Q: If I had a green card but lost it for living outside the United States for 5 years, can I start a new residency process

A: Thank you for your thoughtful question — and it’s wonderful to hear that you have a strong family foundation with your U.S. citizen spouse and children. The good news is **yes, you absolutely can reapply for residency**, even if you previously had a green card and lost it by living outside the U.S. too long. This situation is more common than you might think, and it does *not* automatically block you from applying again.

Since you left the U.S. legally and haven’t committed any immigration violations, you generally do **not need an immigration pardon or waiver**—as long as you didn’t overstay or accrue unlawful presence during your previous time in the U.S. If everything was clean and you simply stayed abroad too long, your green card would be considered **abandoned**, not revoked due to misconduct.

Your U.S. citizen spouse can start a new petition for you (Form I-130), and you would go through **consular processing** from your home country. The fact that you were previously a green card holder won’t prevent you from being approved again—it just means your case will be handled like a new application.

One important caution: if you plan to travel to the U.S. on a **tourist visa (B-2)** while intending to immigrate, that can be a problem. Tourist visas are meant for short visits—not to enter with the goal of staying permanently. If you say at the airport that your plan is to move back and adjust status, you may be denied entry. It’s usually safer to begin the residency process from abroad unless a licensed immigration attorney advises otherwise based on your full immigration history.

We’d be happy to help walk you through the right steps, build a strong petition, and make sure everything is done properly from the start. You can reach out or learn more about the process at kvisaxpress.com

A: Yes, you can reapply for residency despite having previously abandoned your green card by living outside the United States for 5 years. When a green card holder remains outside the U.S. for an extended period without a reentry permit, immigration authorities typically consider the permanent resident status abandoned. However, this does not permanently bar you from seeking a new green card.

Your marriage to a U.S. citizen for 4 years and having two U.S. citizen children creates a strong basis for a new application. The immigration process would involve your U.S. citizen spouse filing Form I-130 (Petition for Alien Relative) on your behalf, establishing you as an immediate relative. As the spouse of a U.S. citizen, you would not face quota limitations that apply to other family-based categories, making visas immediately available.

Regarding entry on a tourist visa, you must be completely transparent about your intentions during the visa application and at the port of entry. Immigration officers may scrutinize your application given your previous immigration history. While having abandoned your previous residency does not automatically make you inadmissible, officers might question whether you genuinely intend to return to your home country after your temporary visit.

If you enter on a tourist visa and then apply for adjustment of status, USCIS might question whether you misrepresented your intentions. Generally, entering on a nonimmigrant visa with a preconceived intent to adjust status could be considered visa fraud. Many immigration attorneys recommend consular processing in such situations.

You mention an "immigration pardon" - this likely refers to a waiver of inadmissibility (Form I-601). Whether you need this depends on specific grounds of inadmissibility that might apply to your case. Simply abandoning residency doesn't necessarily require a waiver, but other factors in your immigration history might.

I strongly recommend consulting with an experienced immigration attorney who can review the specific details of your case, including your immigration history and current circumstances, to develop the most appropriate strategy for reuniting with your family in the United States.