Long-term travel overseas with recently received GC!

[GC_TRAP]

Hello friends!

I know the standard duration/practice is to work for six months with the same employer after receiving the GC and then change jobs or quit. However, because of some family issues, I may have a requirement to leave the job/company after four (4) months of receiving my GC.

The travel time to home country will be about five months (150-160 days). I have friends who quit their jobs two days after receiving their GCs are now eligible for their citizenships. They claim it is really a gray area (six months period) because an EAD technically allows you to change jobs soon after six months of filing of I-485.

Regardless, I wanted to seek opinions on how safe it is to travel four months after a GC and be gone for less than 180 days and be able to safely return to the US. Has anybody done this before and run into problems at Port of Entry upon returning?

What arguments (personal/family in my case) can be made for this arrangement if one is grilled at PoE? I have a feeling that it will be okay but do want to hear other's thoughts and opinions on the matter.

Thanks!

 

[Jackolantern]

They usually don't grill green card holders at the PoE unless you left the US for more than 6 months. It is not like having a B1/H1/F1 visa where you are always viewed with suspicion at the PoE.

Your problem (if any) would be at the time of citizenship. Certainly, leaving the job after 4 months post-GC puts you in a better position than leaving after two days.

Do you have to actually quit? Couldn't you take an unpaid leave of absence and then come back to the same company?

If you can't get an unpaid leave of absence, get your company to give you an official letter saying that your leave of absence is denied. Then if you have trouble in your citizenship interview, provide that letter as supporting documentation that you didn't want to quit, but you were forced to quit because they refused to grant your leave of absence.

I have friends who quit their jobs two days after receiving their GCs are now eligible for their citizenships. They claim it is really a gray area (six months period) because an EAD technically allows you to change jobs soon after six months of filing of I-485.

It definitely is a grey area. Other members on this forum reported being hassled in their citizenship interview for leaving the employer too soon, with the interviewer even having to consult the supervisor about it, but they ultimately got approved. If USCIS notices a pattern of lots of people leaving their employers quickly, they might start to get less tolerant of it in the future, like what happened with labor substitution.

As far as citizenship is concerned, if this trip becomes multiple trips of five months each taken close together, that could break your continuous residence for citizenship purposes, as multiple trips like that tend to be viewed as one big long trip.

 

[GC_TRAP]

So, it is a matter of chance (or risk)...

Jack,

Thanks for your reply! I guess citizenship is not a huge concern right now and may or may not ever become one. I just may decide to keep my GC or renew it (or even abandon it over time) as the case may be.

What's funny is that the getting of the GC seems more symbolic than anything else after a wait of almost seven years. It's like, I have earned it, now if I relinquish it, or lose it, it doesn't matter. I have proven that I can get it...strange mind-set but that's exactly how I feel.

I agree with you that less than 180 days travel will probably not raise any questions or eyebrows.

As far as quitting, yes, there may not be any other option, as it is against the company policy to give more than three months off (FMLA), and that too only under exceptional circumstances. Besides, my requirement to travel overseas will warrant a stay of almost 5 months, not less. So, I think that option is off the table. Quitting the job/company is okay with me, as when (and if) I do return, I will want to find a new job in a different city as well.

Additionally, what's interesting is that I filed for an AP two days before I found out that my GC as approved. So before I leave, I will probably have an AP in my hand (I had mentioned on the application that I wanted to travel overseas for upto 30 days; as part of my annual vacation). I wonder if having that in my hand upon return will help, hurt my situation....

GC_TRAP

 

[ginnu]

Jack,

Thanks for your reply! I guess citizenship is not a huge concern right now and may or may not ever become one. I just may decide to keep my GC or renew it (or even abandon it over time) as the case may be.

What's funny is that the getting of the GC seems more symbolic than anything else after a wait of almost seven years. It's like, I have earned it, now if I relinquish it, or lose it, it doesn't matter. I have proven that I can get it...strange mind-set but that's exactly how I feel.

I agree with you that less than 180 days travel will probably not raise any questions or eyebrows.

As far as quitting, yes, there may not be any other option, as it is against the company policy to give more than three months off (FMLA), and that too only under exceptional circumstances. Besides, my requirement to travel overseas will warrant a stay of almost 5 months, not less. So, I think that option is off the table. Quitting the job/company is okay with me, as when (and if) I do return, I will want to find a new job in a different city as well.

Additionally, what's interesting is that I filed for an AP two days before I found out that my GC as approved. So before I leave, I will probably have an AP in my hand (I had mentioned on the application that I wanted to travel overseas for upto 30 days; as part of my annual vacation). I wonder if having that in my hand upon return will help, hurt my situation....

GC_TRAP

you got GC and after GC the they will not approve the AP it does not matter if you wrote 30 days on form 1-131

 

[Jackolantern]

you got GC and after GC the they will not approve the AP it does not matter if you wrote 30 days on form 1-131

Sometimes they are disorganized and approve a pending EAD or AP after approving the GC. But what you wrote about your travel plans on the AP is irrelevant at this point.