How can I maintain my green card while performing brief visits to USA

A

Aarthi85

Registered Users (C)
Hi,

My name is Aarthi and I am a (Female) Legal Permanent Resident (Green Card Holder). I was given the green card in 2004 after my uncle filed petition for my family under Category-4 of family based immigration.

By the time of award of permanent residence, I was a student of 4-year
program in Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical Engineering) in India and
I preferred to complete my degree by obtaining Re-Entry Permit.
Later I got married to an Indian Citizen in 2006 and I applied for
I-130 for him in January 2007. After filing for my husband, I had to obtain
Re-entry permit second time to complete my Bachelor of Engineering.

During my last entry in USA (in May, 2009), (Port of Entry (PoE) was San Francisco) I had to face strict questioning from POE Inspectors who recorded my information in their computers. This information involved my degree completion date, Marriage dates etc.

I told them about my USA bank A/C, (pre-paid)Credit Card and the petition that I had filed for my husband to show my strong ties with USA. They advised me to visit my husband for shorter durations.

I stayed in USA for over two months but due to the high recession, I was unable to find a suitable job and before my savings were exhausted, I came back to India.

Currently, I work as a Junior Engineer at one of the fetilizer plants in India.

The I-130 that I filed for my husband was approved in May, 2009 and the priority date was given as 29- January, 2007. Considering the current visa bulletin and its progress, it seems that my husband may get immigrant visa within next two years.

I need your guidance on the following:

1- I want to preserve my permanent residence status (Green Card). I fear that I am at the risk of losing my permanent residence if I visit USA every year till my husband gets immigration; and since I could not find any job in USA I find it difficult to survive without the earning hands of my husband. Please suggest me what should I do to preserve my permanent residence and avoid questioning at the Port of Entry(POE).

Should I visit every six months to USA; but I would prefer
a solution with minimal expenditure in terms of Air Tickets ?

Regards,
Aarthi
 
In case it is not obvious, a permanent resident is supposed to permanently reside in the US. That is the sole purpose for which that immigration benefit is granted. If you would like "brief visits" to the US, there is something else better suited for that - a B visa.

Frankly, you are asking for advice on how best to abuse the system and make things more difficult for those who do not wish to game the system.
 
Every 6 months is better than once a year. Also, are you doing your taxes????
Physicist , you cant judge her. Her husband is coming in 2 years, in the meantime she can visit.
you've been a LPR for not even a year. she's been a resident since 2004.....if you understand what i am trying to show......
Each case or situation is different.
 
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GCman2005 said:
Every 6 months is better than once a year. Also, are you doing your taxes????
Physicist , you cant judge her. Her husband is coming in 2 years, in the meantime she can visit.
you've been a LPR for not even a year. she's been a resident since 2004.....if you understand what i am trying to show......
Each case or situation is different.
Click to expand...

Physicist is right actually, which has nothing to do with being a resident for year or 25 years. She's abusing a system and asking for advice how to do it better. To the OP, you CAN be asked at the port of entry. You can apply for Reentry Permit though, which will allow you to stay outside US for long period of time (I believe up to a year).
 
What do you want her to do, surrender the green card while she intend to come back in 2 years when her husband is approved....
Things are not that easy sometimes.
 
Hi,
Thanks very much to every one who replied to my question,
I am grateful to GCman2005, who understands my problem. To all others, I am a potential US Citizen and respect immigration laws and never think of abusing the system.

The immigration system is slightly harsh towards the permanent residents as they have to wait for over five years to get their spouses and minor children to USA.

I am prepared to leave my husband in India and stay with my minor child as a single mother in USA, but unfortunately, I could not get appropriate job during my previous stay due to the recession. I don't want to live on Jobless claim and want to lead an honorable American life. Thats why, I decided to go back to India and stay with my husband for a few months, (Which ofcourse is not an offence).

Will some kind soul advice me on whether, Can I apply for Re-entry permit again, I already have obtained it twice to complete my Engineering Degree.

Regards,
Aarthi
 
Aarthi85 said:
Hi,
Thanks very much to every one who replied to my question,
I am grateful to GCman2005, who understands my problem. To all others, I am a potential US Citizen and respect immigration laws and never think of abusing the system.

