[email protected]

I have a green card but have been out of the USA for 15 months.
Living in Limerick. Going to Boston next week from Shannon.
Would a white lie saying I was out for six months get me into serious
problems?.

CouId I lose my visa? be banned?

Would appreciate some advice

JulianB

Yes
Yes
No

How long do you intend to come to the US for, and for what reason? Law regards you as having abandoned your GC, but pretty sure you already knew that.

Noorah101

Yes. Never lie to USCIS.

You don't have a visa to lose. You are a permanent resident of USA. If you mean, could you lose your PR status...highly possible. It depends on your own specific circumstances of why you were outside the USA for so long. You won't be banned, but you will be taken to secondary and questioned, and then possibly taken into detention to await a hearing in front of an immigration judge to plead your case, and it's up to the judge to determine whether you've abandoned your PR status or not.

You might want to try to get a returning resident visa (at the US consulate where you are now). You really needed to have applied for a re-entry permit before you left the USA for that long.

Best Wishes,
Rene

Templar

> I have a green card but have been out of the USA for 15 months.
> Living in Limerick. Going to Boston next week from Shannon.
> Would a white lie saying I was out for six months get me into serious
> problems?.
>
> CouId I lose my visa? be banned?
>
> Would appreciate some advice

Can't believe how many try to lie their way through the entry point
lately.
NO. You cannot lie to the entry officer.

Here is a link to a relevant discussion. Pay attention to this
quote - "First is that the USCIS likely has your departure and entry
record on file"

Will my rank stupidity cost me my green card? - ImmigrationPortal Forums
(http://boards.immigrationportal.com/...ead.php?t#8717)

--

penguinsix

You've probably heard this but you should have dealt with this before you left. There are exceptions to the residency requirement for people overseas for certain reasons.

After six months away, the burden is on you to show that you still have a connection to the US. Bank statements, paystubs, mortgage payments, property and income tax filings. After one year, most BCIS agents assume you have surrendered your green card and permanent resident status.

It can really be luck of the draw. Some guys at the border are very stringent, some more flexible.

But lying is never a good idea. The last thing you want is to lie to them and then have the recreate your travel over the last 2 years by looking at stamps in the passport.

nun

Scary thing is that even if the INS says you've lost PR ststus the IRS probably still wants to tax you. Be careful as a Green Card holder if you are out of the US for an extended period you can lose it, but still have to file a 1040.....stupid I know.

Sapphyre

On Mar 13, 8:48 pm, Templar <[email protected]> wrote:
> Can't believe how many try to lie their way through the entry point
> lately.
> NO. You cannot lie to the entry officer.

The supervisor who apologized to me for my harsh treatment at Customs
told me, "we have to use these tactics [of questioning visitors] if we
don't like the information you're giving us. I'm sorry it wasn't a
good experience for you, but you have to understand that 40% of the
people we question every day are lying to us, and we don't like that."
He wasn't the only person to have said that to me that day. One of the
officers that told me I'd be going to secondary (well, I was already
there, he was just staying with me and my car until they were ready to
look at my import), told me that his buddy was using a technique to
try and break me because he didn't feel I was telling the truth.

The situation, I had a gift import that was above what their threshold
should be, I assumed I'd just be taxed or dutied, but I guess they
don't do that like they do in Canada. They deem that value to be
commercial, and the type of goods I had is usually deemed to be
commercial, so they had to check it out. Meanwhile, one of the
officers is questioning me as if he had a hot temper and trying to get
me to admit that it's not a gift/hobby, and that I'm making money and
lying about it. When the hot tempered officer took off, I told his
buddy that I was really upset by some of the things this guy said
(telling me it doesn't make sense, telling me I don't need to spend
that much on my hobby, telling me I had too much money when I had well
under $1000, which I didn't think would be a problem to carry with me,
etc). His buddy obviously believed me, because he told me that they're
used to people lying.

