N-400 form - Question on Pt 7

[sukie175 0]

My question is:

I am filing based on 3-yrs marriage to US citizen and Permanent Residence.

I will have also been here 5yrs on Oct 16 2010.

Part 7 - Time spent outside the US, asks

A: How many total days did you spend outside the US during the past five years?

My query: does this mean I should count the days from March 2 (date of new application) to Oct 15 back in 2005, when I was still living in the UK permanently prior to my approval and move here?

The B. asks - How many trips of 24 hours or more have you taken outside the US in the past five years?

Same query again, does that count as a trip outside the US, even though my permanent residence was in the UK then? My instinct tells me the answer to this part B is 0, as it was not a trip?

But not at all sure what to put for Part A, number of days outside the US?

Part C is definitely 0, as I have not left the US since Oct 16 2005.

Help anybody????

Edited February 27, 2010 by sukie175

[v333k 59]

My question is:

I am filing based on 3-yrs marriage to US citizen and Permanent Residence.

I will have also been here 5yrs on Oct 16 2010.

Part 7 - Time spent outside the US, asks

A: How many total days did you spend outside the US during the past five years?

My query: does this mean I should count the days from March 2 (date of new application) to Oct 15 back in 2005, when I was still living in the UK permanently prior to my approval and move here?

The B. asks - How many trips of 24 hours or more have you taken outside the US in the past five years?

Same query again, does that count as a trip outside the US, even though my permanent residence was in the UK then? My instinct tells me the answer to this part B is 0, as it was not a trip?

But not at all sure what to put for Part A, number of days outside the US?

Part C is definitely 0, as I have not left the US since Oct 16 2005.

Help anybody????

First thing, you were not considered a US Permanent Resident until Oct 16, 2005 which is my assumption when you became a resident in the States. Therefore, no, you do not need to list trips or living in the UK prior to Oct 16 2005. Although you were in the process of adjusting your status to a permanent resident in the US, that does not qualify as a PR.

As for the number of trips, same logic applies. Only since you became a US resident. Nothing else counts.

These questions are there to establish continuous residence in the US. The rule is if you spent 6 months or more in total travel in the past 3 or 5 years, then you will have to calculate when you can start counting your eligibility for naturalization. They have a weird formula on the N-400 instructions pdf which you can take a look at if this applies to you.

There are two things to look at here, and you can be the only person to choose.

1. I am not sure if you should file on a 3 year marriage to a USC since you have clearly been a resident almost 5 years. Usually, this option is for people who are closing on their 3rd year residency anniversary and still married to a US citizen. This allows people to obtain naturalization prior to the other types of GC holders such as ones obtained through work, and other types which requires them to wait for 5 years. If you are planning on applying with the 5 year option, then you still have to wait until 90 days prior to your 5th year residence anniversary to do so.

2. If you apply with the 3 year rule, then you need to provide evidence (listed in the instructions and guides) of what to file with your application.

Edited February 27, 2010 by v333k

[sukie175 0]

Thanks for this reply, as it made me realise something!

I only became a Permanent Res in July 2006, when my Green Card was issued. So I will not reach 5 years until 2011 for the purposes of naturalization. Oct 16 2005 was the date I entered the USA to marry etc and you don't calculate from this date.

So I am right to apply as a Spouse of a US citizen for over 3 yrs, I will take another look at supporting evidence thanks.

[nigel 7]

Thanks for this reply, as it made me realise something!

I only became a Permanent Res in July 2006, when my Green Card was issued. So I will not reach 5 years until 2011 for the purposes of naturalization. Oct 16 2005 was the date I entered the USA to marry etc and you don't calculate from this date.

So I am right to apply as a Spouse of a US citizen for over 3 yrs, I will take another look at supporting evidence thanks.

You are a P.R from 2005/6 so if your still married to the same usc your good to apply....you only need 3 yrs not 5 to apply..

Whatever date is on your PR Card....make 3 yrs from that date....if married to a usc.. you also can apply 90 days before that 3 yrs also..

3 yr Rule.....being married to the same usc for 3 yrs,,,

had a P/R card for 3 yrs.....(look at the date on your card)

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

Ouch . . . my head hurts!

First of all, check your GC and what it says under "resident since." That's the magic date.

