Question - Out of the US for a few years

[Pipomnambo 1]

Hi, I'm looking for advice on what to do...
You can find more on my timeline, but I just got the 18 month extension letter for my greencard.

 

My wife and I will have a newborn in June and we decided that we will have him in the US but start raising him in Switzerland when it is safe for him to fly (probably end of October) and stay for at least a few years.
This decision is mainly based on the fact that in Switzerland I will be able to make more money and my wife will take care of the baby.

 

We will be able to fly back to the US whenever if needed, keep a bank account, and continue to file our taxes in the US.
We will for sure come back once a year for Thanksgiving or Christmas.

 

What is my best option to leave me the option to move back to the US ?
Should I fill a I-131 (Reentry Permit) even if I think that I won't live in the US for more than 2 years ?
Should I inform USCIS ?

 

Anthony

[JFH 12,191]

Taking a job elsewhere is a good indication of abandonment of your permanent resident status.

[Crazy Cat 42,033]

1 hour ago, Pipomnambo said:

Hi, I'm looking for advice on what to do...
You can find more on my timeline, but I just got the 18 month extension letter for my greencard.

 

My wife and I will have a newborn in June and we decided that we will have him in the US but start raising him in Switzerland when it is safe for him to fly (probably end of October) and stay for at least a few years.
This decision is mainly based on the fact that in Switzerland I will be able to make more money and my wife will take care of the baby.

 

We will be able to fly back to the US whenever if needed, keep a bank account, and continue to file our taxes in the US.
We will for sure come back once a year for Thanksgiving or Christmas.

 

What is my best option to leave me the option to move back to the US ?
Should I fill a I-131 (Reentry Permit) even if I think that I won't live in the US for more than 2 years ?
Should I inform USCIS ?

 

Anthony

That is not how it works......Sounds like you will not be a resident of the US.....if so, you should surrender your green card.....maintaining residence requires more than just visiting the US once a year.  It means that your PRIMARY residence is in the US.

Edited April 18, 2020 by Lucky Cat

[Boiler 45,900]

Sounds like an I 407 would be more apropriate.

[Pipomnambo 1]

I don't necessary want to keep my green card and I don't mind applying again for visa/residency in the future.

I just don't want to do anything wrong now that can prevent me to maybe come back in the future.

 

Thank you Boiler, I think that I-407 is the way to go.

[millefleur 5,047]

**Moved from ROC Discussion to General Immigration-Related Discussion**

[B&C2017 123]

18 hours ago, Pipomnambo said:

Hi, I'm looking for advice on what to do...
You can find more on my timeline, but I just got the 18 month extension letter for my greencard.

 

My wife and I will have a newborn in June and we decided that we will have him in the US but start raising him in Switzerland when it is safe for him to fly (probably end of October) and stay for at least a few years.
This decision is mainly based on the fact that in Switzerland I will be able to make more money and my wife will take care of the baby.

 

We will be able to fly back to the US whenever if needed, keep a bank account, and continue to file our taxes in the US.
We will for sure come back once a year for Thanksgiving or Christmas.

 

What is my best option to leave me the option to move back to the US ?
Should I fill a I-131 (Reentry Permit) even if I think that I won't live in the US for more than 2 years ?
Should I inform USCIS ?

 

Anthony

I’m not a 100% sure if you’re a Swiss citizen, but with me being a Swiss citizen with a US Citizen husband, I was just curious if you‘re sure about that decision. You can make a lot more money in CH, but you for sure have to expect a lot more expensive way of living.

 

For example: 

- A decent appartement of 1130 sqft will cost you around $1800-2300 at least (depending on the area, if close to a city or not and if the place is new or not)

- We (2 adults and two kids, 12 and 1.5 years old) currently spend about $1700 a month on groceries (incl. hygiene products and diapers, clothes and toys not included) and we‘re not really buying anything fancy or super expensive (like beef that will cost you roughly $16 per pound ☺️)

- Basic health insurance for a family of three Imd expect to be approx. $ 600. It‘s on a private level and not offered through employers

- Taxes are approx. 15 percent of your yearly gross income (taxes are not taken out of your paycheck so make sure to have the money ready when they‘re due once a year)
- Childcare (in case you ever need it) is based on your income (if you can find a subsidized place, they‘re extremely hard to get and you sometimes wait years) but I‘d calculate with approx. $30-40 per day

- If you want to go explore things (take a cable car to go to a mountain), that can easily be $40 just to get up there 😅, admissions are fairly high wherever you go. 
- The level of entertainment is nowhere close to the one in the US (e.g. sports, places to go) which is one thing my husband misses terribly.

