I have been outside USA for 12 months and 2 weeks

[whusurdadi 0]

Hello, I received DV visa in 2015 and went to the USA in early Feb 2016 for 2 weeks. I wanted to find a job in my career field in the USA, before making a move. It took a little longer than I imagined and finally I've been invited to attend the interview late February this year, for a job which I think I'm a strong candidate for.

There's an information I could find that the absence over 1 year equals abandonment of residency. Is my permanent resident status lost?

[aleful 1,905]

 

 

probably, the residency is for living in the US, you never lived here

[Boiler 43,426]

Have you been filing tax? What are your ties? Do you have Obamacare?

[jan22 2,898]

Seems like you never really established residency -- in your two weeks in the US, you didn't do things like rent or buy a home (apartment or house), get utilities in your name, establish active bank accounts, work, etc., did you?  If not, I believe the decision will be that you never established/abandoned US residency. 

[SusieQQQ 11,584]

Many DV winners come for a couple of weeks then leave for a fairly long time to finalize the move, sell assets at home etc. Typically these winners won't have "strong ties"- they won't have rented apartments or found work in that short time, but they do have some ties - they will have opened bank accounts and more importantly they will have filed tax returns as required ( in this case the tax deadline for tax year 2016 is yet to happen so can still be done), and such people have no problem coming back in as long as they can show this return is the "big move" (e.g. coming in on a one way ticket). But all of these assume that the green card holder has met the basic residency requirement, which OP hasn't (I think - OP, the year is from the date you left the US, not the date you entered). So even though it's "just a couple of weeks", I think the premise is that OP has abandoned. I don't believe there is flexibility in this, unless there are circumstances beyond the OP's control preventing return in time, which there aren't.

 

 

[whusurdadi 0]

Thank you for all the replies. Precisely, I have left the USA 22nd Feb 2016, I haven't opened a bank account while there,and  I've had SSN already since J1 and H2B visits long time ago.

[SusieQQQ 11,584]

Oh wow, so you just missed the 12 month cutoff a few days ago. What a pity. 

 

[Roel 7,191]

Wow, such a waste. People who won the visa lottery usually are considered lucky! And you really wasted your opportunity there...

 

[EmilyW 1,222]

OP, since you maintained no ties to the US, you haven't shown any intent to maintain residency.  Many DV-ers will return home after activating to tie up loose ends but still maintain ties (bank accounts, filing of tax returns).  There's a good chance you will be deemed to have abandoned residency at the border.  

 

Nothing to stop you trying BUT I would expect that, even if you were let in, the border agent will quiz you on your absence and whether you intend to leave again.

[goblin 26]

How this here turned out at the end? Did you try to re-enter the US?

[whusurdadi 0]

On 3/31/2017 at 1:03 AM, goblin said:

How this here turned out at the end? Did you try to re-enter the US?

Hi, I didn't go. Decided to join the US air force via recruitment post in the UK, but I'm over the maximum weight at the moment.

[goblin 26]

I see, that probably means you can apply for US citizenship now?