Green Card Granted, But Not Ready To Move Yet...

[phb30432]

Hello guys, hope you are all well. I have a bit of a problem, my parents and sister all have green cards. We are from the UK and are not yet ready to move to the USA due to my sister still being in full-time education.

We were told that they need to visit the US at least once every six months, otherwise their green cards will be revoked. As I'm sure you can all imagine, this is becoming very difficult to accomplish due to work commitments, not to mention VERY expensive too.

I have been told by somebody that there is a form you can use to apply for an extension that means the US only needs to be visited ONCE a year, rather than every six months, by explaining your particular circumstances, e.g. Still being in university.

Does anyone here know anything about this, or any other way around it for that matter?

Any sort of help will be greatly appreciated, many thanks in advance

[PraetorianXI]

You and your family are going to lose your Green Cards.

You do not need to "visit" every X amount of months... you need to LIVE PERMANENTLY in the USA RIGHT NOW.

A Re-entry permit (i-131) is what you may have heard about, but it is not going to help you with this pattern... spending a few weeks in the USA a year is not an option. Your GCs will be revoked.

[phb30432]

Hello again, and thank you for your replies.

How long can we stay outside of the USA by filing a re-entry permit form?

My sister is about to embark on a four-year degree, can we file a consecutive re-entry permit form, say in one year from now?

Filing the form from the States shouldn't be too much trouble, thanks.

It's unfortunate the way things have turned out, but this is the way things have turned out, the GC 's took eleven years to come around, and at that time we couldn't predict what stage of our education we'd be at. I would imagine that there must be other people in the same boat, who cannot just up and leave on demand, after living in a country their whole lives. I hope I find the help here to resolve my predicament, many thanks once again.

[C4us]

A re-entry permit is not guaranteed and certainly in your situation you need to speak with an attorney.

You are not residing in the US by any stretch of the imagination. There is not a reason for you not to move. You are not responsible for your sister. Once your sister is 18, she is considered an adult in the US; she does not need your parents to mind her.

Your family's GC may be revoked at any time.

If you had no intention of taking advantage of the GC when it became available, you should not have prevented a ready and willing applicant from doing so. It is incredibly selfish. Do the right thing, either move or give up the GCs.

[phb30432]

If you had no intention of taking advantage of the GC when it became available, you should not have prevented a ready and willing applicant from doing so. It is incredibly selfish. Do the right thing, either move or give up the GCs.

There is not a reason for you not to move

I find it rather rude that you can call me selfish when you have absolutely no idea of my situation, you can not merely assume that we have not up-rooted our lives here in the UK to move to the US without careful and meticulous consideration. I'll have you know that it is not through choice that we still currently reside in England, UK. I'll thank you not to make assumptions on your uninformed opinions.

On a less sour note, does anyone know roughly how long it takes to file and process the re-entry form, so in other words, how long would I need to wait in the USA for the form, before I could leave for the two year period?

Also, what is involved in the form, do I need to give reasons for leaving for the duration of the form, and provide any evidence?

Kindest regards to all who provide some constructive advice, your efforts are fully appreciated.

[C4us]

Why is your sister's education a reason for you not to reside permanently in the US?

[ishoeb734]

phb

It takes roughly 4-5 months to apply for Re-entry permit.If can apply online but has to be here in the US for biometrics (fingerprinting).