Re entry before 10yr green card

[survivin]

My wife finally arrived in Los Angeles in June of 2009...We were married in Qingdao in April of 2008....We tried to apply for green card, but were told that we had to wait until this spring....

 

I noticed on her passport that the the CR1 visa expired in Dec of 2009...

 

This January is her father's 80 th birthday, so we bought her a ticket to Qingdao to stay through the Chinese New Year, USbut now I am wondering if there is anything that we should do to make sure she can re enter US on return flight????

THANKS..

 

Mike and Jinrong

[Randy W]

My wife finally arrived in Los Angeles in June of 2009...We were married in Qingdao in April of 2008....We tried to apply for green card, but were told that we had to wait until this spring....

 

I noticed on her passport that the the CR1 visa expired in Dec of 2009...

 

This January is her father's 80 th birthday, so we bought her a ticket to Qingdao to stay through the Chinese New Year, USbut now I am wondering if there is anything that we should do to make sure she can re enter US on return flight????

THANKS..

 

Mike and Jinrong

 

 

Yes - you need to figure out what happened to her green card that was mailed to her within a month of her arrival.

 

If you can't find it, you may need to apply for a replacement with the I-90 form.

[survivin]

My wife finally arrived in Los Angeles in June of 2009...We were married in Qingdao in April of 2008....We tried to apply for green card, but were told that we had to wait until this spring....

 

I noticed on her passport that the the CR1 visa expired in Dec of 2009...

 

This January is her father's 80 th birthday, so we bought her a ticket to Qingdao to stay through the Chinese New Year, USbut now I am wondering if there is anything that we should do to make sure she can re enter US on return flight????

THANKS..

 

Mike and Jinrong

 

 

Yes - you need to figure out what happened to her green card that was mailed to her within a month of her arrival.

 

If you can't find it, you may need to apply for a replacement with the I-90 form.

 

I thought that for the first year and 9 months she was here, she was a "conditional residence" and that we can't apply for her green card until within 3 months of the second anniversary of her getting her CR-1 visa...which would be next spring...OVERALL THOUGH I AM TOTALLY CONFUSED BY THE ENTIRE PROCESS...AND COULD USE AANYHELP I CAN GET..????

[Randy W]

My wife finally arrived in Los Angeles in June of 2009...We were married in Qingdao in April of 2008....We tried to apply for green card, but were told that we had to wait until this spring....

 

I noticed on her passport that the the CR1 visa expired in Dec of 2009...

 

This January is her father's 80 th birthday, so we bought her a ticket to Qingdao to stay through the Chinese New Year, USbut now I am wondering if there is anything that we should do to make sure she can re enter US on return flight????

THANKS..

 

Mike and Jinrong

 

 

Yes - you need to figure out what happened to her green card that was mailed to her within a month of her arrival.

 

If you can't find it, you may need to apply for a replacement with the I-90 form.

 

I thought that for the first year and 9 months she was here, she was a "conditional residence" and that we can't apply for her green card until within 3 months of the second anniversary of her getting her CR-1 visa...which would be next spring...OVERALL THOUGH I AM TOTALLY CONFUSED BY THE ENTIRE PROCESS...AND COULD USE AANYHELP I CAN GET..????

 

 

A green card is a green card - conditional or not. If you have the green card she was issued, she can use it for travel and return to the US. If not, you will need to order the replacement.

 

But, yes - the unconditional green card may be applied for between 1 year and 9 months and 2 years after the date the original green card was issued.

[C4Racer]

My wife finally arrived in Los Angeles in June of 2009...We were married in Qingdao in April of 2008....We tried to apply for green card, but were told that we had to wait until this spring....

 

I noticed on her passport that the the CR1 visa expired in Dec of 2009...

 

This January is her father's 80 th birthday, so we bought her a ticket to Qingdao to stay through the Chinese New Year, USbut now I am wondering if there is anything that we should do to make sure she can re enter US on return flight????

THANKS..

 

Mike and Jinrong

 

 

Yes - you need to figure out what happened to her green card that was mailed to her within a month of her arrival.

