Attorneys at Law
521 Fifth Avenue, 17th Floor
New York, N.Y. 10175
Tel: (212) 488-6899 · ImmigrationLex.com
U.S. immigration law is federal:
Our attorneys can represent you from New York,
no matter where you are located,
in any state, in any country.
Attorneys Practicing U.S. Immigration Law Since 1991
Where no permit was obtained, or it has expired. A permanent resident who is unable to return within the one-year travel validity of a Permanent Resident Card (green card), or within the validity of a reentry permit, may apply at a consular post for a returning resident, or SB-1, special immigrant visa. Classification as a special immigrant under INA 101(a)(27)(A) requires the consular officer to be satisfied of three things:
What an SB-1 application involves. Approval of returning resident status removes the need for an immigrant visa petition to be filed with USCIS, but the applicant must still establish eligibility for an immigrant visa and undergo a medical examination, so both visa processing fees and medical fees apply. An interview is required on the returning resident application, and usually a second one later on the immigrant visa itself. The Department of State advises approaching the post well ahead of intended travel, at least three months where that is possible. The documentation required is comparatively narrow: unless the consular officer has reason to question the earlier admission or the applicant’s eligibility, only the records relating to the period of residence in the United States and to the period of the temporary visit abroad are required.
A waiver of the documentary requirement at the port of entry. A returning resident who cannot present an immigrant visa, Permanent Resident Card or reentry permit may ask the DHS officer with jurisdiction over the port of entry to waive the requirement, which may be granted in the exercise of discretion where good cause for the failure to present the document is established. The request is made on the designated form with the fee prescribed. One carve-out in the same provision matters: where the card was lost or stolen and the absence has been less than one year, the correct route is an application to replace the card rather than the waiver.
Carrier documentation addresses a lost document, not a lapsed one. Where a Permanent Resident Card or a reentry permit has been lost, stolen or destroyed while the holder is abroad, an Application for Carrier Documentation, allows an airline or other carrier to board the traveler without incurring a penalty. It is bounded by time. USCIS makes it available where the absence has been less than one year in the case of a lost Green Card, and less than two years in the case of a lost reentry permit, measuring the absence from the date of departure to the date the fee for the applicable form is paid. It is also unavailable to a person who has abandoned permanent resident status or whose status has been terminated. An expired permit is therefore not a carrier documentation case; it belongs in the returning resident visa lane described above.
A narrow exception for certain government families. A Form I-551 may be presented whether or not it has expired by a civilian or military employee of the United States Government who was outside the United States pursuant to official orders, and by the spouse or child of such an employee who resided abroad during that overseas duty and who is preceding, accompanying or following to join the employee within four months. Neither a reentry permit nor a returning resident visa is needed in that situation.
Experience with exactly these situations. Antao & Chuang has counseled lawful permanent residents in these circumstances for many years, and the difficult conversations that follow an absence that ran longer than anyone planned. Matters of this kind turn less on completing a form than on how the history of the absence is assembled, documented and explained, and that is a skill earned through years of experience rather than read off the face of a regulation.
Why the insight matters here. Knowing which route fits a given set of facts, what a consular officer or an inspecting officer is likely to find persuasive, and which documents carry real weight can change the outcome. So can knowing when the stronger course is to gather evidence before applying rather than to file quickly. Those judgments come from having seen how these applications are actually evaluated over many years and many sets of facts.
Why retaining counsel is prudent. What is at stake in these matters is not a visa but permanent resident status itself, and the risks run in one direction. A returning resident visa can be refused, a waiver can be declined, and a poorly framed explanation of a long absence can harden into a record that is difficult to undo later. Because the consequences are serious and often irreversible, retaining counsel before acting is the prudent course.
Contact us. Situations of this kind are usually far more manageable when they are addressed early and with advice. Contact us to discuss the particular facts and the options that remain open.
Reentry Permits introduces the subject and covers eligibility, filing and validity. What is the purpose of a reentry permit? explains what the document does and does not accomplish. Does a reentry permit guarantee readmission? addresses the limits of the document at the port of entry. Does a reentry permit preserve continuous residence for naturalization? takes up the naturalization question.