How does USCIS trace our travels?

[jasper789 0]

My first time here, so I apologize if my questions are old..

How does USCIS trace travels? How far out do they trace it? Somebody mentioned that a query is sent to CBP (Customs & Border Protection?). Does the CBP store the information whenever our GCs are sswiped at customs? They don't always swipe it when we leave the US, how would they know how long we have been away?

Are they interested in our travels 5 years before filing N400 or from the time we receive your greencard? Do we have to declare all travels for the past 10 years?

We have been traveling a lot in our first 5 years of being an LPR but have stayed put for the last 5 years (recently, our trips has been once a year for 3-4 weeks). Do you think USCIS will give us a hard time for that? Or the fact that we have stay put recently enough to convince them that have not abandoned?

The reason I'm asking is we stayed outside the US for over a year 8 years ago. We weren't so familiar with immigration laws so we simply got on a plane back to the US and resumed our lives as permanent residents. Upon our return, we weren't even asked about the long absence. I think the customs officer did not notice it because we traveled a lot during that one year. The last entry on our passports was our trip back to our original destination when we left the US a year ago. We were asked where we went, and we told the truth. We weren't asked how long we were away.

We took our chances and did not go through the proper channels. We thought we were able to get rid of a little inconvenience, but it is now haunting us.

Please advise us on how to proceed with our application. Should we declare that particular absence or should we just list down trips for the last 5 years? Our passports had since been renewed. But will CBP be able to retrieve our records through our GCs?

Edited July 14, 2008 by jasper789

[YuAndDan 153]

If you board a plane to leave the USA, most airlines report passenger manifest to homeland security.

What do you mean by stayed put? You mean you have been in the USA most of the time with trips out of the USA no more than 3-4 weeks in the past 5?

You need to only report ALL trips out of the USA since becoming LPR, what counts is the past 5 years, so the trip 8 years ago is not counted against the residency requirement.

You need to show residency in the USA of 30 months in the past 5 years.

http://www.uscis.gov/files/article/M-476.pdf