OldUser

Very good point! Yes, if extension letter is expiring, you cannot travel without I-551 stamp in passport. I totally missed that, thought @CaseyBorne88 talked about expiring 2 year GC. One can argue that @CaseyBorne88's wife should have received a 48 month extension. Perhaps that also can be requested from USCIS - https://egov.uscis.gov/e-request/displayNDNForm.do?sroPageType=ndn&entryPoint=init

Hi @CaseyBorne88 Her original 2 year green card and original extension letter (I-797), in addition to valid passport is all she needs to leave and re-enter the US. Of course, if any countries besides her home country and US require visa for travel - she should get one. She cannot stay outside of the US for 6 months or more at a time - this will result in her breaking residency. If she needs to stay outside of US for 6 months but less than 2 years, she can apply for I-131. For naturalization purposes, if she plans to apply for citizenship under 3 year rule based on marriage to US citizen, she would have spent 18 months out of 3 years in the US. The calculations are all based on Residence Since date on her card.

You're overthinking this, take it easy! Affidavits I submitted were obtained in September-October, but I submitted I-751 end of November. Case got approved.

That's very unfortunate!

That would be ideal from immigration point of view. Extensions simply don't work. It takes over a year to decide on them.

Personally, I think both of these options are high risk low reward. At the same time, I cannot suggest overstaying, that's not a right thing to do.

I'd reach out to somebody living at / managing old addresses. USCIS sometimes ignore AR-11s etc.

To keep things simple, I'm a fan of doing it either before starting immigration (I-130/I-485) or during N-400. Everything in between is OK, but could be a bit confusing as name on the docs won't match.

You can file N-400 whenever you become eligible. Approval of N-400 depends on approval of I-751. But it doesn't mean you cannot file until your I-751 is approved. If you're still married to your US citizen spouse, you lived together all the time since you became a LPR, you had no breaks in residency (trips over 6 months) and you've been married AND LPR for 3 years, you can file for N-400 today.

Could take 4-6 weeks easily.

You can expect an approval, interview, RFE, NOID or denial. Lawfully doesn't take into consideration your specific case and its merits.

I-751 is what you're looking for. You can ask more related questions and read threads for your information in this subforum: https://www.visajourney.com/forums/forum/86-removing-conditions-on-residency-general-discussion/

Plus keep the digital confirmation of your address change you will get after submitting AR-11 @Nazgulslayer

That's probably the approach I'm going to take too. I receive both physical copies and digital PDFs of bank statements for example. The reason why I keep physical copies is that for N-400 I won't have to print it myself. But once I'm done, I'll shred them and keep files only.

Ouch ! At N-400 you can be asked anything about your immigration history. Maybe file a FOIA to get at least some info in case if you need to answer questions about your past?

Why wouldn't you do both: upload evidence and provide the number? I don't think it hurts.

I wouldn't. You never know whether your descendants will ever need to trace how you became a citizen. Or if something horrible happens to your passport / naturalization certificate and you'll have to prove you are who you are. These are super important documents in my opinion. I'd scan them to digital files and store safely to say the least.

Best to change name now, before any paperwork is filed or much further at N-400 stage when she becomes a US citizen. Anything in between is not as smooth compared to the two options above. If she changes name now, she should get passport in new name, so that everything in her paperwork other than birth certificate will match.

That's a good idea actually. And with this stamp get unrestricted SS card / DL for I-9.

Does he have an unrestricted social security card and valid state ID / DL? He could use those for I-9 verification. I'm afraid he cannot use expired GC from year 2000 and I-90 to verify his status to potential employer.

You can absolutely get approved, at least based on information you provided so far. Make sure to file AR-11 if you haven't already. You're required by law to report you any changes to your physical address within 10 days of moving.

Highly recommend being as nice and polite to the abuser as possible (they may not deserve respect, but your safety is the top priority). Also recommend being as far physically and mentally as possible when around the abusive spouse. I personally would not laugh at them. That only can escalate things to physical violence etc. Being polite also decreases the chance of them writing bad letters addressed to USCIS, which can complicate I-751 approval. I'd say family lawyer is highly recommended just to finalize everything fast. Immigration lawyer is optional but doesn't hurt (if a good one is hired)

Hi, sorry to hear your marriage didn't work out. Please seek a safe place for yourself. Do NOT count on abusive spouse in supporting your immigration. You can get approved without their help. There's no such thing as I-175. I think you're referring to I-751? 1. Make copies of all important documents and evidence. Best to have both physical and digital copies. Make sure abuser doesn't have access to them (maybe a friend or safe deposit box can help storing docs). Make sure they don't know your passwords to online accounts. 2. Move out of the place. 3. Hire a family lawyer to help with divorce. File for divorce. 4. File a I-751 with a lawyer. You can ask for divorce waiver. Timing is very important in this case, but you can stay in the US if you can prove marriage was bonafide. P.S. What about jointly filed taxes? Do you have IRS return transcripts for those? Those bank / credit card statements, are they in both names right?

Did you get an unrestricted Social Security card from SSA? If not, get it as soon as you get extension letter. This will allow you to use driver license (or state ID) and SS card for I-9 verification. You remain LPR despite your GC expiry and have all the rights of LPR including right to work.

In addition, may need to wait for 5 years after re-entering the US to apply for N-400 if eligible (lawyer should confirm this).