Traveling out of USA while N-400 Application Pending

[dabhakta 0]

My wife needs to travel out of country and her N-400 Application is still pending. Her I-751 Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence is also pending. Her NOA extension expires at the end of August 2022. USCIS shows an estimated time of 5 months (December 2022) for case decision. She needs to travel abroad in October with my 5 month old daughter. Is this possible, or does she have to wait until either I-751 or N-400 status changes?

[mushroomspore 3,043]

12 minutes ago, dabhakta said:

My wife needs to travel out of country and her N-400 Application is still pending. Her I-751 Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence is also pending. Her NOA extension expires at the end of August 2022. USCIS shows an estimated time of 5 months (December 2022) for case decision. She needs to travel abroad in October with my 5 month old daughter. Is this possible, or does she have to wait until either I-751 or N-400 status changes?

Technically, she is allowed to leave at any time. The problem is being allowed back into the US. Obviously, no airline will allow anyone to board with expired documents. In this case, the extension letter is the thing that must be valid since the conditional green card is dependent on the extension letter to extend its validity. Your wife should call the customer service number (which can be found on USCIS.gov) and make an Infopass appointment to get the I-551 stamp in her passport close to when the extension letter is expiring. The officer at the field office will decide how long it is valid for. Legally, the I-551 stamp is the exact same thing as a physical green card. However, I would still advise your wife to take her expired green card and expired extension letter with her on her trip as a safety measure just in the off-chance the CBP agent asks her to produce them for verification purposes. Most likely not as the stamp is equal to a valid green card but you also never know.

Edited July 18, 2022 by mushroomspore

[arken 4,197]

13 minutes ago, dabhakta said:

does she have to wait until either I-751 or N-400 status changes?

These status changes or even approval by themselves don't have any meaning for travel. What valid document is she planning to carry to be able to return to the US without any issues?

[dabhakta 0]

5 minutes ago, mushroomspore said:

Technically, she is allowed to leave at any time. The problem is being allowed back into the US. Obviously, no airline will allow anyone to board with expired documents. In this case, the extension letter is the thing that must be valid since the conditional green card is dependent on the extension letter to extend its validity. Your wife should call the customer service number (which can be found on USCIS.gov) and make an Infopass appointment to get the I-551 stamp in her passport close to when the extension letter is expiring. The officer at the field office will decide how long it is valid for. Legally, the I-551 stamp is the exact same thing as a physical green card. However, I would still advise your wife to take her expired green card and expired extension letter with her on her trip as a safety measure just in the off-chance the CBP agent asks her to produce them for verification purposes. Most likely not as the stamp is equal to a valid green card but you also never know.

Yes, the issue is coming back. This is exactly the process we needed. I am currently on hold to schedule an infopass appointment to I-551 stamp. Thank you.

[mushroomspore 3,043]

4 minutes ago, dabhakta said:

Yes, the issue is coming back. This is exactly the process we needed. I am currently on hold to schedule an infopass appointment to I-551 stamp. Thank you.

Ok once she gets the stamp, she is fine to travel and come back. As I said, I recommend that she takes her expired green card and expired extension letter when she travels...you just never know.