So given that they tell me that, and they seem to think there's often
little they can do about it (as in, if they don't believe someone and
don't have grounds to do much about it), then they have to let it go.
It's like when they ask if the friend I'm visiting is a boyfriend.
They probably don't believe me when I say no, but unless they have
another way to say I can't visit, they can't do much about it. So
perhaps there isn't as much lying as they think, but people I used to
work with would brag that they always got away with bringing back more
than $200 worth of goods into Canada. So some people seem to think
it's okay. personally, I'd rather just pay the taxes and be done with
it.

> Here is a link to a relevant discussion. Pay attention to this
> quote - "First is that the USCIS likely has your departure and entry
> record on file"

Airlines provide info to the POE. They're now doing that on Greyhound
buses (not sure about leaving the US, but entering the US, you have to
fax your passport info to the POE before you get there, if you haven't
signed the form, they can't let you board the bus.) Trains do this
too.

S.

rogercute2002

I know lying is BAD not only to an entry officer but to anyone. But
there are just some situations it's your only choice. INS doesn't
have any record how long have you been gone outside the country.
(correct me if I'm wrong). Telling an entry officer that you're gone
for 2 weeks there's no way that they can verify that.

As many know, being honest to an immigration officer will get you in
trouble sometimes. I applied one time for a US visa because the
company is sending me for training in the US. I was very honest but
they still denied me twice on 2 different occassions.

Another situation, when a US company flew me over to the US for a job
interview, when the immigration officer asked me what would I do in
the US, I told him I'll just visit somebody. I lied this time and he
let me in. To my surprise, when he asked me what I'm doing I told him
that I'm a System Analyst and he recommended me to work in the US. I
was shocked.

Anyway, just sharing my personal experience. Don't get me wrong I'M
NOT A LIAR.


Sapphyre wrote:
> On Mar 13, 8:48 pm, Templar <[email protected]> wrote:
> > Can't believe how many try to lie their way through the entry point
> > lately.
> > NO. You cannot lie to the entry officer.
>
> The supervisor who apologized to me for my harsh treatment at Customs
> told me, "we have to use these tactics [of questioning visitors] if we
> don't like the information you're giving us. I'm sorry it wasn't a
> good experience for you, but you have to understand that 40% of the
> people we question every day are lying to us, and we don't like that."
> He wasn't the only person to have said that to me that day. One of the
> officers that told me I'd be going to secondary (well, I was already
> there, he was just staying with me and my car until they were ready to
> look at my import), told me that his buddy was using a technique to
> try and break me because he didn't feel I was telling the truth.
>
> The situation, I had a gift import that was above what their threshold
> should be, I assumed I'd just be taxed or dutied, but I guess they
> don't do that like they do in Canada. They deem that value to be
> commercial, and the type of goods I had is usually deemed to be
> commercial, so they had to check it out. Meanwhile, one of the
> officers is questioning me as if he had a hot temper and trying to get
> me to admit that it's not a gift/hobby, and that I'm making money and
> lying about it. When the hot tempered officer took off, I told his
> buddy that I was really upset by some of the things this guy said
> (telling me it doesn't make sense, telling me I don't need to spend
> that much on my hobby, telling me I had too much money when I had well
> under $1000, which I didn't think would be a problem to carry with me,
> etc). His buddy obviously believed me, because he told me that they're
> used to people lying.
>
> So given that they tell me that, and they seem to think there's often
> little they can do about it (as in, if they don't believe someone and
> don't have grounds to do much about it), then they have to let it go.
> It's like when they ask if the friend I'm visiting is a boyfriend.
> They probably don't believe me when I say no, but unless they have
> another way to say I can't visit, they can't do much about it. So
> perhaps there isn't as much lying as they think, but people I used to
> work with would brag that they always got away with bringing back more
> than $200 worth of goods into Canada. So some people seem to think
> it's okay. personally, I'd rather just pay the taxes and be done with
> it.
>
> > Here is a link to a relevant discussion. Pay attention to this
> > quote - "First is that the USCIS likely has your departure and entry
> > record on file"
>
> Airlines provide info to the POE. They're now doing that on Greyhound
> buses (not sure about leaving the US, but entering the US, you have to
> fax your passport info to the POE before you get there, if you haven't
> signed the form, they can't let you board the bus.) Trains do this
> too.
>
> S.

ian-mstm

Yes, you are! You even admitted it before you tried to deny it.

