US Customs & Border Protection

Green Card Validity Extended for Conditional Permanent Residents with a Pending Form I-829 or I-1751

By Zeenat Phophalia

The United States Citizenship & Immigration Services announced on January 23 that it is extending the validity of Permanent Resident Cards (Green Cards) for 48 months beyond the card’s expiration date.  This applies to those individuals who have a properly filed and pending Form I-751 (Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence) or Form I-829 (Petition by Investor to Remove Conditions on Permanent Resident Status).

This extension change applied on January 11 for Form I-829 and took effect on January 25, for Form I-751 and has been made by USCIS to accommodate the increasing processing times of these cases.

USCIS has updated the language on Form I-751 and Form I-829 receipt notices to extend the validity of a Green Card to 48 months beyond expiry and will issue new receipt notices to eligible green card holders who previously received notices with an extension shorter than 48 months and whose cases are still pending. These receipt notices along with the expired Green card will serve as evidence of continued status while the I-751 or I-829 remains under processing.

Conditional permanent residents who plan to be outside of the United States for a year or more should apply for a reentry permit by filing Form I-131, Application for Travel Document, before leaving the United States.

Form I-829 relates to the EB5 Immigrant Investor Visa Program. The EB5 visa offers a route to a Green Card (US permanent residency) by investment. The minimum investment is $800,000, which must come from acceptable sources of funds and must create ten jobs. A qualifying family unit is permitted to apply together under a single investment.

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