 

If you can't find it, you may need to apply for a replacement with the I-90 form.

 

I thought that for the first year and 9 months she was here, she was a "conditional residence" and that we can't apply for her green card until within 3 months of the second anniversary of her getting her CR-1 visa...which would be next spring...OVERALL THOUGH I AM TOTALLY CONFUSED BY THE ENTIRE PROCESS...AND COULD USE AANYHELP I CAN GET..????

 

The visa has nothing to do with this now. It is only to travel to the US once. Any one who arrives on a CR1 visa is mailed a two year conditional green card upon arrival to the US. She should not have left the country without this green card in hand. She will not be able to return without it or some form of travel document.

If she has the two year card they mailed, then it is still a green card and good for entry back to the US. It is not, it is not impossible to get this problem resolved. Two things you can do. File an I-90 for replacement of the green card, then FedEx it to her or have her visit the USCIS Beijing Field Office to see what she can do to get a travel document.

Edited December 2, 2010 by C4Racer (see edit history)

[dnoblett]

As the others said the visa is only for entry to the USA, the moment it is used it is void and the person is a lawful permanent resident, the officer at entry stamps passport with an I-551 stamp this indicates green card, and a physical card should show up in the mail a couple weeks later, this card is a 2 year conditional card.

 

You will be filing an I-751 to remove conditions within 90 days before 2 year card expiration which is 2 years after entry to USA NOT 2 years after getting the visa.

 

If you somehow lost the 2 year card you NEED to file an I-90 for a replacement one the FEE is $450. Green card is needed to work and reenter the country and by law must be carried at all times. It is also needed when applying to remove conditions.

[survivin]

As the others said the visa is only for entry to the USA, the moment it is used it is void and the person is a lawful permanent resident, the officer at entry stamps passport with an I-551 stamp this indicates green card, and a physical card should show up in the mail a couple weeks later, this card is a 2 year conditional card.

 

You will be filing an I-751 to remove conditions within 90 days before 2 year card expiration which is 2 years after entry to USA NOT 2 years after getting the visa.

 

If you somehow lost the 2 year card you NEED to file an I-90 for a replacement one the FEE is $450. Green card is needed to work and reenter the country and by law must be carried at all times. It is also needed when applying to remove conditions.

 

THANKS ALL...MIKE AND JINRONG

[dnoblett]

My wife finally arrived in Los Angeles in June of 2009...We were married in Qingdao in April of 2008....We tried to apply for green card, but were told that we had to wait until this spring....

 

I noticed on her passport that the the CR1 visa expired in Dec of 2009...

 

This January is her father's 80 th birthday, so we bought her a ticket to Qingdao to stay through the Chinese New Year, USbut now I am wondering if there is anything that we should do to make sure she can re enter US on return flight????

THANKS..

 

Mike and Jinrong

The visa has nothing to do with this now. It is only to travel to the US once. Any one who arrives on a CR1 visa is mailed a two year conditional green card upon arrival to the US. She should not have left the country without this green card in hand. She will not be able to return without it or some form of travel document.

 

If she has the two year card they mailed, then it is still a green card and good for entry back to the US. It is not, it is not impossible to get this problem resolved. Two things you can do. File an I-90 for replacement of the green card, then FedEx it to her or have her visit the USCIS Beijing Field Office to see what she can do to get a travel document.

C4.. Note they have not traveled yet.. Travel is planned for January 2011..

 

THANKS ALL...MIKE AND JINRONG

SO?? Did you locate your 2 year card??

 

If not then here is where you can find I-90: http://www.uscis.gov...00045f3d6a1RCRD Note it is long since past where you could be able to claim it was lost in the mail. If you do file the I-90 and a card does not look like it will arrive before your trip, you can schedule an Info-Pass appointment and request an I-551 stamp in passport so that you can travel, you may be able to get this stamp at the BIO appointment for the I-90 if the you are at the Field office instead of an ASC, you should bring the I-90 receipt notice when requesting the I-551 stamp.

 

As I stated before you will need to attach a photo copy of the CR-Green-Card to your I-751 when removing conditions.