Hi

I have checked the processing times for Louisville and it looks as
though they are processing I-485s filed in July. We filed this past
Sept., but decided a few weeks ago we will be moving back to Germany
this time next year.



It is likely that he will receive his green card before we move. We
were the ones who were told no interview if anyone remembers so we won't
have to wait on that part.



I have been told that by moving out of the US for an extended period of
time (1 or 2 years?) that he is abandoning the green card. This part is
OK with us as we probably won't be returning for a long time.



Is there anything we need to do prior to moving next year? What would
happen if he gets the green card, we move and then visit the US 6 months
or a year later? Would the green card be valid or would he enter VWP?
If he does not get the gc before we move is there a way to cancel it?
This is getting a bit confusing!



Any thoughts, suggestions, recommendations or links to other info are
welcomed. I cannot seem to find information about this anywhere.


--
Posted via http://britishexpats.com

kariml,



Probably won't be returning for a long time?



I remember a guy only a few years ago (I saw a post from him only
last week after a long absence) who, shortly after his wife entered
on a K1 visa and they married, was offered a transfer by his company
to a position in his wife's home country. She went back to prepare
for the move. Without AP. The transfer fell through. He filed an
I-130 and the wait began again. The long wait. There was no K3 visa
at that time.



If I were your husband, I would be inclined to apply for a re-entry
permit as a cheap form of insurance to facilitate keeping that 'Green
Card' in case "a long time" turns out to be less than 2 years.



Regards, JEff



Originally posted by kariml
Hi
I have checked the processing times for Louisville and it looks as though they are processing I-485s filed in July. We filed this past Sept., but decided a few weeks ago we will be moving back to Germany this time next year.

It is likely that he will receive his green card before we move. We were the ones who were told no interview if anyone remembers so we won't have to wait on that part.

I have been told that by moving out of the US for an extended period of time (1 or 2 years?) that he is abandoning the green card. This part is OK with us as we probably won't be returning for a long time.

Is there anything we need to do prior to moving next year? What would happen if he gets the green card, we move and then visit the US 6 months or a year later? Would the green card be valid or would he enter VWP? If he does not get the gc before we move is there a way to cancel it? This is getting a bit confusing!


Any thoughts, suggestions, recommendations or links to other info
are welcomed. I cannot seem to find information about this
anywhere.


--
Of course, the Internet also tells us that hot naked women want to befriend us, so we can't be 100% sure about everything we read there. (Dave Barry)


Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Originally posted by jeffreyhy
kariml,

Probably won't be returning for a long time?


Regards, JEff



Guess that was a bit vague :) We probably won't be returning for at
least 5 or 6 years.


--
Posted via http://britishexpats.com

kariml,



I guess I was a bit vague myself. The key word, and I see you're still
using it, is "probably".



Regards, JEff



Originally posted by kariml

Guess that was a bit vague :) We probably won't be returning for at
least 5 or 6 years.


--
Of course, the Internet also tells us that hot naked women want to befriend us, so we can't be 100% sure about everything we read there. (Dave Barry)


Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Originally posted by jeffreyhy
kariml,

I guess I was a bit vague myself. The key word, and I see you're still using it, is "probably".

Regards, JEff



Well, because I don't know exactly. Could be 5, 6 or even 10 years. We
might not return ever, but probably ;) Just kidding, but it is hard to
say exactly how many years will pass before we return. We don't plan on
moving for just a year or 2, we are planning this as a long term move.


--
Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Originally posted by kariml
Well, because I don't know exactly. Could be 5, 6 or even 10 years. We might not return ever, but probably ;) Just kidding, but it is hard to say exactly how many years will pass before we return. We don't plan on moving for just a year or 2, we are planning this as a long term move.



kari, we've talked about what we would do in a such a situation, since
we've been moving around a lot these past few years. If we did this
before DAH naturalizes, I think we'd get the re entry permit for the
'just in case'. If you truly are abandoning your US residence, I'm sure
the consulate abroad would have info for you on re-immigrating. In fact,
there've been a couple of posts from ppl doing just that in the past
month. You do have to start over, but can DCF as the USC would be
resident abroad.


--
Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Originally posted by kariml
Hi
I have checked the processing times for Louisville and it looks as though they are processing I-485s filed in July. We filed this past Sept., but decided a few weeks ago we will be moving back to Germany this time next year.

It is likely that he will receive his green card before we move. We were the ones who were told no interview if anyone remembers so we won't have to wait on that part.

I have been told that by moving out of the US for an extended period of time (1 or 2 years?) that he is abandoning the green card. This part is OK with us as we probably won't be returning for a long time.

Is there anything we need to do prior to moving next year? What would happen if he gets the green card, we move and then visit the US 6 months or a year later? Would the green card be valid or would he enter VWP? If he does not get the gc before we move is there a way to cancel it? This is getting a bit confusing!

Any thoughts, suggestions, recommendations or links to other info are welcomed. I cannot seem to find information about this anywhere.



