Maintaining LPR

[calliopi 0]

Just wondering if anyone can shed some light for me.

To give some background info - I activated my CR-1 visa at the end of August. I have some medical issues which came up after my medical and general second thoughts about moving to the US. I want to maintain my status in the states in case things change in the near future but, I know that my residence is supposed to be in the US which it isn't - I live and work in Canada. My understanding is that they can revoke your status if they see that you are coming in and out often.

I also wanted to know if we decide to live permanently in Canada do I need to advise anyone that I'm abandoning my status? Is it possible to reapply in the future or are you banned from the US?

Any info would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks again

[JoannaV 174]

You have a certain grace period after activating your visa in which to wrap up your affairs in Canada. After, say, six months it will be more suspicious if you are still spending long periods of time in Canada. It will be especially difficult for you at this point because you haven't even established your permanent residence in the US, so you have nothing to prove you have ties to it.

If you wanted to live in Canada for up to two years, you could apply for a Re-entry Permit. However, as you have not yet even moved to the US in the first place, I would think this wouldn't be an option?

If you and your spouse decide to live in Canada permanently, you can abandon your permanent residence. (Form I-407.) You will still be perfectly able to visit the US and also reapply for an IR1 visa if you decide to move back to the States in the future. If you decided to keep hold of your green card and only abandon it if immigration decided you had abandoned your status, I don't know what effect this would have on future applications. Someone else should be able to answer this.

Remember that you are required to file taxes whilst you hold a green card, and if you do this it will show that you are working in Canada. This can be used as evidence that you have abandoned your permanent residency.

[calliopi 0]

This seems so complicated

I think the best thing to do is consult an immigration lawyer so that I'm aware of all the implications.

If only life were a little simpler ...