I'll have to wait till April 2015. Regarding the 4 year 1 day rule, do I need to be in the US for actual 4 year 1 day (meaning 4 x 365 + 1) or does it mean that I need to have a continuous residency for 4 year and 1 day (meaning I could have trips outside of the US which lasted less than 6 months and I can show proof of ties in the US for all these years).
Click to expand...

During the 4 years and 1 day period you must not have any other trips that would break continuous residence, otherwise such a trip would set off a whole new waiting period of 4 years and 1 day.

I personally recommend listing all traffic tickets, as minor tickets are not going to cause denial anyway, and listing them prevents you from being accused of hiding something if those tickets are discovered by USCIS (probably not the interview stage, where routine background checks typically exclude non-arrest traffic tickets, but possibly during deeper scrutiny such as the appeals process if you end up there).
 
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