overseas during ROC I think I have a problem

[bastille 0]

 

hello VisaJourneys,  I found this forum and I think you guys can help me with my situation.

 

Im married to a US Citizen and we applied for ROC almost 18 months ago,

after 6 months that we applied for ROC, my husband ( US citizen ) was asked to go to Amsterdam (his company HQ is in Amsterdam ) to help the development of a project, at first would take no more than 2 months, but it took longer than that.

I had the 18 months GC extension letter and I went to Amsterdam with him, in the letter it says that "You should apply for a reentry permit if you want to stay outside of the US for more than a year"  and we ended up staying 11 months in Amsterdam.

 

So then we fly back to America, Im pregnant now lol, and CBP sent me to second inspection. They started to tell me that I cant stay outside of the country for more than 6 months, they were very rude, ironic, I was basically being humiliated the whole time.  They were asking what I was doing in Amsterdam the whole time. They did not let my husband stay with me....at the beginning I was being nice and let them say what they wanted but them I told the lady "this letter says that I can stay up to 1year outside, so I dont think I broke the rules"......They asked me IF im staying in America now or if my husband gonna go back to Amsterdam ( I was honest and said "I dont know, it depends on his job".....coz the truth is he wants to stay more in Amsterdam coz for us financially gonna be very good....

 

So CBP said they would let me in, and they asked me if my case (ROC ) was already approved? I said "no, still pending".. they said that even if they "let me in", USCIS gonna still deny my case because Im not living in America.

 

so they let me in, that happened 1 week ago, I have been research about ROC cases that were denied ( mostly because of RFES, no bona fide marriage, etc ), but I could not find any case that was denied because of the reason above 

 

and yes, we are going back to Amsterdam, not gonna stay that much longer this time ( I now have a 24 month letter ), so me and my husband were thinking to stay in Europe and come back before the 24 months letter expire... I don't know if I should apply for a reentry permit or not, but we are not staying in America now

 

So if you can help me with this questions:

1- can USCIS deny my ROC because im spending all this time overseas? Do you know if that ever happened?

2- any other tips that you can give me to help "save"me. We just purchased a house in Florida and we want to raise our kid there

 

thank you

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 8, 2022 by bastille

[Mike E 11,739]

1. No there isn’t a reason to deny RoC. CBP officers are police officers and police officers are permitted to lie to advance an investigation 

 

2. File I-131 now while still in the USA. Don’t leave until you’ve proof it arrived at uscis. Also you should have had a 24 month extension letter sent to you. Ask USCIS where it is.  Don’t have a continuous absence if 181 or more days again. 
 

You are not supposed to stay out more than 180 days per CBP policy.  That is at odds with State department and USCIS policy but CBP is the agency processing your re-entry or parole. 
 

CBP could have issued you a notice to appear, taken your green card, and given you an O-551 stamp. You were fortunate.  

Edited March 8, 2022 by Mike E

[bastille 0]

30 minutes ago, Mike E said:

1. No there isn’t a reason to deny RoC. CBP officers are police officers and police officers are permitted to lie to advance an investigation 

 

2. File I-131 now while still in the USA. Don’t leave until you’ve proof it arrived at uscis. Also you should have had a 24 month extension letter sent to you. Ask USCIS where it is.  Don’t have a continuous absence if 181 or more days again. 
 

You are not supposed to stay out more than 180 days per CBP policy.  That is at odds with State department and USCIS policy but CBP is the agency processing your re-entry or parole. 
 

CBP could have issued you a notice to appear, taken your green card, and given you an O-551 stamp. You were fortunate.  

thank you Mike

Im gonna file the i-131 tomorrow, however Im just scared that they gonna deny my case based on what CPB told me, thank you for explaining.

 

just curious why they say 6 months if on the GC paperwork says "1 year" and also the same thing on the Extension letter....I know the 6 month mark affect the citizenship application but thats not really necessary for me!

[Mike E 11,739]

8 minutes ago, bastille said:

thank you Mike

Im gonna file the i-131 tomorrow, however Im just scared that they gonna deny my case based on what CPB told me, thank you for explaining.

 

just curious why they say 6 months if on the GC paperwork says "1 year" and also the same thing on the Extension letter....I know the 6 month mark affect the citizenship application but thats not really necessary for me!

