Middlemore

I've had a GC for nine years, and started the citizenship process in May last year. I was advised at the time to start it 6-12 months before the GC expired, and I did it 10 months before expiration, which is in January 2022.

Now my lawyer tells me that all applications are on hold, as the staff have been moved to working on Afghan asylum applications only.
I'm only part way through, so what can I do to continue working legally, as presumably the GC will now expire before I become a citizen?

I really don't want to be terminated for this, as I have accumulated several years pension entitlement, and have to hit 10 years to receive it.
Is there a document I can get that will allow me to continue working while this all gets sorted out.

No problems with the process btw, no criminal record, legally employed and paying taxes!
I was told it would be complete by the end of this year before this unexpected turn of events.

newacct

Your permanent resident status does not expire, even if the card expires. You retain the right to legally work and live in the US indefinitely. If you completed the I-9 with a (2-year or 10-year) green card, the employer is not allowed to re-verify your I-9 when the green card expires. (Or, if you completed the I-9 with a driver's license and unrestricted Social Security card, the employer is likewise not supposed to re-verify it.) If you start a new job, you can use your driver's license and unrestricted Social Security card to pass the I-9. You can also make an appointment at a USCIS office to get an I-551 stamp on your passport, if you want proof of permanent residency in the meantime.

Middlemore

Thank you!
I was hoping for an answer along those lines, but was having real problems finding that information.
My lawyer said to contact Immigration for an "info pass" appointment, but when I called them about that, they said I can only call to schedule an appointment in the final 30 days of my current GC, but due to backlogs, they were scheduling around three months out!

Thank you again, that is such a relief. I've worked 7 years of the 10 I need for the pension scheme with my employer, and I was so worried they would have ground to terminate me and I would lose the pension history.

Rete

Now you are going to have to spend the money to apply for the new green card which will show non-believers that you are still a legal permanent resident. Your attorney was full of it and gave very strange advice. You were eligible to apply for naturalization 5 full years after your received your residency status.

tht

How do you know that? I did not see the OP posting about their travel history, 5 years is only 1 of the criteria, there are others.

Rete

And how do you know that he might not be eligible because of frequently and/or lengthy trips abroad.

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tht

I dont know anything else other than the OP posted. I only know that:

“You were eligible to apply for naturalization 5 full years after your received your residency status.”

May or may not be accurate, and we can’t determine that from the information the OP supplied.

Something like “You would have been eligible to apply for naturalization 5 full years after your received your residency status assuming you met all the other criteria” would have been more accurate.

lizzyq

As the OP met the GC validity requirements when the naturalization forms were filed would not a one year I-551 stamp in the passport be sufficient proof of LPR status?

Middlemore

I've lived in the US since 2012, with vacations in the UK that were within the residency requirements.
I started the citizenship process, my lawyer saw no problems at all, until this roadblock from the immigration folk themselves being diverted to deal with the refugees and therefore messing up my anticipated timeline!

You are right that I was initially told that I could apply after 5 years residency, but at that time it was not clear whether I would stay, as my son's job unexpectedly took him back to the UK from NYC.
So I hesitated, but stayed here, and then at the start of this year began the process. My lawyer did not expect any problems, he said that as long as I started while I had a minimum 6 months GC left, it would be good.


As I said at the start of this conversation, my main concern is my employment. I do not want any reason for them to terminate me when I only need another three years to hit the pension target!
I was under the impression that HR would come after me when the GC expired, and it seems that this is not the case at all.

S Folinsky

You have been informed that although your I-551 card may have expired, your residence STATUS has not. The card is merely evidence of that status. Take a look at the I-9 form which you completed at beginning of your employment. Note that it does NOT ask for the expiry of the card. Also note that, although you must provide your alien registration number, you are NOT required to show your card.

As to what your attorney tells you, it strikes that there is a failure to communicate. I know that when I was in practice, I would sometimes provide correct information only to have the client string together elements of that information to reach an incorrect conclusion. I wonder if that is what happened here.

What you need to know is if you truly need current evidence of LPR status at this time.

newacct

Although the I-9 does not ask for a date of expiry for a permanent resident, the issue of document reverification is more complex. See the section of the Handbook for Employers for permanent residents. If the permanent resident presented an I-551 stamp, an immigrant visa acting as I-551, or an expired card plus an I-751 extension letter, then the employer is supposed to reverify the documents when it expires. However, if an actual unexpired green card (doesn't matter if it's 2-year, 10-year, or without expiration date), or an expired green card plus I-90 extension letter, was presented for the I-9, the employer is not supposed to reverify it, ever. (And obviously, if a driver's license and unrestricted Social Security card were presented, then they don't reverify it either since Social Security cards don't expire.)