If you file 5 years later, list all trips since you became a LPR.

If you file 3 years later based on your marriage, list all trips since you became a LPR.

What happened before the magic date is completely, totally irrelevant. The 5 years/3 years statement is a hiccup created by the USCIS drones and none of them ever gave a rat's behind fixing it.

[ArchangelG 0]

So, if you will permit me to get this straight...

For Part 7, am I to assume correctly that the number of trips and total days spent outside of the U.S. during the past "five years" should correspond among Parts A, B, and C?

The reason I ask is that I initially thought A & B referred to five years but that part C was referring to since becoming a permanent resident (for my wife). My wife is about to file her N-400 and we want to make sure whether we should fill in the for the past 5 years or for the past 3 years when my wife became a permanent resident.

If it is meant for only after she became a permanent resident, then I should not care about the trips longer than 3 years ago but within the "5 years" as requested... correct?

Any clarification would be helpful.

Thank you!

[v333k 59]

So, if you will permit me to get this straight...

For Part 7, am I to assume correctly that the number of trips and total days spent outside of the U.S. during the past "five years" should correspond among Parts A, B, and C?

The reason I ask is that I initially thought A & B referred to five years but that part C was referring to since becoming a permanent resident (for my wife). My wife is about to file her N-400 and we want to make sure whether we should fill in the for the past 5 years or for the past 3 years when my wife became a permanent resident.

If it is meant for only after she became a permanent resident, then I should not care about the trips longer than 3 years ago but within the "5 years" as requested... correct?

Any clarification would be helpful.

Thank you!

My understanding for trips is as follows. If you are applying based on the 3 year rule, then you should provide trips for the past three years. Same goes to the 5 year rule.

Some people do not maintain continuous residency and USCIS shows an example in the M-476 Natz Guide on how to re-start counting for continuous residence - so logically speaking, that period should not count or else you will never be able to apply for natz.

[nigel 7]

So, if you will permit me to get this straight...

For Part 7, am I to assume correctly that the number of trips and total days spent outside of the U.S. during the past "five years" should correspond among Parts A, B, and C?

The reason I ask is that I initially thought A & B referred to five years but that part C was referring to since becoming a permanent resident (for my wife). My wife is about to file her N-400 and we want to make sure whether we should fill in the for the past 5 years or for the past 3 years when my wife became a permanent resident.

If it is meant for only after she became a permanent resident, then I should not care about the trips longer than 3 years ago but within the "5 years" as requested... correct?

Any clarification would be helpful.

Thank you!

"All trips" over 24 hrs ......since you became a Green card holder....makes no diferance if it was 3 yrs 5yrs or 10 yrs .."all Trips" since you was a P.R card holder...

[v333k 59]

"All trips" over 24 hrs ......since you became a Green card holder....makes no diferance if it was 3 yrs 5yrs or 10 yrs .."all Trips" since you was a P.R card holder...

So for example, if I've been a LPR for 20 years, and I just decided to apply for naturalization, I need to provide them with ALL TRIPS since 1990??? That seems to be a bit of an overkill!

[ArchangelG 0]

So if it were all trips after LPR, then that means, for my wife - only the past 3 years. The paperwork is all very confusing because we had filled out for all trips and total # of days in the past five years for Parts A and B but then only the trips and the individual # of days for each trip in the past 3 years for Part C -- which obviously are not equal...

[v333k 59]

So if it were all trips after LPR, then that means, for my wife - only the past 3 years. The paperwork is all very confusing because we had filled out for all trips and total # of days in the past five years for Parts A and B but then only the trips and the individual # of days for each trip in the past 3 years for Part C -- which obviously are not equal...

OK, I see your confusion now. The question is a typo, and I think someone mentioned that already.

If you have been a LPR for 3 years when you apply, then the 5 years doesn't apply. They care about how many trips you took since you became a LPR, and that only counts for the last 3 years for you.

They want to make sure you met the requirement for continuous residence which is as long as you stayed less than 6 months in the past 36 months (3 years) you should be fine.

I became a LPR in Nov 2007, and when I apply I will not include anything before that date. So, you should change part A to the right # of days that you were outside the US after receiving your GC. Same goes for B and then part C should add up to the same number in A and trips counts in B.