For any person to maintain their permanent residence status, the United States must be the person’s primary home. A person with permanent residence status cannot spend a year or more continuously outside the United States.

If a person is abroad for more than six consecutive months, immigration can make her prove that he/she did not abandon her U.S. residence. It is very important for a person who is a permanent resident in the United States to maintain his/her status.

How to not lose your Permanent Residency Status?

If you are a Permanent Resident in the United States and want to stay for a longer time abroad, you have two options:

• Apply for citizenship:

If you are a citizen of the United States, you can stay as long as you wish without losing the right to return to the U.S. any time you want to. The citizens do not need to bother about any immigration issues during reentry.

• Apply for Immigration Services Reentry Permit:

The Immigration Services Reentry Permit must be applied well before the person leaves United States. Generally the permit is valid for up to two continuous years. You can definitely renew, but the person needs to return to the U.S. to apply for the renewal.

 When can a permanent resident apply for citizenship in the U.S?

A person who is a permanent resident in the United States can apply for a citizenship, four years and nine months after becoming the resident. Exemption will be to apply for a citizenship just after 2 years and nine months, if your spouse is a U.S. citizen. A person can stay abroad and not worry about maintaining any status, when he/she naturalizes.

 At this point, I would like to know of cases who have their permanent residency and have lived abroad for more than a year and got back to the United States without applying for any reentry permit. Did you or your family face any issues at the Immigration? Please write us your or your family’s experience to [email protected]

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