Ian

rogercute2002

I should have said I'm not a habitual liar. Like what I said I only
lie when I have no choice.

Ian, have you lied before? if not you're perfect.


On Mar 16, 9:07 am, ian-mstm <[email protected]>
wrote:
> > I know lying is BAD not only to an entry officer but to anyone. But
> > there are just some situations it's your only choice. INS doesn't
> > have any record how long have you been gone outside the country.
> > (correct me if I'm wrong). Telling an entry officer that you're gone
> > for 2 weeks there's no way that they can verify that.
>
> > As many know, being honest to an immigration officer will get you in
> > trouble sometimes. I applied one time for a US visa because the
> > company is sending me for training in the US. I was very honest but
> > they still denied me twice on 2 different occassions.
>
> > Another situation, when a US company flew me over to the US for a job
> > interview, when the immigration officer asked me what would I do in
> > the US, I told him I'll just visit somebody. I lied this time and he
> > let me in. To my surprise, when he asked me what I'm doing I told him
> > that I'm a System Analyst and he recommended me to work in the US. I
> > was shocked.
>
> > Anyway, just sharing my personal experience. Don't get me wrong I'M
> > NOT A LIAR.
>
> > Sapphyre wrote:
> > > On Mar 13, 8:48 pm, Templar <[email protected]> wrote:
> > > > Can't believe how many try to lie their way through the entry
> > > > point
> > > > lately.
> > > > NO. You cannot lie to the entry officer.
>
> > > The supervisor who apologized to me for my harsh treatment at
> > > Customs
> > > told me, "we have to use these tactics [of questioning visitors] if
> > > we
> > > don't like the information you're giving us. I'm sorry it wasn't a
> > > good experience for you, but you have to understand that 40% of the
> > > people we question every day are lying to us, and we don't like
> > > that."
> > > He wasn't the only person to have said that to me that day. One of
> > > the
> > > officers that told me I'd be going to secondary (well, I was already
> > > there, he was just staying with me and my car until they were ready
> > > to
> > > look at my import), told me that his buddy was using a technique to
> > > try and break me because he didn't feel I was telling the truth.
>
> > > The situation, I had a gift import that was above what their
> > > threshold
> > > should be, I assumed I'd just be taxed or dutied, but I guess they
> > > don't do that like they do in Canada. They deem that value to be
> > > commercial, and the type of goods I had is usually deemed to be
> > > commercial, so they had to check it out. Meanwhile, one of the
> > > officers is questioning me as if he had a hot temper and trying to
> > > get
> > > me to admit that it's not a gift/hobby, and that I'm making money
> > > and
> > > lying about it. When the hot tempered officer took off, I told his
> > > buddy that I was really upset by some of the things this guy said
> > > (telling me it doesn't make sense, telling me I don't need to spend
> > > that much on my hobby, telling me I had too much money when I had
> > > well
> > > under $1000, which I didn't think would be a problem to carry with
> > > me,
> > > etc). His buddy obviously believed me, because he told me that
> > > they're
> > > used to people lying.
>
> > > So given that they tell me that, and they seem to think there's
> > > often
> > > little they can do about it (as in, if they don't believe
> > > someone and
> > > don't have grounds to do much about it), then they have to let
> > > it go.
> > > It's like when they ask if the friend I'm visiting is a
> > > boyfriend.
> > > They probably don't believe me when I say no, but unless they
> > > have
> > > another way to say I can't visit, they can't do much about it.
> > > So
> > > perhaps there isn't as much lying as they think, but people I
> > > used to
> > > work with would brag that they always got away with bringing
> > > back more
> > > than $200 worth of goods into Canada. So some people seem to
> > > think
> > > it's okay. personally, I'd rather just pay the taxes and be
> > > done with
> > > it.
>
> > > > Here is a link to a relevant discussion. Pay attention to this
> > > > quote - "First is that the USCIS likely has your departure and
> > > > entry
> > > > record on file"
>
> > > Airlines provide info to the POE. They're now doing that on
> > > Greyhound
> > > buses (not sure about leaving the US, but entering the US, you have
> > > to
> > > fax your passport info to the POE before you get there, if you
> > > haven't
> > > signed the form, they can't let you board the bus.) Trains do this
> > > too.
>
> > > S.
>
> Yes, you are! You even admitted it before you tried to deny it.
>
> Ian
>
> --
> Posted viahttp://britishexpats.com- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

