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Maybe it's best to just ask an immigration lawyer but I wondered what the forum thought about our situation.
Our situation is the following:
- Both my wife and myself have had the green card for almost 4 years now already (Oct 2016).
- In Aug, we decided to travel to South Korea as life is more business as usual over there
- I have the ability to keep working remotely for my company in the US, and have done so since then
- My wife doesn't work anyway
We initially took a ticket for a 1 month R/T, but then, given the news that the NY office for my company was not going to open, and COVID, we decided to keep delaying the return. Now I have delayed the return to end of January.
When we return this time to NYC, we would have been out of the country for 169 consecutive days. I understand this is still below the 180 days, and I have had 8 days of additional travel for work in 2020. So that would make it a total of 177 days, of which 146 would be in 2020 and 31 in 2021.
I also understand that if we want to be on the safe side, since neither of us applied for a reentry permit, we have to prove that we did not abandon our ties in the US, by showing:
- A proof of our long term lease
- Bank account activity
- Credit cards
- US employment status
- Valid DMV ID or driving license
- A R/T ticket
- etc...
1/ Is the above correct in your opinion?
Now COVID is still very active in NYC and my company has already announced that we are not opening up until end of June 2021.
Given that, and given the fact that any trip to NYC from abroad triggers a 2 weeks quarantine, I was wondering if it was alright to do the 2 weeks quarantine, and then after a week or so, fly back to Korea. Effectively, that would be from the 3rd week of Feb to end of June. That's effectively 134 days. After that, I think companies will ask us to be back in the office for good now.
2/ Would that sequence be considered a break in continuous residence, even though each trip is below 180 days (6 months)?
3/ Finally, would any of that impact my ability to request for the citizenship next year (physical test)? I have done some analysis and so far, I've had 419 days out of the country (for work and leisure) in the last 5 years. If I include the 134 days, it makes it 553 days or 18.5 months.
If I only count starting the 5 years before the Oct 2021 date (5th year anniversary), that means that it would be only 340 + 131 = 471 days or 16 months abroad out of 60 months. I have the feeling this shouldn't be a problem for the 30 months tests, but I wonder if I am missing something, or not.
Maybe it's best to just ask an immigration lawyer but I wondered what the forum thought about our situation.
Our situation is the following:
- Both my wife and myself have had the green card for almost 4 years now already (Oct 2016).
- In Aug, we decided to travel to South Korea as life is more business as usual over there
- I have the ability to keep working remotely for my company in the US, and have done so since then
- My wife doesn't work anyway
We initially took a ticket for a 1 month R/T, but then, given the news that the NY office for my company was not going to open, and COVID, we decided to keep delaying the return. Now I have delayed the return to end of January.
When we return this time to NYC, we would have been out of the country for 169 consecutive days. I understand this is still below the 180 days, and I have had 8 days of additional travel for work in 2020. So that would make it a total of 177 days, of which 146 would be in 2020 and 31 in 2021.
I also understand that if we want to be on the safe side, since neither of us applied for a reentry permit, we have to prove that we did not abandon our ties in the US, by showing:
- A proof of our long term lease
- Bank account activity
- Credit cards
- US employment status
- Valid DMV ID or driving license
- A R/T ticket
- etc...
1/ Is the above correct in your opinion?
Now COVID is still very active in NYC and my company has already announced that we are not opening up until end of June 2021.
Given that, and given the fact that any trip to NYC from abroad triggers a 2 weeks quarantine, I was wondering if it was alright to do the 2 weeks quarantine, and then after a week or so, fly back to Korea. Effectively, that would be from the 3rd week of Feb to end of June. That's effectively 134 days. After that, I think companies will ask us to be back in the office for good now.
2/ Would that sequence be considered a break in continuous residence, even though each trip is below 180 days (6 months)?
3/ Finally, would any of that impact my ability to request for the citizenship next year (physical test)? I have done some analysis and so far, I've had 419 days out of the country (for work and leisure) in the last 5 years. If I include the 134 days, it makes it 553 days or 18.5 months.
If I only count starting the 5 years before the Oct 2021 date (5th year anniversary), that means that it would be only 340 + 131 = 471 days or 16 months abroad out of 60 months. I have the feeling this shouldn't be a problem for the 30 months tests, but I wonder if I am missing something, or not.
