Very complicated - Need experts

[rasha.sally 1]

Hi all, I got married to a US citizen before 5 years in Kuwait and I got my immigration visa and went to US in June 2010. after few weeks I realized that living with that guy was impossible, he was hitting me all the day,I took a decision to leave him and this is exactly what i did; I went back to my family in Kuwait even before receiving my plastic green card and I filed for divorce then after that got married again and I have 2 kids now.

My question is: there is any chance of getting my green card which I think my ex-husband received after i left USA? and that was before 5 years which I stayed outside US boarders will that affect my green card status?

Note: I don't know if my ex-husband even informed the US government about the divorce since that happened outside USA.

Please I need help

[Alaska2012 462]

No. There is no green card for you anymore.

[KayDeeCee 4,893]

~ Moved from Removing Conditions to Effects of Major Family Changes on Immigration Benefits ~

[Hypnos 6,576]

No.

[rasha.sally 1]

No. There is no green card for you anymore.

please give me more details, why there is no green card?? IF its already there so why i can't ask for it?? If I consult a lawyer there might be a chance??

[Starkilla09 366]

please give me more details, why there is no green card?? IF its already there so why i can't ask for it?? If I consult a lawyer there might be a chance??

There is no green card because even if you physically had the card on your hand it wouldn't have made any difference because a permanent resident loses his/her lawful permanent resident status if he/she stays abroad for a prolonged absence of more than a year. You've been abroad so long that the status has been considered abandoned by now. Even if you had the card and attempted to re-enter the U.S. you would've been possibly denied entry or paroled and referred to an immigration judge for removal because of the aforementioned reason.

[rasha.sally 1]

There is no green card because even if you physically had the card on your hand it wouldn't have made any difference because a permanent resident loses his/her lawful permanent resident status if he/she stays abroad for a prolonged absence of more than a year. You've been abroad so long that the status has been considered abandoned by now. Even if you had the card and attempted to re-enter the U.S. you would've been possibly denied entry or paroled and referred to an immigration judge for removal because of the aforementioned reason.

thanks for the response but an immigration lawyer can do anything in this case?? I am asking now for my green card because my friend ( Permanent resident ) told me that she was out for 4 years and when she went back to US the officer asked her about why she is out for this long and she informed him about her story and he allowed her in!!!! she told me this is an officer decision. Is that true??

[dandk 72]

There is no green card because even if you physically had the card on your hand it wouldn't have made any difference because a permanent resident loses his/her lawful permanent resident status if he/she stays abroad for a prolonged absence of more than a year. You've been abroad so long that the status has been considered abandoned by now. Even if you had the card and attempted to re-enter the U.S. you would've been possibly denied entry or paroled and referred to an immigration judge for removal because of the aforementioned reason.

Yes, OP lost her PR status based on her prolonged absense out of the US.

http://www.uscis.gov/green-card/after-green-card-granted/maintaining-permanent-residence

[Starkilla09 366]

thanks for the response but an immigration lawyer can do anything in this case?? I am asking now for my green card because my friend ( Permanent resident ) told me that she was out for 4 years and when she went back to US the officer asked her about why she is out for this long and she informed him about her story and he allowed her in!!!! she told me this is an officer decision. Is that true??

Yes it can be true, CBP has final authority of admission and has bent the rules in a number of cases, however; those have been in unusual situations where the residency was abandoned through extenuating circumstances especially when it involved taking care of a critically sick relative or sick resident his/herself. An example was a guy who lived 4.5 years overseas with his green card and was re-admitted because he was taking care of his terminally sick dad who later died. He had all the evidence and after secondary inspection was admitted because of his situation by discretion. Your case is much different because you don't even have a resident card at hand, and will need some sort of residency document to even board a flight to try your luck. With an abandoned status without a physical card, your odds are staggeringly low. Consult an attorney to see and possibly check your freedom of information act records to see if you got anything.

[Hypnos 6,576]

Zero chance, sorry. You've been outside the US for five years, and long ago abandoned your LPR status. You also presumably failed to file for RoC, meaning your LPR status automatically expired when your two year green card did.

Edited November 1, 2015 by Hypnos

[Boiler 45,486]

What have you done to maintain the US as you permanent residency.

You say you have 2 children presumably also a husband, you would leave them?

Have you been filing your US taxes? If not, why not?

[canadian_wife 1,822]

Although the title of your thread says "very complicated' your case is actually quite simple. There is no physical green card for you. Although there likely was one 5 years ago, without your successful removal of conditions 2 years of residence (assumption here) your green card would have expired and your PR privileges revoked. Further, maintaining any ties to the US and also (assumption here) claiming residential benefits in Kuwait, you abandoned your right PR status anyway

good luck

PS - why are you looking for your green card now after so long?

[gw68ad78 64]

Maybe therein lies the complication.

[Expat1 971]

Hi all, I got married to a US citizen before 5 years in Kuwait and I got my immigration visa and went to US in June 2010. after few weeks I realized that living with that guy was impossible, he was hitting me all the day,I took a decision to leave him and this is exactly what i did; I went back to my family in Kuwait even before receiving my plastic green card and I filed for divorce then after that got married again and I have 2 kids now. My question is: there is any chance of getting my green card which I think my ex-husband received after i left USA? and that was before 5 years which I stayed outside US boarders will that affect my green card status? Note: I don't know if my ex-husband even informed the US government about the divorce since that happened outside USA. Please I need help

My own wife would lose her green card status if she was not holding a travel document.

You do not have even a tiny chance that your green card is still valid due to the requirement that you have to maintain residency in the US or have filed and received permission to stay out for longer than a year. This permission is only good for two years, then you have to renew it.

IF a (valid, unexpired) green card holder without a travel document wants to try to re-enter, then they CAN apply for a returning resident VISA but receiving one is very rare and under a very limited set of circumstances. There is zero way that your circumstances would apply in this case.

Good luck with your new family!

Edited November 1, 2015 by Expat1

[Boiler 45,486]

Quite possibly.

There is the SB1 Returning Residents Visa.