Hi:



Talk to an experienced immigration lawyer. This is a complicated area.


--
Certified Specialist
Immigration & Nat. Law
Cal. Bar Board of Legal Specialization


Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Originally posted by Folinskyinla
Hi:

Talk to an experienced immigration lawyer. This is a complicated area.



Thanks meauxna and Mr. F. A good friend of mine is an immigration
attorney, but specializes in employment. She helped us file the I-129F
paperwork, so she can probably recommend someone from her old firm.



We will definetly look into the re-entry permit. You never know what
can happen and I would not want to encounter a situation similar to what
jeffreyhy described. That would be a nightmare.



I guess the main thing we are worried about is what will happen if we
choose to visit the US. I guess this is what Mr. F meant by it being
complicated? For instance, what if we leave before the green card is
issue, but it is later mailed out and obviously not picked up. What
would be his status when visiting? Could he be denied entry? So many
questions....


--
Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Hi,



Sorry for being nosey, but are you the couple that was moving to W.
Virginia for your job transfer a while back. What made you decide to
move, have you ever lived in Germany or abroad. My husband and I want
to move to England in the future for a similar time frame as you but
were also wondering about what needs to be done if he has the GC. We
already had our AOS and were approved pending his fingerprints and
security check.



Anyway...best wishes



Kat and Chris


--
Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Originally posted by katnap8
Hi,

Sorry for being nosey, but are you the couple that was moving to W. Virginia for your job transfer a while back. What made you decide to move, have you ever lived in Germany or abroad. My husband and I want to move to England in the future for a similar time frame as you but were also wondering about what needs to be done if he has the GC. We already had our AOS and were approved pending his fingerprints and security check.

Anyway...best wishes

Kat and Chris



Hi

Yes, that's us, well northern Virginia/DC Area.



No, I have never lived abroad before, which is the main reason we
decided to move. We also realized after discussing the DC move more that
it wasn't something we REALLY wanted to do. It was more of an excuse to
get out of Louisville. The original plan was to live in DC 2 or 3
years, then move to Germany. Financially it will be much easier for us
to move from Louisville than from DC. We had been looking at areas to
live and dealing with relocation issues and just realized it was silly
to go through all that and then just turn around and do again a few
years later. I have also lived in the US my entire life. I really enjoy
it here, but it is time for me to experience something else.


--
Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Originally posted by katnap8
Hi,

Sorry for being nosey, but are you the couple that was moving to W. Virginia for your job transfer a while back. What made you decide to move, have you ever lived in Germany or abroad. My husband and I want to move to England in the future for a similar time frame as you but were also wondering about what needs to be done if he has the GC. We already had our AOS and were approved pending his fingerprints and security check.

Anyway...best wishes

Kat and Chris



Every once in a while, we are also thinking about moving back to Europe.
It is very vague because of a lot of unknowns. But, we figured we would
wait until I have US citizenship, which is 3-4 years away, and then
reconsider the problem. This at least, put some kind of a "deadline" to
review the situation and see if it makes sense for us to move. Then we
won't have to deal with the immigration and can come back on a moment's
notice if needed.



Caroline


--
Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Originally posted by Caro
Every once in a while, we are also thinking about moving back to Europe. It is very vague because of a lot of unknowns. But, we figured we would wait until I have US citizenship, which is 3-4 years away, and then reconsider the problem. This at least, put some kind of a "deadline" to review the situation and see if it makes sense for us to move. Then we won't have to deal with the immigration and can come back on a moment's notice if needed.

Caroline



This is going to happen to me in 2 years when I move to France. My wife
will be giving up the GC I guess. At the right time we will consult a
lawyer, as the visiting question is a good one. When does the GC expire
and the VWP kick in?



Of course, from BCIS's standpoint, they expect you to turn in the GC
when you leave I guess.


--
Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Originally posted by DCMark
This is going to happen to me in 2 years when I move to France. My wife will be giving up the GC I guess. At the right time we will consult a lawyer, as the visiting question is a good one. When does the GC expire and the VWP kick in?

Of course, from BCIS's standpoint, they expect you to turn in the GC when you leave I guess.



Wouldn't the green card expire when it is considered abandoned? So if
it is good for 2 years, does that mean if we visit within the first 2
years that he will enter on the green card and then anytime after that
he will visit VWP? But he wouldn't actually be a US resident at that
point so I would not want to do anything against immigration laws.
Confusing......


--
Posted via http://britishexpats.com

kariml,



Don't confuse the physical green card with the Permanent Resident status
that it is evidence of. In the case of the initial 2 year conditional
period, yes the status ends at the same time the card expires, unless
application has been made to remove conditions. But...



Without conditions the card can expire but the status continues. Or,
the status - before or after removing conditions - can be lost before
the expiration date of the card.



I shouldn't try to explain further, and I can't anyway, but this may be
some of the complexity that Folinskyinla referred to.



