Hello, everybody. In this video, we're going to talk about what happens when you're a green
card holder but then you’re stuck overseas, you can't come back because of COVID-19 or the travel
restrictions. What do you do if it's been, now, more than a year and you’re stuck overseas and you
cannot come back to the United States? There could be significant implications on your green card.
I've been getting a lot of questions from people that are green card holders
stuck overseas, not being able to come back. Well, in this video, we'll talk about the most recent
updates as to what you need to do as a green card holder if you're not able to come back.
What happens if you try to come back and the airlines prevent you from boarding because
their clearance agents determined that you've been away for more than a year,
and what happens when you actually arrive in the United States and CBP officers decided
to take away your green card, and proceed the revocation of your LPR Green Card status, and the
best practices for you to follow, now, to avoid losing your green card. So, let's jump right in.
Hello, everybody. And welcome back to our Immigration channel. This is a place where
you can get the most up-to-date immigration news, immigration updates, and everything else
that you need to make your immigration journey stress-free. My name is Jacob Sapochnik. And I'm
an immigration attorney located in San Diego, California, and I help clients in all 50 states
navigate the crazy immigration system. If you're here for the first time, don't forget to click the
notification bell, subscribe to our channel. And also give us a big like so YouTube is going to be
able to show this video to more people just like you. So, guys, let's talk about green card holders
stuck overseas. This has been a big problem right now, especially now that proclamations are lifted,
travel is starting to be a bit more flexible, but people are still not able to travel as freely as
they want to. And guess what, if you have a green card, and you spend more than a year abroad,
you could lose your green card, or you at risk of what is called abandonment. So, let's talk
about what's happening right now, and what you can do to save your green card. So, typically
what the law says that as a green card holder, you should not be spending more than 180 days outside
of the United States. And further, your green card, also known as I-551, is valid for travel,
for absences, less than one year. So, if you start spending a year, a year and a half,
two years, sometimes, I have people call me after three years abroad, you’re risking abandonment.
We'll talk about that in more detail in a few minutes so make sure you stick to the end.
We've been receiving reports that certain airline carriers have been refusing to allow green card
holders that spend more than a year abroad board their flights on the way to the United States.
Even if their green cards were still valid with maybe two or three years left on the green card,
the fact that they were absent from the United States for more than a year,
either based on admission that they interviewed them or somehow they found out, they refused to
board these passengers on their flights. Moreover, certain airlines also refused to let green card
holders board their flights when their green cards actually expired, or they lost their green cards,
or those cards were stolen. Typically, when your green card is lost or stolen,
you have to at least file Form I-90. A receipt, under new regulations, is now proof for your green
card extension. If you have a conditional green card, the 18 months extension that typically you
get after you file for the extension is also good enough for you to travel. But it still does not
give you the right to stay abroad for more than one year. So, what do you do when the airlines
refuse to let you board the plane? What are some of the things you can actually do? Right now,
the first thing you can do is you can request the airlines to contact the CBP. They have a
regional liaison group in the airlines. They can call that group and get further guidance.
You as a passenger can require that to happen. Before you walk away and leave the airport,
you can require the airline to say please call the CBP liaison group and try to get that resolved.
Remember, it's not enough just to ask them to call the CBP regional liaison group, you also
have to have some documents to show them that you maintain your residence in the US. For example,
medical receipts showing why you couldn't travel from overseas back home to the United States,
prove that you still have real estate or a business over there, you pay your taxes,
or that you had canceled reservations, that you tried to make certain reservations for flights
during the course of that year or more, and you constantly have to cancel because either
you couldn't travel, or it wasn't feasible for you to travel because the airline canceled it.
