Green Card Renewal - Legally Cross to USA ?

[FriendlyHelper 0]

Thanks in advance - helping out a friend with next question.  Friend has  applied to renew his greencard 2/24/2025 and has received Notice of Action confirming receipt. His greencard expired 03/10/2025. Not informing himself, and thinking he could no longer be in USA, he moved back to Tijuana. ( He lived in San Diego Ca ). Could he legally cross back to San Diego ? I have read that if green card expired, it still has validity of 36 months. Thank you !

[OldUser 10,797]

3 hours ago, FriendlyHelper said:

Thanks in advance - helping out a friend with next question.  Friend has  applied to renew his greencard 2/24/2025 and has received Notice of Action confirming receipt. His greencard expired 03/10/2025. Not informing himself, and thinking he could no longer be in USA, he moved back to Tijuana. ( He lived in San Diego Ca ). Could he legally cross back to San Diego ? I have read that if green card expired, it still has validity of 36 months. Thank you !

How long has he been living in Tijuana for?

 

When you mean renewal, do you mean I-90 to renew his 10 year green card? After I-90 is filed, applicant receives extension letter.

[FriendlyHelper 0]

17 minutes ago, OldUser said:

How long has he been living in Tijuana for?

 

When you mean renewal, do you mean I-90 to renew his 10 year green card? After I-90 is filed, applicant receives extension letter.

Yes, his 10 year green card. He hasn’t received any extension letter. The only thing he received was his notice of action I797C saying they are continuing to process his application, but that the notice isn’t an approval of his pending application, petition or request. He has been in Mexico since May of this year. Should he have received an extension letter after the 797 notice of action? He wants to know if he can cross the border with just this notice of action letter.

[OldUser 10,797]

57 minutes ago, FriendlyHelper said:

Yes, his 10 year green card. He hasn’t received any extension letter. The only thing he received was his notice of action I797C saying they are continuing to process his application, but that the notice isn’t an approval of his pending application, petition or request. He has been in Mexico since May of this year. Should he have received an extension letter after the 797 notice of action? He wants to know if he can cross the border with just this notice of action letter.

The very first I-797 typically extends the validity of green card.

 

Read here https://www.uscis.gov/newsroom/alerts/uscis-extends-green-card-validity-extension-to-36-months-for-green-card-renewals