amyheartsjapan
New Member
In asking this on behalf of my mother-in-law. Here's the situation:
She was born in New Zealand and moved to USA on student visa in the 70s, married USA citizen and obtained green card by marriage or school, I'm not sure. Lived in USA with husband and their 4 kids for 30 years until 2009. Never thought to become a citizen because green card was "permanent". Shes a stay at home mom and in 2009, her husband gets a job in New Zealand (optometry in university) and they decide to move abroad temporarily. He always wanted to live in nz so the plan was to try it for two years. So its her, her husband and her two youngest kids. She went back to usa for weddings and holiday in 2010 and 2011 but on visitor visas. They stayed in New Zealand while kids finished high school and the job contract was extended. He's nearly retirement age so continued the job for a bit. Also she got on the waiting list for (women-related) surgery.
Now its 2013 and they want to move back to usa permanently asap but most likely mid-2014. Never sold house in usa, always rented in nz, kept usa drivers license, has a sister and two oldest children and 2 grandchildren in USA. Her nz passport has one stamp from 2011 and her green card is very old.
Should we bother with sb-1? It will be 5 years away from America by the time they go back, without considering the visitor visa trips. If it were up to her she would have been back earlier or never left at all.
She was born in New Zealand and moved to USA on student visa in the 70s, married USA citizen and obtained green card by marriage or school, I'm not sure. Lived in USA with husband and their 4 kids for 30 years until 2009. Never thought to become a citizen because green card was "permanent". Shes a stay at home mom and in 2009, her husband gets a job in New Zealand (optometry in university) and they decide to move abroad temporarily. He always wanted to live in nz so the plan was to try it for two years. So its her, her husband and her two youngest kids. She went back to usa for weddings and holiday in 2010 and 2011 but on visitor visas. They stayed in New Zealand while kids finished high school and the job contract was extended. He's nearly retirement age so continued the job for a bit. Also she got on the waiting list for (women-related) surgery.
Now its 2013 and they want to move back to usa permanently asap but most likely mid-2014. Never sold house in usa, always rented in nz, kept usa drivers license, has a sister and two oldest children and 2 grandchildren in USA. Her nz passport has one stamp from 2011 and her green card is very old.
Should we bother with sb-1? It will be 5 years away from America by the time they go back, without considering the visitor visa trips. If it were up to her she would have been back earlier or never left at all.