Citizenship Application

[tqgirl 0]

Hi, I attained my PR through marriage to a US CItizen on 6/19/2009 and the card expired in 9/27/21. During the period of year 2009 and 2014, I have been traveling to my home country, SIngapore for a few months but not more than 6 months. My mom was very ill and I had to return to Singapore in August 2014. I applied for the Re-entry Permit for 2 years away from the US. It was issued on 7/30/2014 and expired on 7/29/2016. I am currently now in SIngapore and will return to the states in June for a month. After that, I am returning to my home country again. My husband has been traveling back and forth the US and Singapore to visit. However, my mom is still very ill and I might have to continue to stay in SIngapore for a few more years. I have a few questions to help me make a decision whether to maintain status.

1. Do I have to give up my green card after my re-entry permit expired?

2. If I give up my green card, will my husband be able to apply a green card for me again?

3. Can I apply for US citizenship instead?

[KASH2011 382]

Apply for US citizenship!

[tqgirl 0]

Am I eligible since I was away so much?

[Done--Really 331]

Maybe. Make a list here of the exact dates you were in the US and when you were away. It's all in the numbers.

[JimmyHou 611]

It sounds to me like you've broken your continuos residency. You can apply for citizenship 4 years plus 1 day after you move back to the US or 2 years plus 1 day if you are applying based on marriage. The fact that you applied for a reentry permit may be enough evidence that you intended to break continuos residency. The permit allows you to live abroad without losing your green card but does not keep the clock running in terms of the time required to acquire citizenship. This may not be the case because you say you kept returning to the US but you will have to demonstrate that you were living here and visiting your home country and not the other way around.

If you let your reentry permit expire without returning to the US and getting a new one, then there's a good chance that your green card will be considered abandoned.

[tqgirl 0]

So I will be stuck with no status in the end

[JimmyHou 611]

So I will be stuck with no status in the end

There are procedure that need to be followed in order to become a citizen and there are procedures that need to be followed to maintain permanent residency. You can apply for another reentry permit. However, you have to understand that your green card is for you to live in the US; in the eyes of the US government, if you don't live here then you don't need a green card. If you lose your green card, you can always reapply in the future.

[tqgirl 0]

Thank you for the great advice. I'll apply for the re-entry permit again next year.