Thank you!
Have you looked on the USCIS website? There should be clear guidelines about your situation. Also, given COVID, there are probably exceptions made now. You don't need an immigration attorney to get basic info (BTW, many attorneys claim they are immigration attorneys and don't know jack about USCIS rules/regulations.) Call a local USCIS office and start there.
Maybe it's best to just ask an immigration lawyer but I wondered what the forum thought about our situation.
Our situation is the following:
- Both my wife and myself have had the green card for almost 4 years now already (Oct 2016).
Okay, so we have established that your green card is not based on a relationship to a US citizen spouse.
Your eligibility is 5 years. With a US citizen spouse it would be 3 years.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gasolin
2/ Would that sequence be considered a break in continuous residence, even though each trip is below 180 days (6 months)?
No. It's 180 consecutive days.
It is viewed in terms of a single absence, not total accumulative absences. Having said that, there are instances when excessive trips outside the US for periods of less than 6 months can "reset the clock" so that you have to start over with a new 5-year period.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gasolin
3/ Finally, would any of that impact my ability to request for the citizenship next year (physical test)? I have done some analysis and so far, I've had 419 days out of the country (for work and leisure) in the last 5 years. If I include the 134 days, it makes it 553 days or 18.5 months.
No, but I'm basing that on some assumptions.
For example, I'm assuming you can prove you did not abandon your residence.
Why did you not get a re-entry permit? That was totally stupid. Do not ever leave the US again without a re-entry permit regardless of the length of time you'll be out.
If you were waking across the street to get some kim-chee and got hit by a taxi and spent 8 months in hospital, you'd be history.
Don't ever leave without a re-entry permit. That's especially true for H-1B visas. You get an H-1B for a 3-year project, it ends after 1 year, you get a re-entry visa and leave the US for a year it tolls the time period. Then you come back to the US and work 2 years because the 1 year you were gone isn't charged against the 3-year time period (before you have to re-apply).
Anyway, I understand the concepts of physical presence and continuous residency are difficult for people to understand.
The best way to explain this is that you (because your spouse is a non-citizen) are eligible for citizenship at 60 months and you require 30 months of physical presence (instead of 18 months because your spouse is a non-citizen) and no single absence greater than 6 months. You have had continuous residency from the date you were issued your green card, because you never abandoned your residence and you were never outside the US for a continuous period of 6 months or longer.
60 - 18.5 = 41.5 which is greater than 30 months. You have 11.5 months to spare.
In my opinion, under the current pandemic conditions here and abroad, leaving the US for any reason before your date of eligibility is an unwarranted risk that could jeopardize not only you ability to apply for citizenship but your lawful permanent residence status as well.
Do not pay any online companies for "application kits." You can download the forms for free.
The forms can be intimidating, so sometimes it's worth it to have an attorney do it. That's especially true if you intend to bring over family members once you're naturalized. They'll file a Form G-28 Notice of Appearance and the Form N-400 for naturalization.
Okay, so we have established that your green card is not based on a relationship to a US citizen spouse.
Your eligibility is 5 years. With a US citizen spouse it would be 3 years.
No. It's 180 consecutive days.
It is viewed in terms of a single absence, not total accumulative absences. Having said that, there are instances when excessive trips outside the US for periods of less than 6 months can "reset the clock" so that you have to start over with a new 5-year period.
No, but I'm basing that on some assumptions.
For example, I'm assuming you can prove you did not abandon your residence.
Why did you not get a re-entry permit? That was totally stupid. Do not ever leave the US again without a re-entry permit regardless of the length of time you'll be out.
If you were waking across the street to get some kim-chee and got hit by a taxi and spent 8 months in hospital, you'd be history.
Don't ever leave without a re-entry permit. That's especially true for H-1B visas. You get an H-1B for a 3-year project, it ends after 1 year, you get a re-entry visa and leave the US for a year it tolls the time period. Then you come back to the US and work 2 years because the 1 year you were gone isn't charged against the 3-year time period (before you have to re-apply).
Anyway, I understand the concepts of physical presence and continuous residency are difficult for people to understand.
