bigdreamslittledreams

Hi all! I have been in the USA for coming up to 6 years in November and have been thinking of moving back home to the UK with my husband and children. I have not been naturalized here in the USA and am a GC Holder. My husband is a citizen and my children were born here. My question is, would it be easier and or more beneficial if I were to be naturalized here in the USA and if in case we hated it back in the UK, we could come back to the USA again? Or should I remain a GC Holder? I do know that there are differences with taxes and what not. It's all rather confusing and overwhelming. The simple fact is, I miss home and my kids need family around them! Any help appreciated!

Glasgow Girl

So long as you understand the tax consequences of becoming a US citizen which can be quite onerous even for those living outside the US, on balance I think I would become a citizen before you leave. The main reason being that as US citizens your kids may decide to relocate over here at a future point in life and if so it would much easier if you were a citizen and wanted to stay for an extended period. Also, if you change your mind it will be so much easier to move back. You also need to consider what would happen in a divorce situation with the kids.

if I was certain I was not coming back for any reason, I might renounce my green card to escape the taxation issues though. Tough call.

S Folinsky

I wonder about Social Security benefits already paid for.

ScousePete

I had the same dilemma as you. I had been a green card holder for many years and had no real need to become a citizen - until I began to explore work opportunities in the Caribbean. I didn't want to lose all the "time and effort" I had already put in to get to the US by living away and potentially risk losing my residency. My wife is American, so there was a good chance we would want to return to the US at some time in the future. So I bit the bullet and got my US citizenship. Now I have options. The fact that I could have dual citizenship, and not have to give up my UK passport was a major deciding factor. Yes, I do need to file a tax return every year, but it has actually always worked out in my favour, money-wise.

Nutmegger

If you return to the UK, you are no longer a permanent resident. With a USC husband and children, you should naturalize prior to leaving so that you can reside in whichever country you choose.

Pulaski

Agreed. Nobody knows what the future holds, and whenever possible I would want to have the same citizenships as my children whenever possible. Taxes be damned, you can't put a price on always being able to visit your children (unless of course they up and move to another country themselves, which is always possible.)

durham_lad

Under the circumstances I would apply for US citizenship for all the reasons given above.

as to the question asked about Social Security then that will still be available, citizenship or not. If you do become a citizen then be sure to register that with the SS administration, probably means taking your certificate and/or passport as proof. We never did that and over 20 years later when we applied to receive SS while living in the UK we had send off our passports even though we were told by the agent that we were eligible to receive SS if we were not citizens.

Rete

Being that your husband is a US citizen, he is going to have to file US taxes regardless of your status in the US. There is a threshold (a large one from my point of view) on earnings/income before you are responsible for paying US taxes, so don't let that be the thing that stops you from naturalizing.

penguinsix

You need to delve a bit deeper into Green Card abandonment. Your permanent residence (Green Card) is valid, *basically*, only if you are resident in the USA.

Now there are many many exceptions, such as short trips under 6 months, working in certain industries, pre-cleared time away, etc. but generally speaking, if you are going to move to the UK, your green card is going to be abandoned, regardless of whether or not you 'renounce'.

I think we have a WIKI on the subject (though it hasn't been updated in a few years). Still might be worth checking out.

https://britishexpats.com/wiki/Green_Card_Abandonment

S Folinsky

It should be noted that the Wiki is mis-titled. It discusses breaks in continuity of residence for naturalization, not abandonment of LPR status. Although related, they are different.

Also, presumption and burden of proof are analytically different issues.

bigdreamslittledreams

Thanks all! it seems the most logical to naturalize regardless. Have any of you done it yourself filling in the N400 form?

durham_lad

My wife and I did it ourselves back in 1998. Not too daunting a task from what I recall.

Anian

Yes, it's not that difficult, seems more like a formality than a hassle, although if I wasn't a non-criminal tax-payer I might have met more resistance. I even screwed up answering most of the questions about my trips outside the USA. All online these days, apart from the physical interview. Took a couple of years to be processed, high demand area and deliberately understaffed, but I'm sure it's a lot better now.

tht

I did mine myself online, I had a lawyer who was working on a related matter for me and she reviewed the form for me, but was not needed. Unless you have any non standard circumstances it should be easy to do yourself.

Pulaski

I am not sure you'll find anyone here who has naturalized and not completed the application themselves.

By popular consensus it is the easiest application on your immigration journey, and it is the one step that the federal government wants you to complete, so even if you make an error/ mistake (which is unlikely), you can correct it, or resubmit the form, so for most people completing the form themselves is really a no-brainer.