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I really want to return to the USA for a better quality of life than the UK (in my opinion). My situation is very unique and I want to know if I have a chance (or possibly an advantage) to use my former residency as a way to permanently move into the USA...

About me: I first moved to America with my family in 2004 when I was 10 years old, my mother had won the green card lottery and to this day I still have that permanent resident card. We left in 2009 as the economy was in shambles and my dad could no longer run his business, my green card expired in 2014 so it's been 10 years since I lived on US soil and 5 years since the green card expired, this length of absence makes it very unlikely that I can renew the ironically named 'permanent resident card'.

I've been looking at all the visa options and it seems like none of them are available to me, all being specific to a certain situation (students, marriage, family, venture capitalists, ect.)

My first question is: Is there a visa for the 'average Joe' meaning you don't have family in the US, nor a spouse, nor a degree course, nor a job waiting for you, nor butt-loads of money; you merely have a can-do attitude and a modest income (and an engineering degree if that helps), if there is such a thing, how much does it cost and does it make a difference depending on which country passport you hold (mine isn't actually a UK passport but an EU one).

Second question: can I use my social security card to aid the immigration process? before I left at the age of 15, I had actually been working for almost a year (in the state of Georgia you can be legally employed from the age of 14) so I've paid a little bit of tax and social security, gotta be good for something, no?

Final question: this might sound ridiculous, but I want to use every card I've got and I have a 'sort-of' family member currently in the states who has been a citizen for decades, this person is my great aunt and she lives in Texas where I would really like to move (Texas is big and so am I.... tired of bumping my head on tiny English door frames). I would be happy to assist her with whatever she needs (as she is quite elderly) should I be granted entry, would this serve as an advantage to customs? you know... everyone likes someone who is there to help a senior citizen am I right?

And just to wrap up: if there is any sort of detail or legal loophople that I've missed out then please let me know. It seems like permanent migration to the US is as complicated as marine biology. Thank you for whatever info you can provide.

Joey Zonda
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    Thanks for accepting my answer. I meant to include a suggestion to look for US immigration lawyers and see whether they agree. One thing you certainly don't want to do is to refrain from pursuing this because of my answer and then find out later that I was wrong. – phoog May 20 '19 at 18:23
  • Just to add to phoog's comment, if you are truly motivated enough, you can make it happen. You just have to make some hard decisions, be patient, and presevere. – ouflak May 21 '19 at 06:36
  • On an unrelated note, if you haven't filed I-407 to explicitly relinquish your permanent residency, you are considered a resident alien for US tax purposes, and thus subject to US taxes on your worldwide income, all these years from when you were in the US until now, even though you haven't been in the US for so long and you probably won't be able to enter the US on your green card. – user102008 May 21 '19 at 14:51
  • @user102008 even though he was a minor when he left? What if his parents filed (or were otherwise formally found to have abandoned their residency) before he was 18? – phoog May 23 '19 at 20:48

2 Answers2

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Is there a visa for the 'average Joe'?

The only such visa is the green card lottery. If you were born in the UK, you are not eligible, unless you were born in Northern Ireland.

can I use my social security card to aid the immigration process? ... gotta be good for something, no?

Your Social Security card and work history won't help you immigrate. They will help you qualify retirement benefits. I suppose you aren't now qualified to draw Social Security benefits, but the work you've already been credited with will count towards your qualification if you work in the US in the future.

everyone likes someone who is there to help a senior citizen am I right?

This might help you justify longer visits on the visa waiver program or with a B-2 visa, but it won't help you immigrate.

if there is any sort of detail or legal loophole that I've missed out then please let me know.

There is a returning resident visa, but given what you've said in the question, your chance of qualifying is virtually nonexistent. Applying for such a visa is effectively the same as applying to renew your green card, in that it is a claim that you should continue to be a permanent resident, and as you've noted that is very unlikely.

Your best bet is probably to try to find an employer who will sponsor you for an H-1B or other employment-based visa as an engineer, but if you're eligible you'll probably want to enter the lottery each year as well.

But please do not take this as the last word. I am not a legal professional, just someone with a lay interest in immigration law. You may want to see whether you can find an immigration lawyer (some may offer initial consultations free of charge) who might know about some possibility that I do not know about, or at least confirm that your history offers you no special benefit.

phoog
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I first moved to America with my family in 2004 when I was 10 years old, my mother had won the green card lottery and to this day I still have that permanent resident card. We left in 2009 as the economy was in shambles and my dad could no longer run his business, my green card expired in 2014 so it's been 10 years since I lived on US soil and 5 years since the green card expired

Your permanent residence (and green card too) expired in 2009 or 2010 right after 6 months from leaving the US. Your previous LPR status doesn't give you any advantages, rather more problems. Any US official could monitor your papers twice because according the US opinion you and your family stilt residence and citizenship for a more motivated candidate.

