what is that 4+1 rule for Citizenship??

Quiet Simply the rule says,
4+1 = 5 :D :D :D


No what it means is that if you left the country (with a valid reentry permit) for over a year you have broken your Continious Residence Requirement (no single trip over 1 year).

However some credit is given for you and you can apply for Natz 4 years and 1 day after you return from the long overseas trip (assuming you have no furthur trips greater than 6 months)

I successfully applied under this rule.
 
Does this mean,

1. I get reentry permit, go and stay aborad for a year and come back.
2. Stay in US for 3 more years and
3. at the end of completion of 4 th year ( and a day) I can apply for citizenship.

Is it true?

If it is, then I can become citizens in 4years instead of 5 year wait. Am I interpreting something wrong here?
 
You must have gotten GC 5 years prior go Natz
If you stay abroad for 1 year or more and return and file after 4+1 then you hav already waited 5 years
 
I recieved my GC in June 1993 at the age of 10. My parents were divorced (joint custody or my sister and me) and I went to live with my father on June 23, 1999 in Bangladesh. I applied for re-entry permit prior to leaving and it was collected at the US Embassy Dhaka in December 1999. I returned to the US on June 12, 2000. I applied for naturalization in early July 2004 and recieved the reciept notice. I am hoping that I am eligible under the 4+1 rule.
 
bashar82 said:
I recieved my GC in June 1993 at the age of 10. My parents were divorced (joint custody or my sister and me) and I went to live with my father on June 23, 1999 in Bangladesh. I applied for re-entry permit prior to leaving and it was collected at the US Embassy Dhaka in December 1999. I returned to the US on June 12, 2000. I applied for naturalization in early July 2004 and recieved the reciept notice. I am hoping that I am eligible under the 4+1 rule.
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Hi,
According to the information that I have, you don't even need any 4+1 rule. Citizenship requirement is that after getting your green card you should have 30 months of stay in US before completing 5 years as Legal permanent Resident, any break of more than 6months doesn't count in the 30months of residency. You got your Legal Residency in 1993 and you left in 1999 so you already completed 30 months of residence in US, now you can apply for citizenship any time you want. Can you please keep your dates posted, like when u applied, when u got response, when interview etc.
Good Luck
 
I did not apply earlier as I was confused. My mother has not applied for naturalization though she has probably not even spent more than 90 days out of the country since June 1993 as she is involved in a family feud over land in Bangladesh and is afraid our relatives might use her foreign citizenship against her. My father spent several months abroad at a time due to his job and was therefore not eligible to apply. As I was a minor at the time, we did not think I could apply on my own and therefore waited until I was 18. Once I was 18 there were concerns about having spent a year outside of the country and we believed that I had lost "credit" for the previous six years of residence. Since returning in 2000 I probably spend about 6 weeks out of the country traveling when on break from college every year. I applied in July of this year and since I have not yet even recieved a fingerprint notice, I think that this will be a long wait.
 
JoeF

Does this mean, I can be out of the country for few months ( no more than 5 months at a stretch), maintain continuous residency for first 30 months, then stay in US continuously for 30 months. At the end of 30 months+ 30 months, that is , 5 years, will I be eligible to file citizenship?
 
AJD said:
JoeF

Does this mean, I can be out of the country for few months ( no more than 5 months at a stretch), maintain continuous residency for first 30 months, then stay in US continuously for 30 months. At the end of 30 months+ 30 months, that is , 5 years, will I be eligible to file citizenship?
Click to expand...

I wouldn't try that if I were you. My father was self-employed and promoted US exports (worth $20+ million per year) and as a result spent several months abroad at a time. On the advice of immigration officers he applied for the re-entry permit but on one trip he was judged to have abandoned his status even though he should proof of promoting US exports and tax returns.

Luckily my sister is an American citizen by birth and was able to sponsor him. While we wait for the processing, my father continues to do business without having to pay US taxes on his income!
 
Right before one of his trips, realized that his GC would expire when he was out of the country. The Norfolk office was closest to my college/apartment so he went there. He applied for his new card and explained the situation and they immediately processed his application and put the sticker extending the validity of the GC by one year. The officer also told him to apply for a re-entry permit just to be on the safe side since he spent a considerable amount of time out of the country and handed him the form. My father filled the form and mailed it off and requested that the re-entry permit be sent to the Embassy in Dhaka. My father traveled in and out of the States three times after that. After about nine months my father received the new GC and traveled on that twice. Then on his return he went past the immigration area but was stopped at customs. Then they claimed that he had abandoned his status and asked him sign a form saying that he as 'voluntarily' given up his GC. My father refused and they threatened him with detention. They then compromised and my father statement read something along the lines of "I have voluntarily given up my status as demanded by the officer". They also said that the re-entry permit was the wrong document. He was given two weeks to get everything ready before he had to leave. Due to business he had to be in Europe in three weeks time so he did not have time to appear before an immigration judge to regain his card. Our lawyer attempted to have it returned thru an internal administrative hearing. The panel sided with the officers decision. Then the lawyer mentioned two options: we head to court or just get my sister to sponsor him. After discussing the pro's and con's of both choices we decided to let my sister sponsor my father.
My father has asked me to join his business and I'd like to start traveling as soon as I graduate from college. I applied in July 04 for naturalization and hopefully everything will be completed by next summer. I'm afraid to leave before then as the same situation may apply to me.
Our lawyer says that the action was taken because of the heightened security. She said that they did not care much about this in the past unless you were applying for naturalization. As my father had been doing it for the past 10 years, we did not pay much attention to it either.
 
I haven't received my Greencard yet. I have an EAD, with 485 pending for more than 180 days.

Can I leave US, change the address to a friend's address in US, keep filing tax returns, but work in India until I get my GC, come for FP, stamping and GC, get the reentry permit and then leave again, for 2 years, and then come back, stay for 3 years, and then apply for citizenship ?
 
i also apply based on the rule 4+1,but my problem is that ididn't file tax return while abroad because i wasn't working;is that has any impact on my naturalization process?thanks
 
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