Applying for citizenship on my return in Nov

[ciaobella80 2]

Hi guys, I need some advice from you regarding my situation.

I am a U.S. permanent resident who left the U.S. in December 2011 to set-up the offshore office of our U.S. LLC. I returned to the U.S. in June 2012 making my stay abroad 5 months and 25 days. The immigration officer was not happy with my length of stay outside of the U.S. and interrogated me at my port of entry (San Francisco). He gave a litany about the importance and the purpose of having a GC, and that he could revoke my GC if he wanted to. After explaining my side, he said that he will let it pass but also told me that I should not leave the U.S. for the remainder of 2012. He annotated by foreign passport with something that said, "Advised on the residency requirements because of lengthy stay abroad."

I stayed in the U.S. from June until August 2012, and while there, I obtained a re-entry permit -- had my biometrics done and all the works (which took more than a month of waiting, btw).

While in the U.S., my husband and I got into a nasty argument in a hotel. I'll spare you the details of the argument but the guests in the other room complained to the hotel admin, and called the police to pacify us. To cut the story short, the police made an arrest, and they arrested me for domestic violence because I slapped my husband upon knowing that he cheated on me multiple times while I was away. It was so beyond me that they arrested me for that. I was booked in jail and was out on bail (in CA, domestic violence is a felony) while waiting to appear before a judge.

My lawyers successfully convinced the DA to not file charges against me; however, of course I still have arrest records.

I left the U.S. mid of August 2012 to continue setting up the office abroad. I have a valid re-entry permit for two years, which was mailed to the U.S. embassy here last week.

As of July 2012, I am eligible to be a U.S. citizen. I meet all the requirements, including the required stay in the U.S. I would like to jump start the process this November.

My questions are:

1. Do I run the risk of getting my GC revoked upon re-entry in November, knowing that I received a warning during my entry last June? Note that I left the U.S. August 2012 and I am coming back in November. I have a valid reentry permit and can present proof of ties to the U.S.

2. Will they interrogate me about my recent arrest? This makes me nervous because I do not want to incriminate myself, although I wasn't charged.

3. Once I start the citizenship process, can I travel outside of the U.S. while waiting for my biometrics, interview, and oath? For how long can I stay out of the U.S.? I understand I have to be in the U.S. during my biometrics, interview, and oath -- I have no problem with that. Please note that I need to be abroad to manage our offshore office, but don't have to stay there all the time. I am planning to stay in the U.S. 1 month and 2 weeks abroad during the application period.

4. Do I need to retain an immigration lawyer to help alleviate my concern regarding my return and to help me with my citizenship application?

I appreciate your pieces of advice.

Edited October 3, 2012 by ciaobella80

[NigeriaorBust 4,087]

There is a requirement that you live in the district you are filing from for 3 months prior to filing. So you need to cover that . You also have to worry about the amount of time you have been out of the US. The reentry premet means you don't lose you GC but you break running time. If you are out more than a year with the permit you lose all the time over the year.