I-131...The Re-entry Permit

[Randy W]

I thought I had responded to that PM (and copied Dan), but we're on a school trip right now to Longsheng. Back tomorrow night, and I can get up to speed here. For now, I'm just accessing the Internet on my phone

[david_dawei]

As a side point to what I originally posted, and DavidZ only reconfirmed my original thoughts, that there is ¡°positive¡± passport scanning, and too many Re-Entry Permits are going to raise some very, very serious questions. USCIS personnel may be bureaucratic idiots. However! They aren¡¯t simpletons either.

yes, a friend was told this directly by customs agent. On a recent return to US, brought into a back room to talk about the last two long periods out of the country. After understanding they moved to china for work, the agent explained they can use re-entry but only up to two consecutively and they will need to just turn in the greencard to the consulate and re-apply later in life if they want.

[shanghaigale]

My situation is that we both live and work in China but she has a CR-1 visa issued that we will use before August 2010. I still have residence in USA and will not give this up plus I am paid from my USA company while working for the China subsidiary.

 

We were supposed to come back to the USA in July 2010 but now I may end up staying here longer (up to 2 more years) at my company's request.

 

I do not want to lose the 2-yr GC and have to re-do the I-130 to get her a 10-yr GC if we relocate to USA 2 years from now.

 

Now as far as the clock counting the days to becoming eligible for US citizenship that is something neither my wife nor I am interested in now.

 

You face a situation very similar to what we had back in 2001. I went back to our documents and looked at my wifes old Re-entry permit and this is what I found and remembered. I was faced with the exact same situation as you are. I was working in China and my wife had received her green card visa in January of 2001. Then my USA company asked me to stay another year or 2 so we left to go to the USA for a short time on April 25th, 2001 before her CR1 visa expired. My wife entered the USA on her CR1 visa on April 25, 2001. We visited my mother and other relatives and got a SS number issued and also filed for a re-entry permit Somewhere around the 2nd of May of 2001. We had it forwarded to the consulate in Shanghai where I worked and had the consulate notify us as to when it showed up. Looking at the Re-entry permit. It shows that it had a date of expiration of April 25, 2003. So it actually expired exactly 2 years after my wife had entered the USA on the CR1 visa. We went back to Shanghai and was notified that it had arrived about 6 months later. I don't remember the exact date but the permit says that its date of delivery was Nov. 6, 2001. So we filed it in a safe place, then when the company decided to move us back to the USA on July 8, 2002 over 14 months later, we used the reentry permit at the POE. My wife didn't even have the green card because it was in our saved mail back in the states. There was no problem at all at the POE. I simply explained the situation in that I was returning from working for an american company in China and bringing my wife and kids back with us. They stamped her reentry permit and let us proceed without taking us aside at all. This was at San Francisco. So looking at your situation. I would say if you are only going to be working there another 2 years, I would suggest that as you planned take your wife back to the USA before the visa expires in August which will start the process for the green card issuance and then process the paperwork for the reentry permit and have it forwarded like I did. The two year time clock should then start ticking at the time your wife entered the USA. This should give you plenty of time to stay for your two years from right now and still make it back to the USA and file for the removal of conditions on your wifes 2 year green card prior to it expiring after 2 years. Then you will be 2 years ahead of the game. In our case (for Daves situation), we did lose the almost 15 months of time we were out of the country toward my wifes citizenship but as soon as 3 more years had passed after entry she became a US citizen back in 2006. I know my information is pretty old but I don't think anything has changed in the regulations since then. Hope this helps you out.

Gale

[shenzhen]

My situation is that we both live and work in China but she has a CR-1 visa issued that we will use before August 2010. I still have residence in USA and will not give this up plus I am paid from my USA company while working for the China subsidiary.

 

We were supposed to come back to the USA in July 2010 but now I may end up staying here longer (up to 2 more years) at my company's request.

 

I do not want to lose the 2-yr GC and have to re-do the I-130 to get her a 10-yr GC if we relocate to USA 2 years from now.

 

Now as far as the clock counting the days to becoming eligible for US citizenship that is something neither my wife nor I am interested in now.

 

You face a situation very similar to what we had back in 2001. I went back to our documents and looked at my wifes old Re-entry permit and this is what I found and remembered. I was faced with the exact same situation as you are. I was working in China and my wife had received her green card visa in January of 2001. Then my USA company asked me to stay another year or 2 so we left to go to the USA for a short time on April 25th, 2001 before her CR1 visa expired. My wife entered the USA on her CR1 visa on April 25, 2001. We visited my mother and other relatives and got a SS number issued and also filed for a re-entry permit Somewhere around the 2nd of May of 2001. We had it forwarded to the consulate in Shanghai where I worked and had the consulate notify us as to when it showed up. Looking at the Re-entry permit. It shows that it had a date of expiration of April 25, 2003. So it actually expired exactly 2 years after my wife had entered the USA on the CR1 visa. We went back to Shanghai and was notified that it had arrived about 6 months later. I don't remember the exact date but the permit says that its date of delivery was Nov. 6, 2001. So we filed it in a safe place, then when the company decided to move us back to the USA on July 8, 2002 over 14 months later, we used the reentry permit at the POE. My wife didn't even have the green card because it was in our saved mail back in the states. There was no problem at all at the POE. I simply explained the situation in that I was returning from working for an american company in China and bringing my wife and kids back with us. They stamped her reentry permit and let us proceed without taking us aside at all. This was at San Francisco. So looking at your situation. I would say if you are only going to be working there another 2 years, I would suggest that as you planned take your wife back to the USA before the visa expires in August which will start the process for the green card issuance and then process the paperwork for the reentry permit and have it forwarded like I did. The two year time clock should then start ticking at the time your wife entered the USA. This should give you plenty of time to stay for your two years from right now and still make it back to the USA and file for the removal of conditions on your wifes 2 year green card prior to it expiring after 2 years. Then you will be 2 years ahead of the game. In our case (for Daves situation), we did lose the almost 15 months of time we were out of the country toward my wifes citizenship but as soon as 3 more years had passed after entry she became a US citizen back in 2006. I know my information is pretty old but I don't think anything has changed in the regulations since then. Hope this helps you out.

Gale

Vey good information Gale. Thanks!!