My Travel Experience - RTD no Green Card

I have applied for a new Refugee Travel Document but my old one is not expired yet. I haven't applied for GC yet because I haven't been physically in the US for one year (I traveled for 60 days on multiple trips).

1- Can I still use my old RTD to travel ?
2- Did I have to send my old RTD to USCIS to get a new one? I still have it with me and it expires in May 2020.

Thanks!
 
Sanaz.1987 said:
Hi everyone,
I applied for my travel documents with the Green card. I have an emergency trip abroad, but it seems the center that is reviewing my application doesn't care about the letter that I attached to my application. Also, they denied my expedite request. Is there anyone here who knows any solution for it? Thank you in advance!
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You wait. Unfortunately there's nothing else you can do.
 
gtaid1 said:
I have applied for a new Refugee Travel Document but my old one is not expired yet. I haven't applied for GC yet because I haven't been physically in the US for one year (I traveled for 60 days on multiple trips).

1- Can I still use my old RTD to travel ?
2- Did I have to send my old RTD to USCIS to get a new one? I still have it with me and it expires in May 2020.

Thanks!
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No, you cannot use the old RTD. Yes, you were supposed to send the old one to get a new one. You'll have to wait either until USCIS requests the old one and wait until you get the new one. They could also simply reject the application because you didn't send the old RTD. If they do that, you could use the one you have now to travel and then wait to resubmit the application for the new one after your trip.

Also, you don't have to wait 60 days to meet the physical presence requirement. Apply as soon as you hit the one year anniversary. By the time they actually get to your application and adjudicate it, you'll have accrued the extra 60 days for the "physical presence."
 
zman44 said:
No, you cannot use the old RTD. Yes, you were supposed to send the old one to get a new one. You'll have to wait either until USCIS requests the old one and wait until you get the new one. They could also simply reject the application because you didn't send the old RTD. If they do that, you could use the one you have now to travel and then wait to resubmit the application for the new one after your trip.

Also, you don't have to wait 60 days to meet the physical presence requirement. Apply as soon as you hit the one year anniversary. By the time they actually get to your application and adjudicate it, you'll have accrued the extra 60 days for the "physical presence."
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Thanks for your answer. it's probably best to wait for the decision on new RTD before leaving the country, but I couldn't find anything related on USCIS website. How do you know this?
 
gtaid1 said:
Thanks for your answer. it's probably best to wait for the decision on new RTD before leaving the country, but I couldn't find anything related on USCIS website. How do you know this?
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There's nothing from USCIS on when the RTD becomes invalid. It will all depend on how they decide to process your application. If they accept it and decide to simply send you a letter asking for the old RTD, you risk being out of the country if the old RTD becomes invalid when they accept the application. Also, remember that by law, you HAVE to be present in the US when you apply for an RTD. If they reject the application, you know the old RTD is still valid and you can leave and come back and then apply again. It's just risky to leave right now until you hear back from them on what they want to do.
 
You don't necessarily need to send in the old RTD depending on when you applied. May is a bit far, so it's possible they will ask for it when they start processing it, but if they take a really long time and it expires by the time they start, they are unlikely to ask for it. When I applied for RTDs/RPs before, I wrote down 'set to expire' as the status, but didn't send them in. It was never an issue. I didn't use them in the meantime though, so I don't know when they cancel the old ones so zman44's suggestion that you don't travel is reasonable, unless it's just for a quick nip to Canada very soon. Closer to May, I wouldn't go anywhere until you get the new one. If, however, they start processing soon and your document doesn't expire for another 2-3 months, they might request the old one, delay the application until your current document expires, or reject.

What did you put down on your application?
 
cafeconleche said:
You don't necessarily need to send in the old RTD depending on when you applied. May is a bit far, so it's possible they will ask for it when they start processing it, but if they take a really long time and it expires by the time they start, they are unlikely to ask for it. When I applied for RTDs/RPs before, I wrote down 'set to expire' as the status, but didn't send them in. It was never an issue. I didn't use them in the meantime though, so I don't know when they cancel the old ones so zman44's suggestion that you don't travel is reasonable, unless it's just for a quick nip to Canada very soon. Closer to May, I wouldn't go anywhere until you get the new one. If, however, they start processing soon and your document doesn't expire for another 2-3 months, they might request the old one, delay the application until your current document expires, or reject.

What did you put down on your application?
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On the application, I wrote that I have the document with me but it's expiring. I also wrote that I will sent it 'upon request'. I actually wrote a letter and explaining all this with my application. So now I hope all I did was ok.
 
I have always submitted my old RTD with my application for a new. Either it was expiring, or I had no plans of further travel as most countries want a document expiring 3 months or 6 months after arrival. Be super careful what you do with the document when applying for a new one - technically, the document still belongs to USCIS, even if it is expired. So always a good idea to surrender the current document together with your application for a new one. Good luck.
 
one year validity for the RTD is not fair to be honest .in Canada RTD is valid for 2 years before permanent residency and 5 years after getting permanent residency. and i do not think it will be changed during this administration.
 
Well, passports also belong to the government, but you get to keep them. There is no issue per se in holding on to such documents once they are expired.
 
cafeconleche said:
Well, passports also belong to the government, but you get to keep them. There is no issue per se in holding on to such documents once they are expired.
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Fair assessment. The issue here is that, USCIS can block issuing another RTD until you give them the old one, or give them a police report saying it was lost, etc. The point here is that, if you don't want delays in the processing of your RTD, better to surrender it to therm. Of course, if delays in your application are OK to you, then yep...you can keep it. As for me, my motto is to never give USCIS an excuse to delay my application - that has served me well over the years.
 
If my Green Card application is still pending and I have refugee travel document, can I travel with my RTD or do I still need Advance Parole?
 
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