Make sure you have that proof, remember, because you can’t just ask them to call and say please
do an exception. You have the burden of proof to prove to them that you intended to go back
to the United States but it was just not feasible for you to do so. Bottom line, any documents that
you have to show that you had an intention to go back to the United States during that year,
you must prepare and keep them with you because when you go and try to board that plane, the risk
of them denying boarding is absolutely there. And so, you need to be prepared to be able to
show the airline that you have all this evidence and it wasn't your fault as to why you couldn't go
back to the United States. The second thing can do is if the airlines refused to let you board,
you have to get to a CBP pre-clearance station. Many airports have that, and what happens at a
pre-clearance station is that you can apply for a waiver. You apply for this waiver on Form I-93,
and this Form I-93 basically serves as a waiver of a visa or an entry document. In this case,
if you’re a green card holder, if they determined that you spend more than a year overseas,
and your green card has been abandoned, you can apply for this waiver at a pre-clearance station,
even before you're in the United States. And then, when you actually land in the United States, CBP
officers will process your application. And here's what's going to happen. The CBP officers, they may
be able to use this form to waive the issues of you being absent for more than a year because they
will accept your arguments. The second thing that can happen is that the CBP officer can refer you
to deferred inspection at the port of entry. And at that point, you'll be able to file Form I-90.
And that should be sufficient for you to enter the United States if the officer determines that your
absence from the United States wasn't because of your fault. And finally, in cases that are severe,
and extreme, if they feel there was a long abandonment, they actually feel that you left
the United States for many years, or that they don't accept any of your arguments, CBP officers
can issue a Notice to Appear, which means that you have to, upon entry to the United States,
you have to appear before a judge and to convince the judge why they should keep your green card and
that you have not really abandoned your residency. Again, this is a different extreme situation.
But we've seen quite a few cases where LPRs have been away for a long time. When they arrived in
the United States, CBP officers determined that they abandoned their green cards, and
they issued a Notice to Appear to court. And then, they were paroled into the United States waiting
for their hearing. At that hearing, they had to prove why they left the United States for such
a long time. What are some of the options that you have if you know that you've been away for so long
and you don't want to deal with CBP like that, you don't want to risk losing your green card? What
else can you do? Well, you can apply for returning resident visa, also known as SB1. You apply for it
at the US Embassy in the country where you live. You will use Form DS-117 to apply for returning
resident visa, also known as SB1. What are some of the things that the US consular officers are
looking for when you apply for an SB1? Well, first of all, they want to see that you tried to go back
today and say that you just couldn't. So, maybe some canceled flights, and any trip plans that you
made but had to cancel, no fault of your own, they want to see that you continue to pay US taxes,
maybe you have property or business in the United States, any bank accounts that are still active.
Any activity can show that you still have a life in the United States, and it wasn't your fault
as to why you're not able to come back. It's a very powerful application because it can save
the future of your green card. Some of the things that they don't like to see in those applications
is extended absences from the United States over years, always flying with a one-way ticket when
you fly back home, not paying US taxes, having businesses overseas rather in the US, things
like that can show the US consular officer that your intention was never to go back to the United
States. So, be careful about that. The bottom line is that whenever I consult with a green card
holder that is stuck overseas... and trust me, I'm getting a lot of requests, a lot of inquiries. In
fact, a lot of our comments and YouTube videos are from green card holders who are stuck overseas.
One of the things we look at is let's look at the full picture. Let's look at the whole situation.
How often are you traveling overseas? How long have you been absent from the United States?
Do you have ties back to the United States? Are you paying taxes? Do you have bank accounts over
there? Do you have any property over there? Can you prove that this was just an isolated incident
and you really couldn't go back to the United States? Those are the factors that we have to
look at, as well as country conditions. There are quite a few countries that flights are virtually
impossible right now, which are very difficult. Some countries are still locked down. Those are
also good factors that we can use. We tried to convince a consular officer that our client
did not abandon their residency in the United States and deserve either the SB1 visa or similar
arguments could be put forward when you apply for re-entry at a port of entry. When you try
to convince a CBP officer, remember, there's no magic formula here. They're looking at the
totality of the circumstances if you can prove to the US immigration, if you can prove to the
consular officer that your intention was not to abandon your green card, your chances to keep
your green card are going to be pretty good. Hopefully, this video was helpful. I'm really
getting a lot of inquiries about that. Make sure you drop your questions in the comments below.
And also, if you need my assistance, you can text me right here on this phone number, 619-483-4549,
and we can set up a consultation to help you with your case. Once again, if you're here for
the first time, do not forget to subscribe to our channel, click the notification bell
so you don't miss any of our videos, and also give us a big like so you will be able to recommend
this video to more people just like you. Thanks for watching, and I'll see you in our next video.