Who Needs a Reentry Permit?
You may already know you cannot travel anywhere outside the United States without a valid passport. However, depending on your current status and the duration of your planned travel, you may need to carry other supporting documents as well, such as a reentry permit. Without further introduction, please continue reading to learn whether you need to obtain a reentry permit and how an experienced Lyndhurst green card immigration lawyer at the Law Offices of Salvatore A. Falletta, LLC, can help you apply for one.
Who needs to obtain a reentry permit?
Simply put, if you are a lawful permanent resident who holds a green card, you should consider applying for a reentry permit. This is particularly true if you plan to be away for a long time or otherwise an unpredictable amount of time. Your green card may only permit you to remain abroad for one year, and anything more may have the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) assume that you abandoned your residency in the country.
With a reentry permit, you are typically allowed to stay outside the country for two years from the date of issuance. This is unless you are a conditional permanent resident, in which case your allotted timeframe may be shortened. Regardless, this permit cannot be renewed or extended, but rather, you must return to the U.S. if you wish to apply for a new one upon its expiration. A failure to meet this deadline may require you to apply for an SB-1 visa, a returning resident visa, while remaining in a foreign country.
How is a reentry permit utilized?
When planning to travel outside the United States for an extended or unknown duration, you should pack your green card, your passport, and your granted reentry permit. This is because, upon your eventual return, a Customs Border Patrol (CBP) official at the airport or port of entry may inspect these documents. Overall, having your reentry permit on hand tells the CBP official that you did not abandon your U.S. residence.
However, it is worth mentioning that an official may still use their discretion in permitting your return to the country. That is, after a line of questioning, they may suspect that you indeed deserted your residency. This may be if they discover that you no longer have secure employment or any job prospects in the U.S.; you no longer own real estate property in the U.S.; or otherwise. This is not to mention the considerable factor of your violating U.S. immigration rules during your travel time. This may be if you committed a criminal offense while abroad, for example.
To give yourself enough time to develop a solid application and travel plan, please be sure to get in touch with our talented Lyndhurst family & individual immigration law firm, the Law Offices of Salvatore A. Falletta, LLC, as soon as possible. We look forward to hearing from you.
