Maintaining green card status

S

ssbaf

New Member
Hi, I attained my PR through marriage to a US Citizen on 6/19/2009 and the card expired in 9/27/21. During the period of year 2009 and 2014, I have been traveling to my home country, Singapore for a few months but not more than 6 months. My mom was very ill and I had to return to Singapore in August 2014. I applied for the Re-entry Permit for 2 years away from the US. It was issued on 7/30/2014 and expired on 7/29/2016. I am currently now in Singapore and will return to the states in June for a month. After that, I am returning to Singapore again. My husband has been traveling back and forth the US and Singapore to visit. However, my mom is still very ill and I might have to continue to stay in Singapore for 2 more years. I have a few questions to help me make a decision whether to maintain status.



1. Do I have to give up my green card after my re-entry permit expired?

2. Can i extend my re-entry permit?

2. If I give up my green card, will my husband be able to apply a green card for me again?

3. Can I apply for US citizenship now?
 
1. No. You just can't use the re-entry permit to enter. Without the re-entry permit, you can still re-enter for absences of up to 1 year (and sometimes CBP will still let you in with longer absences).
2. No. But you can apply for a new one any time you are in the U.S.
3. Yes, but as you know the process takes a lot of time and money
4. It's unclear from the information you've given. You could potentially qualify under either the 5-year rule or the 3-year rule. Under the 5-year rule, you need to have continuous residence for the last 5 years, and be physically present in the U.S. for 30 months out of the last 5 years. Under the 3-year rule, you need to have continuous residence for the last 3 years, and be physically present in the U.S. for 18 months out of the last 3 years. Continuous residence is usually broken by an absence of 6 months; you said you hadn't been out for 6 months during 2009-2014, but what about recently? You didn't say how long you've been out now; if you've been out for more than 6 months, it's possible you have broken continuous residence, but for absences of between 6 months and 1 year, it's possible to show that you've not broken continuous residence. For physical presence, it's also not clear that you have enough, because we don't have the dates you were away.
 
As a practical matter, it is extremely unwieldy to apply for citizenship if you're not in the US. You will have to fly back and forth for biometrics and interviews, and your recent travel history will be scrutinized leading to all sorts of awkward questions. Fortunately, the application process only takes a few months. If you can spare those months, and if you otherwise qualify, I'd say go for it.
 
Thank you for all the suggestions. I will probably apply for another re-entry permit next year.
 
Hi ssbaf, regarding reentry permits, it's really easy to get the first one and to get a second one after that, but once you apply for your third or subsequent reentry permit, they start scrutinizing your application pretty hard to determine if you've abandoned your US residency.
 
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