Citizenship application with prolonged absences since last year

[Shub 78]

Hello everybody,

I've had LPR status since January 2008, so I should be eligible to apply for citizenship as early as January 2011 in theory.

I have, however, some special circumstances which may disqualify me from applying then, but I would like to gather some opinions on that.

I've been reading the M-476 "Guide to Naturalization" over and over but I'm not clear on this.

Here are the facts:

Entered the US on a K-1 in July 2007, got married that month, got my green card in January 2008 as mentioned above.

Lived there continuously until June 2009. My wife and I thought we could have a better life in my home country of Switzerland so I got a job there.

I was out of the US between the following dates:

- 4/17/09 - 4/21/09 (4 days)

- 6/4/09 - 10/28/09 (146 days)

- 11/2/09 - 12/23/09 (51 days)

- 1/7/10 - 2/4/10 (28 days)

- 2/7/10 - 6/29/10 (142 days)

No further trip outside of the US in the foreseeable future.

That's a total of 371 days outside of the US between 4/17/09 and 6/29/10 but there was no single absence of 6 months or more.

The question is whether USCIS would combine those absences into one long absence despite the interspersed stays in the US, or if they would ignore that and consider that I've maintained a continuous residence because I have not had a single 6+ month absence.

Throughout all this time, I have maintained my permanent address in the US, kept my car registered and insured, kept credit cards, bank accounts, etc., filed tax returns with federal, state and local authorities and included my foreign earned income in the federal tax returns.

So I wanted to ask you guys if you think I could apply for citizenship in January 2011. If not, what is the earliest I could apply?

If you have any questions, feel free to ask. And please note it is not an absolute priority of mine to apply for citizenship in Jan '11. It would just make my life easier since I would no longer have to worry about my trips abroad, but I would hate to waste $675 on the application only to be denied anyway.

As always, I value your input and thanks for reading!

Edited July 1, 2010 by Shub

[v333k 59]

My understanding is similar to yours.

1. Continuous residence - it looks like you meet this requirement since non of your trips were 6+ months.

2. Physical presence - based on 3 years, you must have spent 18 out of 36 months in the US to meet this requirement. 18 months totals to roughly 540 days so it looks like you meet this requirement as well.

It looks like you are fine - but let's see what others have to say....

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

Thanks for being so specific with the dates, that helped a lot. In my opinion you are indeed eligible to file starting October.

[warlord 73]

Thanks for being so specific with the dates, that helped a lot. In my opinion you are indeed eligible to file starting October.

Except the fact they "Lived" outside of the US and had a job outside of the US. Which then should reset the clock even if it was under 6 months or over it. Remember 6 months is just a general guide line. People have been denied and even had their Green Cards revoked if found "Living" outside the US and not working for a US based company while outside. If the IO can prove you did not live and work in the US (or outside for a US based company) even if it's under 6 months then yes you surely could easily be denied. Now I don't know if your Green Card would be in jeapordy or not, seems that is not as common these days, but it still could be a possibility depending on the IO...

Edited July 2, 2010 by warlord

[Shub 78]

I appreciate both your inputs -- anyone else wanna comment?

[sasaqlain 24]

I think you should be fine. Had any of your stays been more than 6 months, you could get into trouble. File for your Naturalization and see where it leads. Heres my Advice. Never Lie to the USCIS. Never volunteer Information. Mention your job abroad, only if asked. Otherwise your case seems pretty much normal.

Good nLuck.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

I think you should be safe to file in October as well. You meet the physical presence and the residency tests - even though you temporarily lived and worked outside of the US - and you did not give up your residential ties to the US during that time, returning back to the US fairly regularly. I think it would be difficult to show you did not intend to retain US ties and return to the US after this short term employment outside of the US was ended. You do not have to be working for a US employer outside of the US as long as you can prove you did not sever residential ties in the US to take up residence outside of the US intending not to return to the US for an extended length of time. You are now back permanently, showing that you did indeed retain residential ties and have resumed the life you had before you temporarily worked overseas.

Edited July 5, 2010 by Kathryn41

[guzzyron 0]

Except the fact they "Lived" outside of the US and had a job outside of the US. Which then should reset the clock even if it was under 6 months or over it. Remember 6 months is just a general guide line. People have been denied and even had their Green Cards revoked if found "Living" outside the US and not working for a US based company while outside. If the IO can prove you did not live and work in the US (or outside for a US based company) even if it's under 6 months then yes you surely could easily be denied. Now I don't know if your Green Card would be in jeapordy or not, seems that is not as common these days, but it still could be a possibility depending on the IO...

Warlord, there are too many inaccuracies with your comment. The bottom line is that Shub, despite his travels, has met the minimum physical presence requirement for citizenship application, and barring any unforeseeable circumstances (e.g. divorce), is OK to file as early as October.