scrubbedexpat099

Ditto

INS does not because INS no longer exists, but as they know when you entered and when you left, by deduction they can work out when you were out of the US. And they also ask you. And you better be able to substantiate anything you say if you need to.

ian-mstm

I've never lied to immigration... and that seems to be one of many differences between us. BTW, there is *always* a choice. You may not particularly like the things between which you must choose, but the choice exists. You could have told the truth... and these things have a way of coming back to bite you on the arse.

Ian

rogercute2002

Well, I'm talking in general here.

Have you lied to anyone before since you were born?

Also, how come you don't put your real name? Don't you think that's
form of lying too?

Just answer the question.

>BTW, there is *always* a choice. You may not
>particularly like the things between which you must choose, but the
>choice exists.

Yes, I chose the truth before and made me suffer. Sometimes you just
have to choose lesser evil. Like what I said you're perfect if you
have never lied to anyone before.

Don't you think that those 40% lied to immigration did they tell the
truth before?

I'm just sharing some past experiences here, and some people that I
know of. In my situation, I rather take the risk of lying and get in
than tell the truth and could not get in in the US.

Again, I'm not into lying. But you know in life you can be weak at
times and you might choose wrong thing you don't want to do.

Is one time lie a liar forever?

I don't want to argue with you. I just want to make this forum as
sharing some information not argument..