The immigration system is slightly harsh towards the permanent residents as they have to wait for over five years to get their spouses and minor children to USA.

I am prepared to leave my husband in India and stay with my minor child as a single mother in USA, but unfortunately, I could not get appropriate job during my previous stay due to the recession. I don't want to live on Jobless claim and want to lead an honorable American life. Thats why, I decided to go back to India and stay with my husband for a few months, (Which ofcourse is not an offence).

Will some kind soul advice me on whether, Can I apply for Re-entry permit again, I already have obtained it twice to complete my Engineering Degree.

Regards,
Aarthi
Click to expand...

Immigration is not harsh to minor children whose parents are permanent residents :D If your minor child is under 2 , he /she will get his/her green card as long as you can prove it's your child. It is also wise to register the child with the US consulate in your country. You should also be aware that the more you stay outside the US as a green card holder the longer it will be before you can apply for citizenship.
 
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I am a potential US Citizen and respect immigration laws and never think of abusing the system.
Click to expand...
what a joke... how much time did you spend in the US in the last 5 years? and if you respect US laws so much, why are you asking us how to break them better?
 
envision said:
Immigration is not harsh to minor children whose parents are permanent residents :D If your minor child is under 2 , he /she will get his/her green card as long as you can prove it's your child.
Click to expand...
Not so simple. To instantly obtain permanent resident status upon entry to the US, the child has to be brought to the US on her (the mother's) first trip to the US since birth. It seems like she has already been to the US since the birth, without taking the child.
 
Aarthi85 said:
I am prepared to leave my husband in India and stay with my minor child as a single mother in USA, but unfortunately, I could not get appropriate job during my previous stay due to the recession. I don't want to live on Jobless claim and want to lead an honorable American life.
Click to expand...
Taking unemployment benefits is not dishonorable, as long as you don't lie to obtain it. Your employer paid a percentage of each employee's paycheck into an unemployment fund, so that when you're unemployed that money is available to you. Take it if you're eligible, and don't worry about it being "dishonorable" (although at this point you may not be eligible due to the length of time spent outside the US and the length of time since you lost your job).
Will some kind soul advice me on whether, Can I apply for Re-entry permit again, I already have obtained it twice to complete my Engineering Degree.
Click to expand...
You can, but you have to return to the US to reapply, and it probably will be valid for only one year (if you have been outside the US for a total of more than 4 of the last 5 years, USCIS policy is to grant the next permit for just one year ... if they approve it). But a reentry permit does not completely relieve you of the need to show residential ties to the US; staying outside the US for another year is going to greatly hurt your chances of keeping the GC, whether you have a reentry permit or not.
 
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At this point, your green card is on life support in critical condition. In addition to your several long trips, you have increasingly entrenched your ties to India with a husband, child, and job there.

If you don't lose the GC the next time you return to the US, you'll almost surely lose it if you don't stay in the US for an extended time (at least 6 months, preferably a year) after your next entry. And make sure your next entry is in the near future. You need to be prepared to do whatever it takes (legally, of course) to survive in the US for those 6-12 months, whether it means living with relatives (like those who filed for your green card), or living in a crappy apartment and working multiple part time jobs like waiting tables or working for a call center or in a coffee shop or being a substitute teacher. Be more flexible than looking for something in your field of study.
 
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At this point, quite frankly, the whole situation begs for the question, Why do you want to stay in the US?, let's see, in India: husband with job, family, child and a Job, in the US: no job, and so far low possibilities of getting one... the whole point of immigration is to improve one's life condition and it appears life has not been very kind to you while living in the US. Don't get me wrong, if you think you can make a better life here, by all means fight tooth and nails to keep the GC, but otherwise keep things in perspective, India is an emerging economy and it seems to me, it has excellent perspectives for technical careers like ChemE.
 
Unless you have worked in the US, you will not quialify for unemployment benefits.

Your GC sponsor has support obligastions. Check them out.

Taking a job outside the US can be construed to mean that you have abandoned your GC.

The US laws are as they are. at this time a 5 year wait for a GC is not bad in that there are tens, if not hundreds, of millions of people throughout the world that want but have no opportunity to obtain US legal permanent residency. If you do not like them, look elsewhere.
 
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