The best way to explain this is that you (because your spouse is a non-citizen) are eligible for citizenship at 60 months and you require 30 months of physical presence (instead of 18 months because your spouse is a non-citizen) and no single absence greater than 6 months. You have had continuous residency from the date you were issued your green card, because you never abandoned your residence and you were never outside the US for a continuous period of 6 months or longer.
60 - 18.5 = 41.5 which is greater than 30 months. You have 11.5 months to spare.
In my opinion, under the current pandemic conditions here and abroad, leaving the US for any reason before your date of eligibility is an unwarranted risk that could jeopardize not only you ability to apply for citizenship but your lawful permanent residence status as well.
Do not pay any online companies for "application kits." You can download the forms for free.
The forms can be intimidating, so sometimes it's worth it to have an attorney do it. That's especially true if you intend to bring over family members once you're naturalized. They'll file a Form G-28 Notice of Appearance and the Form N-400 for naturalization.
Lawful permanent residents can pretty much travel freely. And, believe it or not, USCIS is pretty forgiving of some lapses (for instance, you example of getting hit by a bus and being in the hospital for months) and would probably be particularly so during this 'challenging' time.
Also, word to the wise, once again.....If you are going to hire an 'immigration attorney,' make sure they actually have experience with immigrations forms and processes. Many that call themselves 'immigration attornies' don't. Trust me on this one.
For example, I'm assuming you can prove you did not abandon your residence.
Why did you not get a re-entry permit? That was totally stupid. Do not ever leave the US again without a re-entry permit regardless of the length of time you'll be out.
If you were waking across the street to get some kim-chee and got hit by a taxi and spent 8 months in hospital, you'd be history.
Don't ever leave without a re-entry permit. That's especially true for H-1B visas. You get an H-1B for a 3-year project, it ends after 1 year, you get a re-entry visa and leave the US for a year it tolls the time period. Then you come back to the US and work 2 years because the 1 year you were gone isn't charged against the 3-year time period (before you have to re-apply).
Anyway, I understand the concepts of physical presence and continuous residency are difficult for people to understand.
The best way to explain this is that you (because your spouse is a non-citizen) are eligible for citizenship at 60 months and you require 30 months of physical presence (instead of 18 months because your spouse is a non-citizen) and no single absence greater than 6 months. You have had continuous residency from the date you were issued your green card, because you never abandoned your residence and you were never outside the US for a continuous period of 6 months or longer.
60 - 18.5 = 41.5 which is greater than 30 months. You have 11.5 months to spare.
In my opinion, under the current pandemic conditions here and abroad, leaving the US for any reason before your date of eligibility is an unwarranted risk that could jeopardize not only you ability to apply for citizenship but your lawful permanent residence status as well.
Do not pay any online companies for "application kits." You can download the forms for free.
The forms can be intimidating, so sometimes it's worth it to have an attorney do it. That's especially true if you intend to bring over family members once you're naturalized. They'll file a Form G-28 Notice of Appearance and the Form N-400 for naturalization.
Thank you for the detailed answer. It is true that I did not think about not returning for that long, but yes, I keep all my ties to the US: still paying our rent for the apt as it's a long term rent, still employed by a US company HQ in NY and working remotely for it, still paying credit cards and all utilities' bills, etc... and of course, I will file my taxes in Jan as a resident.
If it were not for the pandemic, the only reason for me to travel would either be for work (as I travel massively for work, but they are usually short trips, day trips or a few days maximum) or vacation.
In hindsight of course, we should have requested a reentry permit.
Instead, I'll try to not get hit by a bus when I go get some kimchi .
Lawful permanent residents can pretty much travel freely. And, believe it or not, USCIS is pretty forgiving of some lapses (for instance, you example of getting hit by a bus and being in the hospital for months) and would probably be particularly so during this 'challenging' time.
Also, word to the wise, once again.....If you are going to hire an 'immigration attorney,' make sure they actually have experience with immigrations forms and processes. Many that call themselves 'immigration attornies' don't. Trust me on this one.
Thank you, I was just going to ask an opinion for the immigration attorney, but that's about it. I do know many people who have just requested the naturalization process themselves and have done well, so I do not foresee any particular difficulty.
Just an update on my side: with 4.5 months abroad, there wasn't any question asked to us beyond just "How long?" and "What was the purpose of the trip". So all good.
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