Expedited Naturalization Instead of a Reentry Permit
The Situation
A married couple came to me with what they described as a reentry permit problem. The husband was a lawful permanent resident of the United States — a green card holder — but his green card was conditional, meaning it had been issued for a two-year period and required a joint petition to remove the conditions before the card expired. The wife, a U.S. citizen, had been posted overseas by her employer, and the husband and their young child had followed her there, as families do.
The problem was that every time the husband tried to reenter the United States after a stint abroad, he was referred to secondary inspection at the port of entry. CBP officers repeatedly questioned him about his residence abroad and made clear their view that he had abandoned his lawful permanent resident status by living outside the country. The ordeal was becoming a pattern — stressful, humiliating, and legally precarious.
Adding to the pressure, the conditional green card was going to require an I-751 petition to make it permanent — a petition that, when filed from overseas, can take years to adjudicate and creates its own complications. The husband had been told by CBP during his most recent admission ordeal that a reentry permit was the solution to his problems. A reentry permit, issued for up to two years, allows an LPR to remain outside the U.S. for extended periods without being deemed to have abandoned their status. It sounded reasonable. It was not the right answer.
The Right Answer
Within minutes of learning who the wife’s employer was, the solution presented itself clearly and completely.
Section 319(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act authorizes expedited naturalization for LPR spouses of U.S. citizens employed abroad by qualifying organizations — including public international organizations in which the United States participates by treaty or statute. The wife’s employer was a relief agency of the United Nations. That meant no reentry permit. No I-751 petition. No residency requirement. No waiting around for years while the conditional card expired and the couple juggled international postings and USCIS filing deadlines. Under Section 319(b), the applicant can naturalize without having spent a single day in the U.S. beyond the day of the naturalization interview.
Execution and Result
I filed the naturalization application under Section 319(b) and prepared the supporting documentation. A case officer from the local district office contacted me by email — proactively — to ask for my client’s preferred interview dates and times. Less than three months after filing, my client was sworn in as a U.S. citizen.
The reentry permit problem — solved. The I-751 petition from overseas — unnecessary. CBP secondary inspection — a thing of the past. A U.S. citizen does not need a green card, conditional or otherwise, and a CBP officer cannot question a U.S. citizen about the abandonment of a lawful permanent resident status that no longer exists.
Suggested Reading
- INA § 319 — Married Persons and Employees of Certain Nonprofit Organizations (USCIS Policy Manual) — Policy guidance on expedited naturalization for LPR spouses of overseas U.S. government and qualifying organization employees
- N-400 — Application for Naturalization (USCIS) — The application form used for all naturalization cases, including those filed under INA § 319(b)
- Conditional Permanent Residence and Form I-751 (USCIS) — Background on the conditional green card process that this case rendered moot