marauder1905

Hi again friends, I wanted to share a quick update, I was able to re-enter the US after two months abroad, and everything went smoothly with no issues at all. For context, both our son and I already have Global Entry, but my wife’s application was still pending approval, so we went through the standard immigration line together. The officer noticed that my son and I were approved for GE and asked why we hadn’t used that line. We explained the situation, and he confirmed that my wife is actually conditionally approved, so she can complete her interview at the airport for full approval. All in all, it was an easy and smooth entry, thankfully!

Hi friends Just wanted to update here that we got our GE within 2 weeks after applying. Very smooth process inc. the interviews.

I will try the GE though it may take a lot longer like you've said. During the GE process/interview, do you think it could be a risk there could be questions about my long absence and this could complicate things all the way to an NTA?

Thank you OldUser for your response, and definitely agreed. Do you think it makes sense for us to get Global Entry? It could potentially decrease "friction" during entering the US. Not sure if they do background checks of previous absences throughout the approval process and if this is also an additional risk.

Thank you appleblossom I understand it was a one-off decision and that is why we settled in the USA and our lives are rooted here. I work for a company here, my son goes to school here, we have a house, we have a car, we pay taxes, we have bills etc. all that stuff. So even though it was a one-off decision, we will never leave the country for more than 2 months, let alone 6 months as we live here now and I'd like to believe that we proved that we now live here on a permanent basis but maybe not so much in the eyes of the CBP/DHS as per the comments here. The 2 month trip is supposed to be a combination of business trips in other countries in Europe and also some visits to our families.

That's fair, I am also talking to a few immigration attorneys soon.

Sure but CBP allowed me in knowing that I had already been out of the country for 4 years after a long secondary inspection and stamped my passport with SB-1. So, that does not mean anything at all? Considering I would be out of the country for a few weeks or like a month per year?

Thanks all for your comments and heads up. I will reconsider. One question though: Since I have SB-1 stamped on my passport, does that mean the CBP accepted the fact that I was out of the country for an extended period and accordingly they granted me SB-1 after explaining to them I still have ties to the US. Thus, they let me in without an NTA. Does that make things better or reset things our family?

Thanks for your response. We have no convictions or fellonies etc. Do you reckon there is a chance we may denied entry? I know that under normal circumstances, only a judge can take away our green cards and CBP has to let us in but really not sure where things stand these days. Our biggest concern is not being able to re-enter the country.

Hi friends, It is me once again. In June, it will be one year in June as our family never left the USA for another country. With that said, we need to visit our home country for 2 months. Do you see any risks in the current political climate? We will leave in June and come back in August to keep living here as we would be coming back to everything including our work, rental house, school, car etc.

Thank you everyone. We will definitely be staying. With that said, my new job in the US may require short trips outside the country. These trips would not be any more than a few days or a maximum of 1-2 weeks. Do you think these could be an issue for me? Especially if I leave during my first year here?

Hi folks, I wanted to give everyone an update as my trip to the US finally happened. We were questioned by the initial CBP officer and we were sent to secondary inspection where we waited for 2+ hours. At the secondary inspect, we were asked similar questions such as "What is your travel history after leaving the US?", "Why were you gone for so long?", "What ties do you have to the US?", "Are you staying for real this time?", "What kind of a job will you start?" etc. After their internal discussion, I was presented the choice to fill out I-193 and pay $695 for each form. We naturally accepted this as we wanted to avoid an NTA. We paid and our passports were stamped with "Admitted with SB-1". We are definitely grateful for the opportunity and we will make sure not to be in a similar situation ever again.

Thank you both! Any thoughts on "best" port of entries to enter without any trouble? Or any specific ones we should definitely avoid?

Hi everyone, I just wanted to reach out to the experts here to hear their thoughts on our situation. I have already read several threads about this but every situation is unique and I would love to hear any input. We got our GC's in 2018 through the DV. My wife and myself are green card holders and we have not entered the U.S. for more than 4 years. As I worked for a U.S. based company but in Europe and in Asia as that is where I was assigned to. After 11 years, I am not working for the same U.S. based employer as of April 2024. Now I was able to secure a job from another company in the U.S. so we will be moving there. Our son is a US citizen as he was born in the U.S in 2015. We have also filed our taxes for 2018-2023. We have never technically lived in the U.S. but I have always been employed by the same U.S. based company hoping that I would get transferred to our HQ in the U.S., which never happened unfortunately. We want to take our chances and we are flying to the U.S. in June/July. My wife and myself have 10 year passports expiring in 2028 while our son has a U.S. passport. Would you have any comments to facilitate our entry into the U.S.? Other details: We bought a one way ticket. We are shipping our things with a container to the U.S. as that is where we want to live. If we are pressured, we will not be signing the I-407 as we will be requesting to see an immigration judge. (which I hope doesn't happen) Thank you,