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/8/1101
 

 

C)An alienlawfully admitted for permanent residence in the United States shall not be regarded as seeking an admission into theUnited States for purposes of theimmigration laws unless the alien—

(i)

has abandoned or relinquished that status,

(ii)

has been absent from the United Statesfor a continuous period in excess of 180 days,

 

CBP enforces the law 

[Mill&bill 131]

the 24 month extension letter does not mean its 24 months from now. infact it was the extra six month extension of 18 month letter that you had previously. 

[Qian 33]

Look up INA 319B

https://www.uscis.gov/citizenship/learn-about-citizenship/citizenship-and-naturalization/i-am-married-to-a-us-citizen

You might be eligible for naturalization already.

Good luck.

[Rocio0010 5,579]

7 hours ago, Qian said:

Look up INA 319B

https://www.uscis.gov/citizenship/learn-about-citizenship/citizenship-and-naturalization/i-am-married-to-a-us-citizen

You might be eligible for naturalization already.

Good luck.

Not quite. For naturalization, OP needs to prove continuous residency in the same State where she's applying for a period of 90 days leading up to the application time.

[Qian 33]

1 hour ago, Rocio0010 said:

Not quite. For naturalization, OP needs to prove continuous residency in the same State where she's applying for a period of 90 days leading up to the application time.

No, for certain eligible employments, the continuous residence or physical presence is waived.

 

Spouses of U.S. Citizens Employed Abroad

Generally, if your spouse is a U.S. citizen who is employed by the U.S. government, including the military or another qualifying employer, and your spouse is scheduled to be stationed abroad for at least one year at the time you file your Form N-400, you may be eligible for naturalization under Section 319(b) of the INA.  Qualifying employers can include:

• Certain American institutions of research;
• American firms or corporations engaged in the development of foreign trade and commerce;
• Certain public international organizations; and
• Certain religious denominations or interdenominational mission organizations.

In general, at the time of your naturalization interview and ceremony, you must be present in the United States under lawful admission for permanent residence and you must meet of all of the requirements listed above, with the following exceptions:

• No specific period as an LPR is required (but you must have been lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence);
• No specific period of continuous residence or physical presence in the United States is required; and
• No specific period of marital union is required; however, you and your U.S. citizen spouse must be in a valid marriage from the time you file your Form N-400 until the time you naturalize.

You must also establish that you will reside outside the United States with your citizen spouse immediately after naturalization and that you intend to reside in the United States immediately after your spouse’s employment outside the United States ends.

For more information, see the USCIS Policy Manual, Volume 12, Citizenship and Naturalization.

Edited March 8, 2022 by Qian

[Okboy 43]

20 hours ago, bastille said:

 

hello VisaJourneys,  I found this forum and I think you guys can help me with my situation.

 

Im married to a US Citizen and we applied for ROC almost 18 months ago,

after 6 months that we applied for ROC, my husband ( US citizen ) was asked to go to Amsterdam (his company HQ is in Amsterdam ) to help the development of a project, at first would take no more than 2 months, but it took longer than that.

I had the 18 months GC extension letter and I went to Amsterdam with him, in the letter it says that "You should apply for a reentry permit if you want to stay outside of the US for more than a year"  and we ended up staying 11 months in Amsterdam.

 

So then we fly back to America, Im pregnant now lol, and CBP sent me to second inspection. They started to tell me that I cant stay outside of the country for more than 6 months, they were very rude, ironic, I was basically being humiliated the whole time.  They were asking what I was doing in Amsterdam the whole time. They did not let my husband stay with me....at the beginning I was being nice and let them say what they wanted but them I told the lady "this letter says that I can stay up to 1year outside, so I dont think I broke the rules"......They asked me IF im staying in America now or if my husband gonna go back to Amsterdam ( I was honest and said "I dont know, it depends on his job".....coz the truth is he wants to stay more in Amsterdam coz for us financially gonna be very good....

 

So CBP said they would let me in, and they asked me if my case (ROC ) was already approved? I said "no, still pending".. they said that even if they "let me in", USCIS gonna still deny my case because Im not living in America.

 

so they let me in, that happened 1 week ago, I have been research about ROC cases that were denied ( mostly because of RFES, no bona fide marriage, etc ), but I could not find any case that was denied because of the reason above 

 

and yes, we are going back to Amsterdam, not gonna stay that much longer this time ( I now have a 24 month letter ), so me and my husband were thinking to stay in Europe and come back before the 24 months letter expire... I don't know if I should apply for a reentry permit or not, but we are not staying in America now

 

So if you can help me with this questions:

1- can USCIS deny my ROC because im spending all this time overseas? Do you know if that ever happened?

