Hamster39

Thank you Barfus for this additional peace of mind. We have always flown into Newark because my parents are only a short 30 minute drive from there but maybe we can consider flying into JFK. Looks like both you and Randy said the CBP can't bar my wife from entering, only make her appear in front of a judge which is good for a worst case scenario. Only reason I had a question about that is because my company's lawyer, who helps expats with repatriation, was saying the worst case is the CBP officer could send her back to China to wait for her court date, which I was a little doubtful about and just thought that is overly cruel. But I have a phone meeting with our legal counsel in a week or two and I will question this statement again. So far our discussions have been over email and sometimes people are less inclined to make "definitive" statements in writing, so maybe our phone conversation will be better.

Randy again, thank you! You are so responsive! I was a young buck when I moved to China in 2010, so I was only renting in the US at that time. My company offered me an expat position in 2010 for two years, but then kept extending me year after year. So here we are 13 years later with the same company at the same customer site. In essence, the position was never meant to be permanent, but because of my performance and customer satisfaction, I was asked to extend many years in a row. 😀 My wife and I didnt get married until 2016. She didnt get her green card until 2019 which is when we got the reentry permit. We never "lived" in the US. We went back to visit MANY times during our dating years and the first few years of our marriage on an IR visa, until she finally got her green card in 2019. The intention was always to move back to the US once my assignment ended, which was supposed to end in 2019, but then yet again, I got an offer I couldnt refuse so extended until now where we are now finally ready to leave. So yes, my company extended me across the entire 13 year period and i have a copy of each of those signed extension letters. I'll prep those as well for our reentry back to the US. Does that enter this question? "Basically - what is your wife's status as a US resident under the obligations that her green card represents?"

Randy W, Thank you for your quick reply. Great comment on the DOMICILE part. I'm not sure if that will be an issue? I've been an expat in China for 13 years, so we actually do not have a permanent residence. Whenever we would return for a visit, and when we permanently return this time, we will be staying with my parents in NJ until we can get settled in our own place. My tax forms actually show my company's address in Pennsylvania because I didn't have my own permanent residence. The letter from the customer will certainly not mention my address, but maybe for item (c), I can have my company mention where I will be staying at least temporarily. Are there any other ways you can think of to mention where I will be staying? Thank you for your comment on my wife being able to enter on her green card. I read on some websites and forums that if the CPB officer is a real tough person, they may separate the family and require my wife to return to China to wait until a court date while my daughter and I can enter. That just seems overly cruel. What you said makes a lot more sense in a worst case scenario. "You can also contact the consulate (US consulate in China) to see if they can help expedite her return."- What did you mean here? The reason we are planning to move back in September is because that is when my current contract ends, which I do not intend to extend. In theory, we could return now to renew her re-entry permit, but that just seems like wasted time and money since we will be returning in <7 months anyway. Again, truly appreciate your great feedback and quick response. I understand there are no guarantees but your feedback certainly offers some peace of mind.

Hello all, I am a US citizen, my wife is a Chinese citizen but 10-year green card holder, and our 4 year old daughter is a US citizen. I have been working in China for many years now as an expatriate, working at a stated-owned customer site. We were supposed to move back to the US back in the 2018-2019 timeframe, but my contract got extended a few times. Before we left the US to return to China in early Jan 2020 (actual date was around Jan 7th, 2020), we got my wife a 2 year reentry permit that expired in January 2022. Unfortunately, COVID hit in early 2020, and the China's strict zero-COVID policies were only recently abandoned in early 2023. Furthermore, my Chinese customer strongly discouraged us from leaving their site/China because we may not be able to return due to their even stricter COVID policies (they required a 42 day quarantine to even be able to apply to return to their site), which would have negative impacts on our contracts with them. As a result, it was very impractical for us to return to the US to renew my wife's reentry permit which is now 1 year expired. Fast forward to today, we have decided we will be permanently moving back to the US around September 2023 timeframe. Due to my wife's expired reentry permit, but valid green card, we plan to bring the following material to the US Customs Border Patrol (CBP) in case any questions are raised: a) US tax returns from last year and this year where we always file jointly b) A stamped letter from my customer that basically states they discouraged us from leaving due to contractual obligations c) A letter from my home US based company that confirms we are moving back to the US permanently d) Perhaps some financial beneficiary statements that show my wife and I are financially tied together? My question for the forum is whether anyone has recently traveled back to the US with an expired reentry permit. Have the CBP been a bit more relaxed on this because they are aware of China's zero COVID policies? I know there is no guarantees and it is at the discretion of the CBP offer, but just looking for some peace of mind. I believe the CBP officer's goal is to determine whether my wife has no intention of residing in the US, but with the material above, not to mention our daughter also being a US citizen, I'm hoping it will be pretty darn obvious we're staying together as a family. Any feedback on your experiences would certainly help. Any feedback on what additional material we should prep would also be appreciated.