The Fountain of Law - Article, "Residential Real Estate Sales Transactions: An Overview for Buyers and Sellers" - Presented by the Law Office of Roger Paul Galer, Esq.


About Us *	Contact Us	Tour the Fountain of Law			Immigration Home
Maintaining Your Green Card *and Eligibility for Naturalization* *While Working Overseas*				NOTE: This article is intended to be a brief summary of law only, parts of which may or MAY NOT be applicable to your situation. While an effort is made to keep this info. up-to-date and accurate, this article was not written with your situation in mind and thus DOES NOT constitute legal advice. Only an immigration attorney, one familiar with U.S. immigration law, should counsel you in this area.		Check out our *Immigration Web Links!*
<<<<<<<<<< CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 <<<<<<<<<< 4. *Reside* in the U.S. for at least three (3) months prior to applying for U.S. citizenship; 5. *Pay* U.S. taxes every year; 6. *Maintain* a U.S. abode (e.g., own a U.S. home) for your entire period abroad. B. Highly Suggested Practices (i.e., to avoid difficult, intrusive questioning by border officials and avoid needing an attorney for appeals, etc.): 1. Stay in the U.S. for at least 183 days during each calendar year; 2. Have a U.S. bank account where you hold a substantial amount of your money. C. Misconceptions and Non-Requirements 1. Starting your own U.S. company probably will not, in and of itself, give you more leverage to remain abroad. Despite what many immigrants believe, starting your company in the U.S. will not help you maintain your permanent residency status, since you already need to pay U.S. taxes (in excess of any non-U.S. taxes paid) on any income that you receive (from an overseas or U.S. firm) anyway…. Exception: all or a substantial portion of the work you do abroad is for your self-created company, *and* the revenue/profits you generate from that business are typically transferred back to your U.S. bank account, *and* you can make the sincere argument to border officials that you are working abroad only temporarily to get the company started properly, etc. 2. Staying in the U.S. at least 6 months at a time is not absolutely required (i.e., the criterion seems to be 183 days in a calendar year, not 6 months at a time). However, if you stay *outside* the U.S. for more than 6 months at a time, you will be questioned more intensely by border officials, and you will have to affirmatively prove your permanent residence status to maintain your continuous period of permanent residence for purposes of becoming naturalized (i.e., so that you don’t have to start the period of continuous residence over again!). This is where the home ownership, bank account, and taxes referenced in II.A-B. above are important. III. Joe Green - He’s a Green Card Holder, He’s a Future American: As an example of how the above rules of thumb might be implemented for a particular individual, meet our fictional U.S. immigrant: Joe Green. Joe, born in the fictional nation of Microvia, received his U.S. green card and achieved permanent U.S. residency status in April of 2002. Because, with the help of his immigration attorney, he gained his green card via the sponsorship of his employer, he needs to maintain 5 years of continuous residency before applying for citizenship.						Jump Back/Ahead: Maintaining Your Green Card While Overseas v Maintaining Continuous U.S. Residence While Overseas Green Card Requirements Green Card Suggestions Green Card Misconceptions v A Sample Plan for Maintaining U.S. Permanent Residency While Overseas v Role of the Immigration Attorney See Also: Green Card for Overseas Family Member v Forms Required Permanent Residency - Spouse Permanent Residency - Parent v Other Documents Required for Green Card Residency Status U.S. Citizenship Status Family Status Marriage Status Financial Qualifications v Costs of Applying for a Green Card v Where to File Green Card Documents *Business Law* *Home*
>>>>>>>>>> CONTINUED ON PAGE 3 >>>>>>>>>>
If you would like further information about this topic, have comments about this article or website, or would like to request immigration attorney services, click here to contact us today.			*Go to:* page 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 of this document			& *Family Law* *Home*

* An Attorney licensed to practice law in New York and Illinois.

The name ‘Fountain of Law,’ as well as the information contained on this website, is protected from infringement by the laws of the United States of America, the laws of other nations, and by various international treaties and agreements.