Husband GC Holder and Visitor Visa for Spouse (that is, GC or No GC)

A

AJD

Registered Users (C)
GC or No GC - Here is the dilemma,

I obtained GC through employment. My wife had been traveling on H4/AP until I got GC. My wife now wants to stay in India and work while I continue to do contracting work in US. We decided to opt this until the economy in US improves.

I work on 1099 corp-to-corp and take up assignments which last anywhere from few weeks to few months. (I started this after I got laid off from a permanent job). When I do not have assignments I am with my wife in India. I do not want to take up a permanent job as the contracting job gives me flexibility to go to India and remain there for some time. By visiting, staying and working in US I easily fulfill requirement for maintaining GC. However, my wife does not want the headache of visiting US to maintain GC. She has GC approval letter but does not want to travel to US and waste the money in the air. Instead, I have decided to travel back to India frequently when I am off projects (on bench). This gives more leisure time for me in India and the money to maintain myself in US and India.

Q.1 Is it possible that my wife can get a visitor visa in future? (say down the road 2 or 3 years from now?).

Q.2 . Eventually, I will be able to get citizenship (after completing 5 years) and can sponsor my wife, but having a visit visa (multiple entry) will avoid the mandatory travel that she has to make every year.

Is it possible for a former GC holder (or a person who had applied for GC) to get a visit visa?

Q.3 Will she be able to get a visit visa if I have a strong presence in US?

Q.4. We have an option of getting GC and using Re-entry permit but that can hold only for 2 years. We need a solution flexibility to travel to US and not a mandate to maintain GC) in the interim until I get citizenship. So is there any other alternative?

Q.5 Will taking GC now will help her to get visit visa in future (assuming her GC will be revoked for longer stay in future) or not taking a GC will help her get a visit visa? That is to take GC or No GC?

I am sure there are lots of people here who would find this situation odd but hey you never know, not everyone is in same boat and there are some people who have exceptions like me.

Thanking you in advance for your kind reply.
 
Thanks to Joe.

Is there anyone out there who could give some clue and possible solution?
 
If you can sustain that model for 5 years, then after 5 years apply for citizenship and sponsor her on family grounds then.
 
eltoro,

As mentioned, this model needs to be continued for 5 years ( may be 6 as obtaining Ctizenship takes a year).

The benefits that I am looking at,

- Money spent on maintaining GC (travel to US every year) is saved. For my wife, GC is liability than an asset.
- I get to spend more time with family (when I am off projects)
- I get to maintain GC and eventually get citizenship
- My expenses are cut down as I stay single in US

Q.1 Is there any factor that I am overlooking?

Q.2 Is there any interim solution until I get Citizenship?( That is is there a way for wife to travel to US during this period?). I am just taking into account the possibility where I get more involved in a long term projects and she needs to spend her vacation in US with me.

Thanks in advance to those who post reply.
 
eltoro said:
If you can sustain that model for 5 years, then after 5 years apply for citizenship and sponsor her on family grounds then.
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What would be end result. Even then she would be getting a GC not a Citizenship.
 
alren

Thank you for giving more input into the this thought process. Yes, you are right, how long would we need to do this? The answer is 5 to 6 years but then after that she gets GC (by family sposorship) and for some reason she is not able to maintain it, it would be revoked but see I could apply her easily and get that reinstated. But now, if the GC is revoked, the reinstation is not under my control as I need to be a citizen to apply her.

We are trying to ride this wave of downturn in economy in US and hopefully we would not have to do this for a long time. And even if I have to do it for longer than 5 years, I would take citizenship and depart to India for an indefinite period. It is easy to maintain a citizenship by staying abroad than maintaing a GC.
 
After you get your citizenship you apply for her GC. Once she gets it she would need to reside only 3 years (continuously, though) in the US in order to be able to apply for citizenship herself. After she gets her citizenship you all can move wherever you want.
 
eltoro

Thank you for your input. Sure having citizenship for both of us would end up the problems that we have now. We discussed the worst case scenario and I am sure we would be better off than the situation that we discussed.

Are there any issues with maintaining Citizenship other than filing taxes? Is it too difficult to maintain like GC?
 
You don't have to maintain your citizenship :) You cannot lose your citizenship over not filing taxes. You might be prosecuted and fined/arrested, but your citizenship is safe. You would have to commit much more serious crime (like spying, terrorism etc.) to actually have a chance of a citizenship being taken away from you.
 
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