Regards, JEff



Originally posted by kariml

Wouldn't the green card expire when it is considered abandoned? So if
it is good for 2 years, does that mean if we visit within the first 2
years that he will enter on the green card and then anytime after that
he will visit VWP? But he wouldn't actually be a US resident at that
point so I would not want to do anything against immigration laws.
Confusing......


--
Of course, the Internet also tells us that hot naked women want to befriend us, so we can't be 100% sure about everything we read there. (Dave Barry)


Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Originally posted by jeffreyhy
kariml,

Don't confuse the physical green card with the Permanent Resident status that it is evidence of. In the case of the initial 2 year conditional period, yes the status ends at the same time the card expires, unless application has been made to remove conditions. But...

Without conditions the card can expire but the status continues. Or, the status - before or after removing conditions - can be lost before the expiration date of the card.

I shouldn't try to explain further, and I can't anyway, but this may be some of the complexity that Folinskyinla referred to.

Regards, JEff



I tend to use the words green card and permanent residency
interchangeably, thanks for pointing that out - something I need to get
out of the habit of doing.



Looks like it will be complicated no matter what - so many "what ifs?"


--
Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Originally posted by kariml
I tend to use the words green card and permanent residency interchangeably, thanks for pointing that out - something I need to get out of the habit of doing.

Looks like it will be complicated no matter what - so many "what ifs?"



It may be complicated but its simple too. If you (or I) move to Europe
to make our permanent life there, then our spouse (assuming they are
with us) is no longer a permanent resident of the US. There may be
some legal wrangling to hold onto the GC but in the spirit of the
entire concept of PR, it has been adandoned. You cannot live in two
places at once.



[I know this is a simplification, and you can have two homes of course.]


--
Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Originally posted by DCMark
It may be complicated but its simple too. If you (or I) move to Europe to make our permanent life there, then our spouse (assuming they are with us) is no longer a permanent resident of the US. There may be some legal wrangling to hold onto the GC but in the spirit of the entire concept of PR, it has been adandoned. You cannot live in two places at once.

[I know this is a simplification, and you can have two homes of course.]



Hi:



I have an abandonment case going right now -- client's grandparents were
naturalized US citizens living in the US. Starting as small child,
client came to the US repeatedly every summer to spend 2 months with
grandparents. Usually on a tourist visa. When she turned 18, got an
F-1 student, did her OPT and then H-1b.



On last entry, she was sent to secondary and POE inspectors did a very
detailed Q&A in order to extract a confession that her TRUE intention
was, and always was, to live in the US as long as she possibly could.



They cancel the H-1b, get ready to do expedited removal without hearing
-- and then they go to finish up everthing by making the appropriate
computer entries -- and up pops -- the green card she obtained when she
was 4 years old!



I think I stand a good chance of winning this one. She had no intention
of abandoning her green card -- she never knew she had it in the first
place! And the law is well established that the acutally documentation
doesn't count -- its action and intent that determine the issue. And
burden of proof to show abandonment is on the Feds.


--
Certified Specialist
Immigration & Nat. Law
Cal. Bar Board of Legal Specialization


Posted via http://britishexpats.com

"Folinskyinla" <member4043@british_expats.com> wrote:
They cancel the H-1b, get ready to do expedited removal without hearing -- and then they go to finish up everthing by making the appropriate computer entries -- and up pops -- the green card she obtained when she was 4 years old! I think I stand a good chance of winning this one. She had no intention of abandoning her green card -- she never knew she had it in the first place! And the law is well established that the acutally documentation doesn't count -- its action and intent that determine the issue. And burden of proof to show abandonment is on the Feds.

Interesting; couldn't the use of a non-immigrant visa be considered de-facto
abandonment?

Andy.

--
I'm not really here, it's just your warped imagination

Originally posted by Folinskyinla
client came to the US repeatedly every summer to spend 2 months with grandparents. Usually on a tourist visa. When she turned 18, got an F-1 student, did her OPT and then H-1b.

-snip-

They cancel the H-1b, get ready to do expedited removal without hearing -- and then they go to finish up everthing by making the appropriate computer entries -- and up pops -- the green card she obtained when she was 4 years old!





I'm curious. How did the LPR status NOT turn up during B1/B2, F-1 and
H-1B issuance? OK, she didn't put it in her app because she didn't know
she had it. Shouldn't it have turned up during "processing"?


--
Posted via http://britishexpats.com

"DCMark" <member6276@british_expats.com> wrote:
It may be complicated but its simple too. If you (or I) move to Europe to make our permanent life there, then our spouse (assuming they are with us) is no longer a permanent resident of the US. There may be some legal wrangling to hold onto the GC but in the spirit of the entire concept of PR, it has been adandoned. You cannot live in two places at once.

Of course, just to complicate matters ;), under some circumstances, if the
US citizen spouse is going to move abroad, their PR spouse becomes eligible
for expedited naturalization ahead of the usual three years.

Andy.

--
I'm not really here, it's just your warped imagination