- the job situation here is a lot more competitive as there is a limited amount of positions and lots of people interested to get the job

and last but not least, it‘s nice to have some support from family and friends when having a newborn. So unless you have family here, it might be hard on your wife as a new mom with no one around. We don‘t really have family here that can watch our little girl either, so me and my husband haven‘t had a night out together since we were in the US last July.

These are just some random thoughts from someone living here (with kids 😊).

 I must say though, that we‘re totally not the couple that would make decisions based on money, so the overall quality of life for our own little family, as well as being  close to all our other family members (my husband‘s side of the family) are what drives us to move to the US rather than to stay in Switzerland.

 

Whatever y‘all decide, all the best for the upcoming birth of your little one and good luck on your journey 🇺🇸🛫🛬🇨🇭

Edited April 19, 2020 by B&C2017

[Nitas_man 3,100]

On 4/18/2020 at 3:07 PM, Pipomnambo said:

I don't necessary want to keep my green card and I don't mind applying again for visa/residency in the future.

I just don't want to do anything wrong now that can prevent me to maybe come back in the future.

 

Thank you Boiler, I think that I-407 is the way to go.

I don’t

 

I think applying and leaving with a re-entry permit is the way to go and I also think you should maintain ties by keeping assets in the US and by establishing an address in the US.

 

You can at any time walk up to an embassy counter and turn in your green card if you choose to do so at a later time.

Edited April 21, 2020 by Nitas_man

[Nitas_man 3,100]

On 4/18/2020 at 2:11 PM, Lucky Cat said:

That is not how it works......Sounds like you will not be a resident of the US.....if so, you should surrender your green card.....maintaining residence requires more than just visiting the US once a year.  It means that your PRIMARY residence is in the US.

Incorrect

[Pipomnambo 1]

20 minutes ago, Nitas_man said:

I don’t

 

I think applying and leaving with a re-entry permit is the way to go and I also think you should maintain ties by keeping assets in the US and by establishing an address in the US.

 

You can at any time walk up to an embassy counter and turn in your green card if you choose to do so at a later time.

Keeping assets and an address in the US is what I plan to do anyway.

 

Applying for the re-entry, if I don't come back in the next two years, would be a waste of money and that's fine with me.

But I just want to be sure that it won't have a negative impact if I apply for a CR-1 in the future.

Has anyone had a similar journey?

Edited April 21, 2020 by Pipomnambo

[Nitas_man 3,100]

1 minute ago, Pipomnambo said:

Keeping assets and an address in the US is what I plan to do anyway.

 

Applying for the re-entry, if I don't come back in the next two years, would be a waste of money and that's fine with me.

But I just want to be sure that it won't have a negative impact if I apply for a CR-1 in the future.

Do anyone know of a similar journey ?

I know of two similar journeys.

 

We left the US in 2009 for the middle east.  We surrendered the green card in 2011 and I refiled a petition for a new one in 2012.  No issue.

 

We left in 2014 holding a travel document which expired in 2016.  We applied and received a returning resident visa in 2018 even though the travel document had expired 2 years before.

 

So either is fine but application for a travel document is considered primary proof / assumption that you did not intend to abandon residency when you left.

 

Also - always file your taxes while you’re out. $100k+ of foreign earned income is excluded anyway plus you get credit for taxes paid wherever you work as long as that country has a tax treaty with the US.

[Pipomnambo 1]

2 minutes ago, Nitas_man said:

I know of two similar journeys.

 

We left the US in 2009 for the middle east.  We surrendered the green card in 2011 and I refiled a petition for a new one in 2012.  No issue.

 

We left in 2014 holding a travel document which expired in 2016.  We applied and received a returning resident visa in 2018 even though the travel document had expired 2 years before.

 

So either is fine but application for a travel document is considered primary proof / assumption that you did not intend to abandon residency when you left.

 

Also - always file your taxes while you’re out. $100k+ of foreign earned income is excluded anyway plus you get credit for taxes paid wherever you work as long as that country has a tax treaty with the US.

Thank you so much !

That's very helpful