From: shankar@sgi.com (Shankar Unni) Newsgroups: alt.visa.us Subject: Re: After the Green Card Message-ID: <1jni3hINNjt5@fido.asd.sgi.com> Date: 22 Jan 93 01:19:45 GMT Deepak Brar (dsb@godzilla.pi.macsch.com) wrote: > In article , stella@gandalf.rutgers.edu (Ricky ...suave... Stella) writes: > |> jars@carson.u.washington.edu (Juan Rodriguez-Sero) writes: > |> >hera (which sounds rather logical to me); more specifically, if you stay abroad > |> >more than six consecutive months or more than 180 days in any calendar year. > |> ^^^^^^^^ > |> WOW!!! I thought it was only 30 days... someone clarifies this... > > It is my understanding that green card holders must not be out of the country > for more than one year - ie. they must return to the US at least once a year. > I may be wrong, but this 30 day / 180 day stuff certainly seems incorrect - Deepak is closer to the truth. The maximum period that you can stay out of the country without losing the green card is one year. However, there are several caveats to this: (a) If you repeat this back-to-back (like coming back once a year for a week), you risk losing the card. Trying it twice may be borderline. It's a discretionary matter for the immigration official at the port of entry. (b) If you want to stay out longer than one year, that is also possible. For this, you have to apply for a "re-entry permit", a document that allows you to stay outside for upto 2 years. However, you must return before its expiry, and if you want another one, you have to re-apply and re-justify. (c) You must also prove your intent to be a permanent resident, which means maintaining a residence (or at least a semi-permanent mailing address), a bank account, and most important, filing federal *and state* tax returns every year without fail. Certainly 30 or even 180 days is perfectly safe, and you can even probably repeat it forever without losing your GC, provided you follow rule (c) above. If you want to stay out for longer periods, getting a re-entry permit may be wise. Of course, if you keep applying for re-entry permits, the INS is likely to refuse you, but at least in that case you have lots of advance warning.. -- Shankar Unni E-Mail: shankar@sgi.com Silicon Graphics Inc. Phone: +1-415-390-2072