Rentry Permit

L

lively

Registered Users (C)
My Interview is next month. Does anyone has any experience with the rentry permits.

I went out of country for more than two years but with a rentry permit. I renentered united states within the specified dates on the rentry permit. Can it cause any problems at my interview as I was away for more than two years in a stretch.

Also in one of my other trips I was away for 20 months but again with a reentry permit. but the immigration officer at that time kept the reentry permit and now I do not have a copy of permit. Will it effect in any way. I tried getting the copy through FOIA but they do not have any records.
 
i personallty thought that re-entry permits could not be for longer than 2 years at most. Would be interested if someone could clarify that.


Assuming you stayed within the obligations of the permit then you should not have a problem as you have done nothing wrong.

I assume you are familiar with the residency requirements as regards number of days in the US before you are eligible to receive citzenship - " continuous residency " etc If the two years out was recent then you probably dont meet these requirements
/regards
 
I handed my re-entry permit to the officer along with my current and expired passports. He glanced thru the passports without paying any real attention. He didn't even bother to look at the re-entry permit saying that he didn't need it.
 
Is it possible to apply for citizenship even after getting the re-entry permit and staying outside US for 2 years.Please clarify.
Do we just have to fulfill the 30 months stay in US in the 5 years time period after the GC to apply for the citizenship.I will be interested in knowing this.Please clarify. Thanks
 
Guys, I really hate to disappoint anyone, but it seems the law specifically states that more than 1 year's unbroken absence from the country (you didn't return to the US even for a day) specifically breaks continuous residence, regardless of reentry permit. In fact I believe the reentry permit states that it is not valid for preservation of residence for naturalization purposes. I believe there are some minor exceptions to this - you would need to consult the appropriate statute - but I seem to recall that the exceptions are pretty stringent. There is also a way to preserve residence in some situations by filing a form with the USCIS before leaving the US. These situations include religious workers, promoting US commercial interests abroad, etc. But this filing (form N-470 I believe) has to be done and approved BEFORE departing. After one returns after a 1yr+ absence, I think the applicant is eligible to apply after 4 years plus 1 day and would have to satisfy the 30 months physical presence in the 5 yrs prior to application.

For your specific case, I would recommend to take as much proof of ties with the US as you can. Tax returns filed as resident, proofs of assets in the US, proofs of immediate family residing in the US, proofs of memberships in organizations or in community services, anything you can think of. Good luck.
 
Ties with US

My two long trips outside US are long time ago and they do not interfere with the my five year continous stay. It is long and one big chunk since 2000.

but, when I was away 97-99 and 99-2000.it was for my education & my sisters education and our whole family took the re-entry permits and we stayed in India for upto two years two times but came back before they expired. The problem is, I dont have much to show for, as far showing ties with the united states except bank statments from that period, will they be sufficient.Also I don't have my old passport anymore prior to 97, I mean.

We did not keep any house or apartment etc in US.

Please Advise
 
Last edited by a moderator:
lively said:
My two long trips outside US are long time ago and they do not interfere with the my five year continous stay. It is long and one big chunk since 99.
Click to expand...

I doubt the USCIS would ask about absences prior to the five years statutory period to become eligible for naturalization. In fact, since you only have to specify in the form N400 any trips in the five years prior to application, I don't even see how the issue would come up.

If the issue does come up, I think a logical argument to prove that you had two reentry permits and not just the one you have in your posession currently is that in order to legally enter the US after a 1+ year absence you had to have either a reentry permit or a returning resident visa. So in your case if you take the first possibility of this line of argument, it just proves your story that you had the reentry permit. The other possibility is that you applied for and was granted a returning resident visa which means the government at the time considered the facts of your case and determined that you have not abandoned residence. The fact that you were able to be admitted after a 1+ year absence implies that you have not abandoned residence at that time.

Also, a very important residence test is the filing of Federal tax returns as a resident. If you had not filed tax returns because you considered yourself a non-resident or filed them as a non-resident, there could be a problem and I would consult an attorney before you go. However in your case I suspect you may not have filed returns for lack of taxable income (you were a student) which I think is a valid enough reason and is corroborated by your age and student status.

I think you should go to your interview with confidence. I doubt the issue will come up. If it does, I think you can tell your story and the fact that you had the reentry permits for your absences. If they ask for evidence, you would tell them that you only have one permit as the other was taken away. If they ask for more, you can ask them what they need and hire a lawyer in the worst case.
 
Thank You Guys

Thank You Guys for your opinion.

I will post my experience in the interview. I hope everything goes fine.

If anyone has any other suggestions than please let me know.
 
Clarification!

Hello!

I'm a new member and was reading this thread and I think my question is very much related. I'd really appreciate some kind of input to my questions. Thank you so much in advance.

I'm a permanent resident since Aug 2002. And I have been here since then with only one month of break in May/Jun 2005. I want to live in my home country for a little while but I want to get my US passport. I should be eligible in Aug 2007.

Can I go outside of the US and come back and apply for my citizenship in Aug 2007? I'm planning on making a trip before the 1 year is over to maintain my continuous residency. And one more trip when I come to apply for the citizenship. I can also maintain an address here in the US (my son's home address). But I won't be working here or back home cos of my health. Do you think I'm ok doing what I'm planning to do? I want to get my US passport though! Please please please someone let me know!

Thank you again!
 
hmmm...

Thank you for your response.

But I'm a little confused. My understanding is that I have to be in the US for 30 months physically in the 5 years preceding my application for US citizenship. I have already stayed here 40 months. And my eligibility is in Aug 2007 which is a little over 18 months (considering 90 day eligibility). So if I go now and come back in 2006 before 1 year and then stay for 3 months here and then again leave and come back in May of 2007 and then apply for my citizenship, is there going to be any problem?
 
I see...

...thank you again!

So how can I make this work? How can I show that I reside here in the US but stay for extended periods abroad?
 
You Cannot

sam78 said:
...thank you again!

So how can I make this work? How can I show that I reside here in the US but stay for extended periods abroad?
Click to expand...


I gues, you cannot and you should not live outside for extended periords, If you want to be american citizen period. Otherwise it is your choice.

However if you must leave to attend to something pressing and it is more important than your US citizenship than you may go and start counting time again from the day you come back. Also do not forget to take re-entry permit if you forsee your visit to last more than a year. Otherwise you will lose even permanant residence status, it is considered "abandoning the PR status". Also you must comeback within the time period allowed in re-entry permit. for visits less than once year but more than six months break the continous status but preserve the PR. And finally visits less than six months are not to be bothered about.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top