I think its not worth it to pay $660 dollars for a reentry permit....Also, there is no guarantee that the biometrics appointment gonna be in 5-6 weeks. It can take, 4 months, for example, or they can just "waive" ( re-use ) your fingerprints
I really don't believe that you gonna have any problem returning to the US without a reentry permit ( travel under 12 months )
My experience: my job sometimes needs me to stay long time overseas.
Im got my green card in 2018. in 2019 I stayed 11 months overseas..... in 2021 I stayed, again, 11 months overseas...
They did not ask me anything coming back....
but...
This year ( 2023 ) I stayed 4 months overseas, when I came back ( last week, ) the CBP agent first question was( and that was super weird ) : - do you still live here? ( was weird because he asked me that before he "scanned" my documents / ( I really believe they have face recognition and he knew my situation before I gave them my documents.....maybe not...but it was super weird ). then he asked me where I was going, why I was overseas, and If Im leaving the country, again, soon.
So I decided to apply for a reentry permit coz if my company decides to send me overseas again, I get some "protection" with the reentry permit
But Im just sharing my experience...your situation is very different. 😄
Mike, in your opinion....if its taking 24 months to get approved......during this time, before the approval, you still need to come back every 180 days??....or you think with the reentry permit pending is OK to wait for the approval (?).....or do I still need to come before 365 days.....Im just curious....