How long can I be outside the U.S. and keep my green card?

However, your trip must be temporary and you cannot remain outside the United States for more than 1 year. If the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer believes you do not intend to continue living permanently in the United States, they could revoke your status as a permanent resident.



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Yes, you can travel abroad as a green card holder — that's one of the many benefits of being a permanent resident. However, your trip must be temporary and you cannot remain outside the United States for more than 1 year.

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Short trips abroad typically do not disrupt continuous the residence requirement, but long absences will. For the purposes of naturalization: A trip abroad that is less than 6 months will not disrupt continuous residence.

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There is no set period you must remain outside the USA before returning but: When traveling to the U.S. with the approved ESTA, you may only stay for up to 90 days at a time - and there should be a reasonable amount of time between visits so that the CBP Officer does not think you are trying to live here.

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Current regulations permit green card holders to leave and return to the United States multiple times per year: If you are a lawful permanent resident (green card holder), you may leave the U.S. multiple times and reenter, as long as you do not intend to stay outside the U.S. for 1 year or more.

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You can travel abroad for as long as you'd like without any risk of losing your U.S. citizenship. And if you plan to stay outside of the United States for longer than a year, you won't need a re-entry permit in order to return, as is the case for green card holders (permanent residents).

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There aren't any rules or laws requiring you to wait a specific time before you are allowed to return. What you must remember is staying the maximum time during your previous visit and then wanting to return soon after that might raise suspicion with the immigration officer.

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