On Mar 16, 2:34 pm, ian-mstm <[email protected]>
wrote:
> > I should have said I'm not a habitual liar. Like what I said I only
> > lie when I have no choice.
>
> > Ian, have you lied before? if not you're perfect.
>
> > On Mar 16, 9:07 am, ian-mstm <[email protected]>
> > wrote:
> > > > I know lying is BAD not only to an entry officer but to anyone.
> > > > But
> > > > there are just some situations it's your only choice. INS
> > > > doesn't
> > > > have any record how long have you been gone outside the country.
> > > > (correct me if I'm wrong). Telling an entry officer that you're
> > > > gone
> > > > for 2 weeks there's no way that they can verify that.
>
> > > > As many know, being honest to an immigration officer will get you
> > > > in
> > > > trouble sometimes. I applied one time for a US visa because the
> > > > company is sending me for training in the US. I was very honest
> > > > but
> > > > they still denied me twice on 2 different occassions.
>
> > > > Another situation, when a US company flew me over to the US for a
> > > > job
> > > > interview, when the immigration officer asked me what would I do
> > > > in
> > > > the US, I told him I'll just visit somebody. I lied this time and
> > > > he
> > > > let me in. To my surprise, when he asked me what I'm doing I told
> > > > him
> > > > that I'm a System Analyst and he recommended me to work in the US.
> > > > I
> > > > was shocked.
>
> > > > Anyway, just sharing my personal experience. Don't get me wrong
> > > > I'M
> > > > NOT A LIAR.
>
> > > > Sapphyre wrote:
> > > > > On Mar 13, 8:48 pm, Templar <[email protected]>
> > > > > wrote:
> > > > > > Can't believe how many try to lie their way through the entry
> > > > > > point
> > > > > > lately.
> > > > > > NO. You cannot lie to the entry officer.
>
> > > > > The supervisor who apologized to me for my harsh treatment at
> > > > > Customs
> > > > > told me, "we have to use these tactics [of questioning visitors]
> > > > > if
> > > > > we
> > > > > don't like the information you're giving us. I'm sorry it wasn't
> > > > > a
> > > > > good experience for you, but you have to understand that 40% of
> > > > > the
> > > > > people we question every day are lying to us, and we don't like
> > > > > that."
> > > > > He wasn't the only person to have said that to me that day. One
> > > > > of
> > > > > the
> > > > > officers that told me I'd be going to secondary (well, I was
> > > > > already
> > > > > there, he was just staying with me and my car until they were
> > > > > ready
> > > > > to
> > > > > look at my import), told me that his buddy was using a technique
> > > > > to
> > > > > try and break me because he didn't feel I was telling the truth.
>
> > > > > The situation, I had a gift import that was above what their
> > > > > threshold
> > > > > should be, I assumed I'd just be taxed or dutied, but I guess
> > > > > they
> > > > > don't do that like they do in Canada. They deem that value to be
> > > > > commercial, and the type of goods I had is usually deemed to be
> > > > > commercial, so they had to check it out. Meanwhile, one of the
> > > > > officers is questioning me as if he had a hot temper and trying
> > > > > to
> > > > > get
> > > > > me to admit that it's not a gift/hobby, and that I'm making
> > > > > money
> > > > > and
> > > > > lying about it. When the hot tempered officer took off, I told
> > > > > his
> > > > > buddy that I was really upset by some of the things this guy
> > > > > said
> > > > > (telling me it doesn't make sense, telling me I don't need to
> > > > > spend
> > > > > that much on my hobby, telling me I had too much money when I
> > > > > had
> > > > > well
> > > > > under $1000, which I didn't think would be a problem to carry
> > > > > with
> > > > > me,
> > > > > etc). His buddy obviously believed me, because he told me that
> > > > > they're
> > > > > used to people lying.
>
> > > > > So given that they tell me that, and they seem to think there's
> > > > > often
> > > > > little they can do about it (as in, if they don't believe
> > > > > someone and
> > > > > don't have grounds to do much about it), then they have to let
> > > > > it go.
> > > > > It's like when they ask if the friend I'm visiting is a
> > > > > boyfriend.
> > > > > They probably don't believe me when I say no, but unless they
> > > > > have
> > > > > another way to say I can't visit, they can't do much about it.
> > > > > So
> > > > > perhaps there isn't as much lying as they think, but people I
> > > > > used to
> > > > > work with would brag that they always got away with bringing
> > > > > back more
> > > > > than $200 worth of goods into Canada. So some people seem to
> > > > > think
> > > > > it's okay. personally, I'd rather just pay the taxes and be
> > > > > done with
> > > > > it.
>
> > > > > > Here is a link to a relevant discussion. Pay attention to
> > > > > > this
> > > > > > quote - "First is that the USCIS likely has your departure and
> > > > > > entry
> > > > > > record on file"
>
> > > > > Airlines provide info to the POE. They're now doing that on
> > > > > Greyhound
> > > > > buses (not sure about leaving the US, but entering the US, you
> > > > > have
> > > > > to
> > > > > fax your passport info to the POE before you get there, if you
> > > > > haven't
> > > > > signed the form, they can't let you board the bus.) Trains do
> > > > > this
> > > > > too.
>
> > > > > S.
>
> > > Yes, you are! You even admitted it before you tried to deny it.
>
> > > Ian
>
> > > --
> > > Posted viahttp://britishexpats.com-Hide quoted text -
>
> > > - Show quoted text -
>
> I've never lied to immigration... and that seems to be one of many
> differences between us. BTW, there is *always* a choice. You may not
> particularly like the things between which you must choose, but the
> choice exists. You could have told the truth... and these things have a
> way of coming back to bite you on the arse.
>
> Ian
>
> --
> Posted viahttp://britishexpats.com- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

ian-mstm

Sure, I have lied before.


I'm not sure what you mean. Ian *is* my real name. In fact, I am one of the few who actually puts my real name at the end of every message I write.


Okay... whatever you say.

Ian

Sapphyre

On Mar 16, 7:28 am, [email protected] wrote:
> I know lying is BAD not only to an entry officer but to anyone. But
> there are just some situations it's your only choice. INS doesn't
> have any record how long have you been gone outside the country.
> (correct me if I'm wrong). Telling an entry officer that you're gone
> for 2 weeks there's no way that they can verify that.

