Mcodox

Hi, can anyone plse help...I got a US 'Resident Alien' Greencard in the 1997 lottery. I took it up and went to the US with the intention of staying. I signed on with the IRS, but and got a job offer. My circumstances then changed and I decided not to stay in the US and returned to UK before taking up employment. The Greencard expired in 2007 and I did not attempt to renew it.

My wife has now been offered a job in the US (on a H1B and we are considering it. So...Could I re-instate my greencard? What would be the process and potential likelihood of renewal/re-instatement by US immigration?

Thanks

materialcontroller

Other people here will have more details, but you almost certainly abandoned your resident status shortly after leaving the USA. Possession of a Green Card, even one which is in date, is not an indication of US resident status. You have to actually "reside" in the USA for that.

ian-mstm

This statement indicates that your intention was to abandon your status as a US permanent resident (PR)... and materialcontroller is correct, in that the words "permanent resident" mean that you must reside permanently in the US in order to maintain that status.


The card is proof of your status, it is not the status itself. You say the card expired in 2007, but when did you actually leave the US?


As mentioned, the card is proof of your status as a PR... so what you actually want to do is reinstate your status. That depends on a number of factors, including length of time outside the US, your intent when you left, and whether or not your long-term plan was to return to the US to take up full-time residence.

Your comments suggest that had it not been for your wife's situation, you would not be planning a return to the US.


The likelihood of success is probably less than 50%, but you'll probably want to get an immigration attorney involved... because abandonment of status is a really grey area of the law.

Ian