The questions:

  1. As it was mentioned by phoog, the 'average Joe' immigration visa is the green card lottery.
  2. No. The US immigration system doesn't count your previous professional experience (if it doesn't include a Nobel prize or Olympic gold medal).
  3. American family members could really help because the US immigration system is family-based. But the relatives have to be your siblings, parents, children. The full list is here
Joey Zonda
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Tania Chistyakova
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    Education and professional experience can help with employment-based immigration, such as H1-B, both in getting the job and in proving qualifications. – Patricia Shanahan May 22 '19 at 15:00
  • @PatriciaShanahan

    H1B is a lottery. US companies place applications and some applications win, some don't. The result isn't relevant to skills of an applicant. It could be relevant to company, because some companies get more visas, some less.

     – Tania Chistyakova May 22 '19 at 15:05
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    I think it's a bit offtopic but actually skills and education might help in two special cases. Getting H1B visas for government scientific institutions, which's a rare case, and advancing from H1B\L1B to LPR. – Tania Chistyakova May 22 '19 at 16:37
  • The US immigration system doesn't count your previous professional experience (unless it doesn't include a Nobel prize or Olympic gold medal). This is a bit of an exaggeration. While a Nobel prize is sufficient to be eligible for an O visa, there are other ways to prove your "extraordinary ability". Thousands of people get O visas every year. – MJeffryes May 23 '19 at 09:06
  • You are right about that O-visas have been getting many times. But another systems (like many Europeans or Australian) have taken in the account skills/education of immigrant (foreign worker, sportsmen, student) for the potential visa. At the same time, American system count the same from an applicant (US company, US sport club, US education institution). – Tania Chistyakova May 23 '19 at 09:19
  • The initial idea of US immigration system was that US organisation that fills an immigration petition for a person can select the best available option. But nowadays it's not always true. Usually US company prefer to choose a lower level worker that agrees to work on a lower salary in bodyshop. Usual US sport club prefer to choose a backbench sportperson for its membership. And US immigration service doesn't monitor it because it hasn't any instruments to compare potential immigrants. – Tania Chistyakova May 23 '19 at 09:19
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    The first sentence is incorrect. LPR status does not expire automatically because of absence from the US. After one year (not six months) the green card can't be used for reentry, but that's not the same as losing LPR status. Also the H-1B lottery outcome doesn't depend on skills, but qualifying to enter it does. – phoog May 23 '19 at 18:37
  • https://www.uscis.gov/green-card/after-green-card-granted/maintaining-permanent-residence

    "Abandoning Permanent Resident Status -> Move to another country, intending to live there permanently." Permanent move begins from 6 months in another country. In the case the another country declares a person as an own permanent resident.

     – Tania Chistyakova May 23 '19 at 20:06
  • 12 months is for involuntary move without intending to be a permanent resident. It can be proven if the person doesn't pay taxes in another country. – Tania Chistyakova May 23 '19 at 20:10
  • The page you linked to says nothing about six months. It's entirely about intent. And LPR status is not lost automatically; there must be a finding by a judge that it has been abandoned unless it is relinquished voluntarily. That's why the page says "you may be found to have abandoned...." The finding must be made by a judge. – phoog May 23 '19 at 20:15
  • The page says "Abandoning Permanent Resident Status -> Move to another country, intending to live there permanently." The next is from taxing. US citizens and LPR must pay US taxes even if they live aboard. And at the same time, LPR cannot be exempted from double taxation. If LPR doesn't pay taxes in the US and at same declare themselves as a tax resident in another country, the information go to USCIS because many countries notify the US about citizens and LPRs. – Tania Chistyakova May 23 '19 at 20:18
  • I don't know much about how immigration judges look at tax records when considering whether permanent residence has been abandoned, but whatever effect tax declarations may or may not have on it, they do not change the fact that the first sentence in this answer is wrong. – phoog May 23 '19 at 20:23
  • The first sentence based on 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(13)(ii) "has been absent from the United States for a continuous period in excess of 180 days," – Tania Chistyakova May 23 '19 at 20:32
  • I said about taxes, because the foreign tax fills actually shows the absence. – Tania Chistyakova May 23 '19 at 20:35
  • Let us continue this discussion in chat. – phoog May 23 '19 at 20:55