The entry officer may not know on his computer... but if he suspects
you are lying, and then the steps are made for an immigration hearing,
and the returning resident has lied, the onus is then on the returning
resident to prove the facts. It is very hard for someone to prove the
length of time they have been gone (being so short a time), when ties
are severed. I know this because every time I move, I slowly lose ties
I had with whereever I lived. Library cards, health care, driver's
licenses, memberships, etc, slowly expire. Being out of country makes
it difficult or impossible to renew these cards. As well, ties to
jobs, residents, etc, also fade away in time. I mean, if you're gone
for 15 months and pay rent on an apartment because it's beyond your
control, and you only intended to be gone 2 months (so you didn't
bother with the return papers), when your case is tried before the
judge, you'd likely win. (I say you, meaning the returning resident, I
don't mean this personally... just to clarify).

When I've been out of Canada, although not for a prolonged period of
time, I still paid bills, had bank accounts, paid rent on an apartment
(I did not store my belongings, even though my time out of Canada was
not definite for return date), and I made ties by registering for
"future" things that I intended to do when I came back (like school).
No one could argue that I had abandonned residency, even if at the POE
the officer got the idea that my absense was too long. You do realize
that they can claim someone abandonned their residency even if the
resident is gone less than 6 months? It just doesn't happen very often
I'm sure, it's 6 months to 1 year that's questionable.

> As many know, being honest to an immigration officer will get you in
> trouble sometimes. I applied one time for a US visa because the
> company is sending me for training in the US. I was very honest but
> they still denied me twice on 2 different occassions.

You have to know your laws and know what to say. if you know your
laws, you can tell your employer that they should not be sending you
for training, because you might not be allowed into the US under those
grounds. My partner got in trouble for attending a job interview in
Texas and he had no visa. He didn't need a visa to be interviewed, he
would have gotten a TN if he were hired, but he wasn't worried about
getting a visa before getting a job. He was in secondary for a couple
of hours and narrowly made his flight. These things happen, but if you
lied, you still would be denied, and you'd have bigger consequences
than just the early return home.

> Another situation, when a US company flew me over to the US for a job
> interview, when the immigration officer asked me what would I do in
> the US, I told him I'll just visit somebody. I lied this time and he
> let me in. To my surprise, when he asked me what I'm doing I told him
> that I'm a System Analyst and he recommended me to work in the US. I
> was shocked.

Officers are people underneath their badge, you got a cool one. I know
a supervisor who just told me to tell them I was meeting friends. I
countered, "what's my friend's name, where are we meeting, where do
they live, how did I arrange to meet them there on that day, how long
have I known them, how did we met, how often do we talk to each other,
why are we meeting in the US?" The officer said, "I love how your mind
works, if you think like that, just tell them the truth and talk a
lot." when I give one word answers I ALWAYS get into trouble because
they think I'm hiding stuff or don't want to tell them things. If I
explain myself, they realize that they're not dealing with an ordinary
individual, and I have a reason for everything I do, even if it makes
no sense to anyone else.

> Anyway, just sharing my personal experience. Don't get me wrong I'M
> NOT A LIAR.

I don't know how others will respond to this... but relax. If I told
you I never lied (even if I advocate honesty at the POE), I'd be a
liar in this group. I get paid big bucks to screen phone calls as my
boss' personal secretary just so I can tell people he doesn't want to
talk to where to go... I just tell off the soliciters "this is a
business, I don't have time to take surveys/we don't buy
magazines,etc". And with his calls, I have to screen ever single one
by telling the caller, "he's not here right now, can I take a
message?" even if he is there, and he doesn't ever intend to return
the call. That's what I'm paid to do, so when it comes to lying...
everyone does it. Time and place. I would happily tell these guys "he
doesn't want to talk to you, no one here wants to talk to you, we
aren't returning your call, so stop calling. I don't care who else you
want to complain to, call someone who gives a damn." But I'd be fired
within five minutes if I actually said that, and if it were my
company, I would say that. I miss working for a manager who allowed me
to tell people off and say what I want when it's appropriate... but
that's not in my job description anymore.

S.