N-400 eligibility - physical presence and continous residency- complicated case

[optimism10]

I’ve been in the US for 12 years and had a green card for past 5 years (I was on a student and H1B visa before receiving my work sponsored green card). In June 2006 my US based company sends me temporarily to UK for an assignment. The company placed me on European payroll for 2 years; however I have never been out of the country more than 140 days (<6 months) and most of the trips were work related (for the US company).
Although I was out of country a lot, I will soon become eligible for applying for a passport.

I have the following question I hope someone can help you:
1. I will have exactly 30 out of 60 months on the day I send in my application. My US based company plans to send me to an assignment in UK a month or so after I apply. Do days after interview count against physical presence requirement? I will still be on the US payroll. I am also enrolled in MBA program in the US and will not be graduating before the interview. How many days is safe to leave, given that I only have minimum days required to apply and any other absences would bring my physical presence bellow this minimum requirement. (I am asking this because my cousin recently went for an interview and IO counted days out after fingerprinting and the interview as days out. Additionally a lawyer I contacted also suggested I do not leave).

2. Do partial days count as days present in the US. For example, if I have left the country the evening of March 1st and returned in the afternoon of March 3rd, how many days should I count as being out of the country – 1, 2 or 3?

Thank you so much for your help.
O

 

[Bobsmyth]

Physical presence requirement must only be met at time of application. Days spent outside of US during the process will count towards continuous residency requirement, but not physical presence.

Even if you haven't been out of the US for more than 140 days at a time, a back and forth travel pattern along with working outside the US without an approved N-470 will most likely disrupt your continuous residency requirement.

 

[cafeconleche]

Bobsmyth, physical presence must only be met until the time of the application, or until the end of the 5 years for which you are being considered? So after that 5 year mark, physical presence really doesn't apply?

 

[Bobsmyth]

Bobsmyth, physical presence must only be met until the time of the application, or until the end of the 5 years for which you are being considered? So after that 5 year mark, physical presence really doesn't apply?

If applying under 5 year rule, an applicant must have at least 30 months of physical presence during the last 5 years at the time of submitting application.

 

[Jackolantern]

How many days is safe to leave, given that I only have minimum days required to apply and any other absences would bring my physical presence bellow this minimum requirement. (I am asking this because my cousin recently went for an interview and IO counted days out after fingerprinting and the interview as days out. Additionally a lawyer I contacted also suggested I do not leave).

If you met the physical presence requirement on the day you applied, traveling after that doesn't affect your physical presence requirement. However, travel after applying is counted against your continuous residence requirement. Your extensive travel in the past is already very damaging to your continuous residence; taking long trips during the process will make it even worse.

It is a common misconception that they only care about whether your longest trip is over 6 months. But the reality is that they look at the entire picture of your travel history and your ties to the US (e.g. did you maintain a house or apartment in the US, did your spouse and minor children stay in the US while you were gone, did you file US taxes, etc.), not just the length of an individual trip.