l1usspouse

Hi all,

I'm new to these forums, so I hope I'm posting in the right place, and appropriately too.

I am an L1-B visa holder living in the US with a US citizen spouse. We are thinking about moving over to the UK in a year or so. My L1 is valid for two more years (when it reaches the maximum five) so no worries there. But with the economy as it is, I'm a little worried that if I lost my job, I would be in a tough situation.

I've read around for a while on various forums and concluded that I would be able to file a swift AOS request and get on the Green Card path without having to leave the country. So, let's say that I put in for my GC and am granted it in about a year's time. That means first that if I'm laid off, within about three months of the application I'd probably have an EAD and could seek new employment.

To avoid any risk we are thinking of putting in the AOS now, anyway. And if I'm laid off in three months, then, maybe it would all be seamless and I'd be eligible for work straight away.

But once I've filed AOS, I realise that another set of responsibilities comes with the Green Card / permanent resident status. An immigration lawyer I had a chance to speak to while I was getting my L1 renewed advised me that if I did file AOS, I should wait until the process of getting the conditional status is complete before moving abroad. No problem there.

However, once we are living in the UK (and so far my wife and I have not even really looked into what would be necessary for her to live and work in the UK), I understand that I would need to take steps to maintain permanent resident status. I've read about these steps, including filing tax returns annually, and applying for a permit to return before leaving the US, etc.

So, to my real question -- has anyone else put themselves on the GC track and then maintained status for several years from abroad? How difficult is it? I realise there are no guarantees, but in practice, when my wife and I want to return to the US, would I be at risk of never getting permanent resident status again because I'd "abandoned" it? Or would I be a dead cert for getting status renewed given that she is a USC?

Many thanks for any responses.

crg

Prior abandonment by itself does not negatively impact a future application. I have heard of LPRs, who were not living in the US as required, being ordered removed from the US though. It's not common but it does happen.

I wouldn't fart around with the AOS now. Your plan seems to include being a pseudo-LPR of convenience for an indeterminate period of time. Don't get the LPR status unless you're ready to reside in the US until you get citizenship.

If you have a USC spouse, you can essentially get an immigrant visa when you're ready unless something disqualifies you.

AOS can be a pain in the a$$. Removal of conditions can be a pain in the a$$. The paperwork and attorney fees are higher. Crossing the border when you aren't in full compliance with the LPR status can be a royal pain in the a$$.

If you find yourself in the UK, you can apply for a green card 8 to 10 months before you're ready to move in for good. By that point you may have even been married for 2 years.

With a marriage of longer than 2 years and an immigrant visa in hand, you would get a green card without conditions upon arrival. So you wouldn't even have to file the I-751.

You're smart to be concerned. The LPR status has both privileges and responsibilities.

meauxna

thanks for saving me a long typing session, crg!

I'll just add, if they're living overseas and decide to relocate, the IV application ('green card') can be done in even less time than the 8-10 months.
If London, generally 5 months door to door.

l1usspouse

Thank you both for your helpful replies. It sounds like I'm understanding the difficulties correctly. But I think if I was laid off, I'd still have to consider immediate filing for GC. It's the enforced gap in employment that concerns me, I suppose. Upping sticks immediately isn't too plausible.

notacrime

The process for your wife to get work authorization in the UK is very straightforward. My wife was able to get hers sorted out same day at the British consulate in LA.

I did something very similar to what you are considering. I received my conditional GC in Jan '07, then moved to Edinburgh in Sep '07. I applied for the re-entry permit before I left the US and that was approved and sent to the US consulate here in Edinburgh. But it expired on the same day as my conditional GC (Jan '09.)

With the help and advice of this forum I was able to file the I-751 removal of conditions, which was approved and I just received my 10yr GC.

Since leaving San Francisco in July '07 I've traveled back about every six months (Feb '08, Apr '08, Oct '08 and Feb '09 for I-751 biometrics.) The POE experiences have run the gamut from breezing through to being sent to secondary because of expired GC (the most recent trip, but now I have my new GC.) I had the advantage of a brother with a house in New Jersey that I could use for the mailing address, and who I could stay with when flying over at short notice for the biometrics appointment. If you look through my old posts you can get a decent picture of what went down.

My advice is to avoid this if it all possible. If you are committed to moving to the UK in the next year then maybe you should commit to doing so next June, or when you lose your job, whichever comes first.

As meauxna pointed out getting your immigrant visa from the UK will take about 5 months. It's valid for 6 months from the date of issue, and as long as you enter within that time you'll receive your GC automatically. So you'll have plenty of flexibility for when you decide to move back to the US with your wife. It's also cheaper than doing AOS and then I-751, and you'll sleep better at night.

Good luck.

hobbes79

It's tough I know, but you really have to decide on this one way or the other. Once decided...

1. If you don't plan to move to the UK, file for AOS now.

2. If you do plan to move to UK within a year, carry on as normal. If you happen to get laid off, move to the UK ahead of your other half.

3. If a "year or so" is in fact 3-years after receiving a GC, you can apply for USC and go back and forth to your heart's content.

Once you've made up your mind, the path you need to take will become clearer.

Immigration is one of those tricky things that kinda requires you to put your eggs in one basket

By the way, whereabouts in Mass are you?

l1usspouse

Thanks all.

When I said "thinking about" a year from now I guess I meant it's a relatively firm plan. Circumstances (including a layoff) could push it a bit closer or a bit farther out, but that's when our apartment lease ends. But it's firm enough of a plan that we are actively intending to do it, yes.

notacrime: Thanks, I will look back at your posting history. We were pleasantly surprised to read about your wife's work permit being so straightforward.

hobbes79: I am in Somerville.