2- any other tips that you can give me to help "save"me. We just purchased a house in Florida and we want to raise our kid there

 

thank you

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Those CBP officers are clueless. USCIS definitely won’t deny your ROC application for being outside the country for the period you were outside but that can definitely play against you when and if you decide to file for N400.Did you receive any rfe from USCIS while you were away in Amsterdam?

[Beth & Achraf 328]

21 hours ago, bastille said:

 

hello VisaJourneys,  I found this forum and I think you guys can help me with my situation.

 

Im married to a US Citizen and we applied for ROC almost 18 months ago,

after 6 months that we applied for ROC, my husband ( US citizen ) was asked to go to Amsterdam (his company HQ is in Amsterdam ) to help the development of a project, at first would take no more than 2 months, but it took longer than that.

I had the 18 months GC extension letter and I went to Amsterdam with him, in the letter it says that "You should apply for a reentry permit if you want to stay outside of the US for more than a year"  and we ended up staying 11 months in Amsterdam.

 

So then we fly back to America, Im pregnant now lol, and CBP sent me to second inspection. They started to tell me that I cant stay outside of the country for more than 6 months, they were very rude, ironic, I was basically being humiliated the whole time.  They were asking what I was doing in Amsterdam the whole time. They did not let my husband stay with me....at the beginning I was being nice and let them say what they wanted but them I told the lady "this letter says that I can stay up to 1year outside, so I dont think I broke the rules"......They asked me IF im staying in America now or if my husband gonna go back to Amsterdam ( I was honest and said "I dont know, it depends on his job".....coz the truth is he wants to stay more in Amsterdam coz for us financially gonna be very good....

 

So CBP said they would let me in, and they asked me if my case (ROC ) was already approved? I said "no, still pending".. they said that even if they "let me in", USCIS gonna still deny my case because Im not living in America.

 

so they let me in, that happened 1 week ago, I have been research about ROC cases that were denied ( mostly because of RFES, no bona fide marriage, etc ), but I could not find any case that was denied because of the reason above 

 

and yes, we are going back to Amsterdam, not gonna stay that much longer this time ( I now have a 24 month letter ), so me and my husband were thinking to stay in Europe and come back before the 24 months letter expire... I don't know if I should apply for a reentry permit or not, but we are not staying in America now

 

So if you can help me with this questions:

1- can USCIS deny my ROC because im spending all this time overseas? Do you know if that ever happened?

2- any other tips that you can give me to help "save"me. We just purchased a house in Florida and we want to raise our kid there

 

thank you

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All I can say on this is the CBP officer don't know his butt from a hole in the ground or just a plain Pratt that day,  that is not taught at the academy to lie about AOS.

Yes, CBP can stop you from entering the US, but cannot deny your AOS.

Edited March 8, 2022 by Beth & Achraf
rewording

[Mike E 11,739]

5 minutes ago, Beth & Achraf said:

All I can say on this is the CBP officer don't know his butt from a hole in the ground or just a plain Pratt that day,  that is not taught at the academy to lie about AOS.

Yes, CBP can stop you from entering the US, but cannot deny your AOS.

This is a RoC thread not an AOS thread. 
 

CBP cannot deny an LPR entry into the USA, as per CBP’s own policy. https://help.cbp.gov/s/article/Article-3671?language=en_US#:~:text=The CBP officer will collect,final determination on your case

 

[BananaShoes 31]

That's why you don't answer any questions from law enforcment or CBP, or you pick and choose which ones to answer. They aren't your friends and they can use what you say against you.

 

As a LPR you have your constitutional rights as any other citizen. They can't keep you out, and they can't make you answer any questions. If they thing you did anything wrong see them in court, which won't happen because you did nothing wrong.

[bastille 0]

3 hours ago, Okboy said:

Those CBP officers are clueless. USCIS definitely won’t deny your ROC application for being outside the country for the period you were outside but that can definitely play against you when and if you decide to file for N400.Did you receive any rfe from USCIS while you were away in Amsterdam?

No I never received RFE or anything from USCIS, they even used the same fingerprints.

yes, thats what CBP told me and the lady was very loud "Im gonna let you in, however USCIS gonna deny your case, you are not living in the United States" and then she gave me back my documents

Im not planning on applying for US citizenship anytime soon, I already broke my  "continuous residency",maybe in a few years!!