Lost Green Card. Please Help!!!

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bumble_bee

Registered Users (C)
Hi,

I have a close relative who needs help urgently. He is 17 and he and his family (mother and siblings) lost their GreenCard along with all paperwork. Their father left them and took everything with him and apparently destroyed all legal papers. It's been years and these kids are about to get to college and can't do anything without proper documentation of their legal status in the US. The only thing they have is their passport which has the red seal (I-551) from USCIS when they were approved for their GC. Is there anyway they can apply for a replacement GC just with that? What forms do they need? They don't even have copies of the GC or anything else of that matter.

I would really appreciate any help.

Thanks in advance,
bumble_bee
 
I think they can apply for the GC replacements with a copy of the passport page showing the I-551 stamp. Why did they wait so long? Once they apply for the replacement, they can make an Infopass appointment at their local CIS office to get a new stamp as temporary proof of permanent residency by showing their application for a replacement GC.
 
Thank you guys. I'll ask them to file for a replacement card. @ cafeconleche: To answer your question, their mother is in mentally unstable condition. The older kid is now taking charge of things. They didn't ask for any help all this time, until now that he's looking for jobs and applying to colleges he figured out he needs his GC to work or to apply for in-state tuition.
 
Do they all have unrestricted Social Security Cards? They cah show those and a state ID to prove eligibility for employment. But, they should STILL apply for their GC, and maybe even apply for citizenship. Are they eligible yet?
 
bumble_bee said:
The only thing they have is their passport which has the red seal (I-551) from USCIS when they were approved for their GC. Is there anyway they can apply for a replacement GC just with that?
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Is the passport expired or not? And is the A-number shown on the page with the I-551 (or anywhere else in the passport)? If it is unexpired and the A-number is there (or if they know their A-number from memory or other sources), obtaining the replacement GC should be easy. Otherwise they may need to take some more steps.

Do they have a school ID?

I hope they've reported the runaway father. He probably owes them thousands of dollars in child support by now, and the government will arrest him and make him pay if the kids report him and the cops or Child Services can find him. The arrest may also result in getting back some of the documents (if he hasn't actually destroyed them yet).
 
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I'm not sure if they have their A numbers or school ids, but I will ask. Their passports are all expired. They have applied for renewal of their passports and will be getting them this week. The kids are all under 17. Can they get citizenship if the mother applies for N400 and gets her citizenship? I don't know what the policy is for children under 18. The father went back to his home country and so there's no possibility that he's coming to help them with anything. I wish we could help them by getting the father to pay for child support. They are in debts and have been on social services for years since the mother is in unstable condition herself. Ppl from social services wanted the kids to go to foster homes and put the mother into mental rehab, but the judge went for the kids favor and gave the mother another chance. We want to help them to get their things together. I appreciate everyones help.

Thanks again,
bumble_bee
 
@ cafeconleche: Not sure if they have unrestricted Social Security card, but as far as I know they have SSN but they don't remember the numbers. So in order for them to get SSN back they need their passport renewed, which is in progress right now. They are eligible by now, as far as I know they came over 7 yrs ago with DV lottery (so basically they got the GC few weeks after they enter US).
 
bumble_bee said:
I'm not sure if they have their A numbers or school ids, but I will ask. Their passports are all expired. They have applied for renewal of their passports and will be getting them this week. The kids are all under 17. Can they get citizenship if the mother applies for N400 and gets her citizenship?
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Yes, if she obtains citizenship before they turn 18. But they'll still need their green cards to apply for proof of their derived citizenship (i.e. obtaining a US passport or citizenship certificate for themselves).

I don't know what the policy is for children under 18.
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They cannot apply for citizenship on their own, as they have to be 18 for that.
The father went back to his home country and so there's no possibility that he's coming to help them with anything.
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He should still be reported, as he could be back in the US and they don't know. Or he may still have assets like a bank account in the US, which could be seized by the government. Or he could get arrested the next time he tries to enter the US, if the government knows about how he ran away like that.

You said they are renewing their passports ... did they have to submit the old passport which had the I-551 stamp? Will the embassy return the old passport? That old I-551 stamp is very important for them to get a replacement GC.
 
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You said they are renewing their passports ... did they have to submit the old passport which had the I-551 stamp? Will the embassy return the old passport? That old I-551 stamp is very important for them to get a replacement GC.
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That's a good point. I will remind them to get the old passport from the embassy. Thank you guys for all the information. Appreciate it!

Thanks!
 
You know, since I'm talking to guys already about this issue I was wondering if you could help me with another question. I just applied for citizenship. I was wondering if it's common to go for walk-in FP instead of the the scheduled day. I see that in the signatures of a lot of members here. Does that make any changes to the interview date? How long after the FP do they usually call for interview?

Thanks again,
bumble_bee
 
I just did a walk-in FP today! The security guard said it was fine when I was beginning to explain why I was there 3 weeks early, and the woman taking my fingerprints asked me why I was so early, so I said I was starting a new job soon and I wouldn't have much time :) It was so fast. Fill in the form quickly, as that's what determines your number in the queue. I don't know if it'll move my application faster, though.
 
bumble_bee said:
You know, since I'm talking to guys already about this issue I was wondering if you could help me with another question. I just applied for citizenship. I was wondering if it's common to go for walk-in FP instead of the the scheduled day. I see that in the signatures of a lot of members here. Does that make any changes to the interview date? How long after the FP do they usually call for interview?
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Normally the interview date is somewhere between 6 weeks and 6 months after the FP.

I don't know if an early walk-in FP would result in an earlier interview date, but if it does that, it could be counterproductive if it results in an interview before your 5-year GC anniversary. In a situation like that, they'll reschedule the interview or postpone the decision until some date after your 5-year GC anniversary, but that delay could be unpredictable, possibly resulting in you waiting for months without knowing what is going on.
 
I just did a walk-in FP today!
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Congratulations cafeconleche, on your FP. :)


I don't know if an early walk-in FP would result in an earlier interview date, but if it does that, it could be counterproductive if it results in an interview before your 5-year GC anniversary. In a situation like that, they'll reschedule the interview or postpone the decision until some date after your 5-year GC anniversary, but that delay could be unpredictable, possibly resulting in you waiting for months without knowing what is going on.
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This is what I'm worried about. I applied 50 days before the anniversary just so that I don't get an interview date before the anniversary. I was thinking if I went for a walk-in FP and they called me for an interview earlier than the 5 yrs GC anniversary date, that would overthrow the entire reason why I appllied 50 days earlier instead of 90 days. But then the question is, why would ppl go for an early FP (unless it's something unavoidable like in cafeconleche's situation)? I guess if a early FP doesn't change the interview date then there's one advantage of doing it early and that is to make sure all the background checks (e.g. name check) are cleared and done before the interview date?
 
Some people are just anxious and want to get it over with, and they're not thinking about the consequences of having the interview too early.

Others have already passed the 5-year mark, so there is no issue of the interview being too early for them.
 
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