Greencard holder outside of the country longer than 6 months

[babybabeto14 10]

 

Hello, does anyone know what the protocol is if you are a greencard holder and are out of the country longer than 6 months (about 9 months).  Does the greencard holder need to do any specific paper work before reentering the states?  Thanks in advance!!!!

[Amadia 711]

Some details can be found here: http://lawandborder.com/risk-abandoning-green-card-abroad-6-months/

 

Also, the 'offender' will need to explain to the officer the reason behind the stay. Entry into the US can also be denied.

[SusieQQQ 11,586]

11 minutes ago, Amadia said:

 

 

Also, the 'offender' will need to explain to the officer the reason behind the stay. Entry into the US can also be denied.

Best not to quote unofficial sites. Also, not true that entry can be flatly denied. Worst that can happen is referral to an immigration judge, which is highly unlikely unless person is a repeat offender. 

 

@babybabeto14, it is at a year that you are deemed to have abandoned your green card (see official USCIS sites to confirm). One absence of >6 months may lead to more questioning at the border, but you should be fine as long as you are not repeatedly spending more than half a year outside the US. We had 3 family members spend 11 months outside the US at one stage. CBP officer started questioning us, happy with our explanation (and one way tickets in) and not a problem. At no point was there even a hint of being denied entry, more wanting to ensure we understood what the residency requirements are.

 

What will happen with >6 month absence is break in continuous presence requirement for naturalization.

 

 

Edited July 15, 2018 by SusieQQQ