Search

To maintain your green card during extended absences:

• Brief trips under 6 months are generally fine. 
• For longer absences Apply for a re-entry permit, allowing travel for up to 2 years.Consider filing  Form N-470 to preserve continuous residence for naturalization.
• Avoid absences of 6 months or more; return within 6 months each time.
• Maintain strong ties to the U.S. (family, home, job) to demonstrate intent to reside permanently.
• If travels are work-related and you have significant U.S. ties, your green card status is less likely to be at risk.
• Absences of one year or more can lead to loss of green card status without proper documentation.

If you plan to relocate to India with a green card before obtaining U.S. citizenship, it can significantly complicate the naturalization process. To apply for U.S. citizenship, you must meet physical presence requirements: at least 2.5 years in the U.S. over the last five years and no single absence of a year or more. If you stay outside the U.S. for over six months but less than a year, you may need to provide an explanation.

A re-entry permit (Form I-131) allows you to stay outside the U.S. for up to two years without losing your green card, but it does not help with citizenship requirements. Form N-470 can protect your eligibility in limited cases, such as working for a U.S. company’s foreign branch, but it does not guarantee naturalization.

If you stay abroad for more than a year, you will likely need to restart your five-year residency requirement (or four years and one day if a re-entry permit was used). While re-entry permits can be renewed in certain cases, they do not protect your citizenship timeline.

Best advice: Obtain U.S. citizenship first and then relocate, as naturalized citizens can live abroad indefinitely without affecting their status. Please consult your lawyer regarding this.