Immigration Law

Obtaining Permission For Travel Outside The United States

If people want to travel outside of the United States, and they are not U.S. citizens, they must make sure that they have all the appropriate documentation to show that they are eligible for re-entry into the United States. For certain aliens who wish to re-enter the U.S. after they travel abroad, they must first apply for travel documents with USCIS. There are two types of travel documents:

1. Advanced Parole:

Advanced Parole is a document which allows a person who has his or her application for adjustment of status pending with Immigration Services to travel outside the United States. This document preserves the pending application while the person travels abroad, and it allows the person to re-enter the U.S. without a valid visa. If a person with a pending application for permanent residency travels abroad without first obtaining advanced parole, his or her application is considered abandoned.

2. Re-Entry Permit

A re-entry permit is a travel document that is only available to permanent residents or conditional permanent residents of the U.S. who wish to remain outside the U.S. for a time period of more than six months at one time. This document allows a permanent resident to travel abroad and then re-enter the country without running the risk that re-entry will be denied for having abandoned his or her residency status.

Visas to Enter the United States

A citizen of a foreign country who wishes to enter the U.S. must do so with a valid visa. A visa will be issued by the United States to a particular person giving that person permission to enter the U.S. for a given period of time and for certain purposes. Visas are usually granted either upon arrival in the U.S. or by first applying for a visa at a U.S. Consulate in the individual’s home country.

From Immigration-Law-Answers-Blog posted 2007-03-02.