green card mailed while abroad and other questions.

[cd41 0]

hello,

I would like to thank all the people who post here and help others out as I have been a silent benificiary.

I have a green card through my spouse.Both of us came back to our home country to celebrate our wedding locally before my GC was mailed ( I didnt know when it would come and needed to come back)......I did get a travel document before leaving.

Please answer the following questions.

1.Does my 6 months outside the country for physical presence start on the date of leaving usa(as i was still an applicant at that time,and not a resident) or on the date given in the card (difference of about a month)?

2.If I cannot find a safe way to have the green card brought over to me from the states then how will I travel back?....I understand that the travel document becomes invalid once greencard is issued but what other choice will I have?

3. I plan to settle in the states but due to some circumstances my wife and I will have to spend the first year after GC abroad...half that time will soon be over....can we push the 6 months limit or is it a must to go back every 6 months?...We maintain an address there and we have filed joint taxes and have bank accounts together and I will also be selling property and taking the money to invest in business in usa .

4.As I understand it next big step is lifting 2 year conditions and then applying for citizenship after 3 years....for that I have to have physical presence in usa for half that time....which I think we can manage as our time started in late July even if we are abroad initially......if there are any big pointers that someone would like to point out please do.

I thank everyone who has the patience to read and answer my questions in advance.

[Krikit 1,165]

1.Does my 6 months outside the country for physical presence start on the date of leaving usa(as i was still an applicant at that time,and not a resident) or on the date given in the card (difference of about a month)?

Not sure what you are talking about with the highlighted area, but as soon as you leave the US the clock starts ticking.

2.If I cannot find a safe way to have the green card brought over to me from the states then how will I travel back?....I understand that the travel document becomes invalid once greencard is issued but what other choice will I have?

Myself and others have returned to the US using the AP (I assume this is what you mean by travel document) after the GC has been approved and issued. You will go through secondary processing as you would normally.

3. I plan to settle in the states but due to some circumstances my wife and I will have to spend the first year after GC abroad...half that time will soon be over....can we push the 6 months limit or is it a must to go back every 6 months?...We maintain an address there and we have filed joint taxes and have bank accounts together and I will also be selling property and taking the money to invest in business in usa .

You can stay outside the US up to one year. The six month timeframe you are talking about is in reference to the naturalization process and eligibility. Link

4.As I understand it next big step is lifting 2 year conditions and then applying for citizenship after 3 years....for that I have to have physical presence in usa for half that time....which I think we can manage as our time started in late July even if we are abroad initially......if there are any big pointers that someone would like to point out please do.

Again, in order for you to be eligible for naturalization after 3 years you must be physically present in the US for at least 18 months or 548 days. Check the pinned topic in the US Citizenship Forum for eligibility. Link

[cd41 0]

Krikit thank you for the reply.............what I am talking about in the highlighted area is that there is a difference between the date I exited u.s.a (at that time my status was that of an intending immigrant with case filed but greencard not in hand....I went out of america with an advance parole in hand.....my green card was approved 1 and a half months AFTER i left usa.......now it would suit me better if my time out of america as a legal resident was considered form the date the green card production was ordered as then i will count my 6 months from that time as i need to stay outside for some more time....otherwise i would have to go back 1 and a half months earlier to meet the 6 months dead line........I hope its clearer now...I apologize for the confusion.