Rete

Don't panic. She has been coming and going with the re-entry permit as far and there is no reason to think that it won't be the same on her next return flight. The I-131 is like insurance. It lets the USCIS know that you are outside of the country for extended periods and the reason for the absence. In turn it can be looked at that you are telling USCIS that you have no intention of relinquishing your residency. As long as she returns to the US before a year's absence, she should be okay. Get the attorney's take on the eligibility for naturalization.

Your other daughter is foolish to wait to naturalize if that is her intention eventually. Why wait until after marriage? Her marriage to a USC will nothing for her or her eligibility to naturalize. Hey, it is her choice. She's old enough to marry; she's old enough to make this important decision.

For the sake of other readers, do not start to feel comfortable with your residency in this country or any country where you had to apply for that residency. You can lose it as quickly as a sneeze and for reasons that you would never have thought of. Of course, you can travel for a month, two months or three months but maintain a home, bank account, credit cards, file taxes, etc. If you desire to naturalize, don't put it off (unless you haven't the money to file or are scared of the political climate (or the more reason to file IMHO)).

ChrissyD

Very good advice, I'm glad my youngest bought her own house here in 2014, so that will also show she has always meant to return & she has an internship in New York next year so that should also help.

I think you're absolutely right about being more reason to file now, it does feel like GC holders are less secure; I don't have any opinion about the rights or wrongs of this as I don't know exactly how things have changed but probably best not to be complacent as a GC holder.

scrubbedexpat099

Sounds like she is not eligible to file, does she qualify?

ChrissyD

Hi

I'm sorry I do not understand your post, what part was it that "sounds like she is not eligible to file" ? Why, other than the 6 month rule (which was my original question) do you think she may not qualify to apply?

Thank you for taking the time to reply to me but I think I have enough information to go to the immigration counselling session next week and I will report back on what happens.

Chrissy

ChrissyD

............Also a crime which many view as inconsequential such as shoplifting can strip you of your green card.

................[/QUOTE]

Hi Rete

I didn't respond to this point; nobody in the family has any convictions for anything, so luckily that's one thing we don't have to worry about

Chrissy

scrubbedexpat099

All I am going on is the admittedly limited information you have posted.

ChrissyD

Thank you, it would be useful for me to know what more information you think is needed as I have explained that she qualifies according to the UCSIS guidelines except for possibly the 6 month rule. I also explained why, according to the information on the USCIS website about the possible exemption from that rule (the three points of which I also posted) I think she will still qualify.

It would help me to know exactly what about her qualification to be able to file, you are still not clear about?

Do you have any experience with dealing with immigration issues where the exemptions to the 6 month rule were used successfully or failed?

Rete

I agree, Chrissy, I have read this three times and still don't know what David was getting at.

I didn't find your information limited. Rather straightforward. Your consultation will give you the answer to your questions for your daughter.

ChrissyD

Thanks Rete, I was always going to have the consultation,I just wondered if anyone here could shed light on it in case they say we need to have them file for us, they seem a good firm. Immigration law seems a fascinating area, but I suspect much more complicated than a layperson can imagine.

Chrissy

MidAtlantic

It seems to me you outlined the issue clearly. It appears that no-one has direct experience of this. You have probably researched this but I think that this extract from the Regulations is helpful (from https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?&node=se8.1.316_15) because it indicates that these are just examples of documentation to establish that continuity of residence was not disrupted. B, C & D fit your facts exactly and education abroad is of a similar nature to some of these examples. Good luck and please let us know what the lawyer advises.

(c) Disruption of continuity of residence—(1) Absence from the United States—(i) For continuous periods of between six (6) months and one (1) year. Absences from the United States for continuous periods of between six (6) months and one (1) year during the periods for which continuous residence is required under §316.2 (a)(3) and (a)(6) shall disrupt the continuity of such residence for purposes of this part unless the applicant can establish otherwise to the satisfaction of the Service. This finding remains valid even if the applicant did not apply for or otherwise request a nonresident classification for tax purposes, did not document an abandonment of lawful permanent resident status, and is still considered a lawful permanent resident under immigration laws. The types of documentation which may establish that the applicant did not disrupt the continuity of his or her residence in the United States during an extended absence include, but are not limited to, evidence that during the absence:

(A) The applicant did not terminate his or her employment in the United States;

(B) The applicant's immediate family remained in the United States;

(C) The applicant retained full access to his or her United States abode; or

(D) The applicant did not obtain employment while abroad.

discoviking

This is an old thread, but i noticed you didn't state specifically anywhere whether your husband is the father of your kids or not. Assuming he is, they may have aquired US Citizenship at birth. Something else to review with your immigration lawyer.

https://www.uscis.gov/us-citizenship...hrough-parents

ChrissyD

Hi
Thanks for replying, no her father died, my second husband (American) is her stepfather. She has been back into the US in Jan/Feb for a break and is back in Europe but she comes back to the US in the summer, for an internship in New York, so I think it's best she follows through on this then. I think some Green Card holders like us, can get blasé about our standing in the US as we can seemingly come and go but this has been an eye-opener and I think we should get our Citizenship as soon as possible now; as UK passport holders there is no reason not to because we can have dual citizenship anyway.

I will update this when she gets back in the summer and we get advice.
Thanks
Chrissy

Rete

Chrissy as you seem to have two account names, I am going to ask one of the supermods to contact you in regards to helping you either reopen your other account and close this one or keep this one and close the old one.

discoviking

Agreed, in your case I see no downside to getting US citizenship sooner rather than later. In my case, I was a US permanent resident from 1984 until finally getting US citizenship in 2008 - but the decision took me a while because my country of origin Norway does not allow dual citizenship. Good thing I finally made the decision to get US citizenship though. Had I not done that, it would have caused complications and put my residency at risk in 2015 when my company decided to transfer me to Montreal. I thought I was finally done with immigration when I got my US citizenship, but I am going through the Canadian immigration rigamorole to go from work permit to permanent residency to eventual Canadian citizenship now. But, that's a story for the Canadian BE forums.... :-)

petitefrancaise

we're going through the same scenario, although my son was only 3 days over the 6 months out of the country in one go and we applied for a re-entry permit before he left.
The lawyer doesn't think it's an issue for us since we informed USCIS in advance he would be out of the country as student (the re-entry permit) and continues to regard USA as his home, he still has bank accounts here and of course,the rest of his immediate family is here. He intends to return. She doesn't think we need to "reset the clock".
I would think a consult with an attorney would be a good idea and hopefully reassuring for you.