The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which secures the homeland by preventing the illegal entry of people and goods, has stepped up scrutiny of green card holders reentering the United States. The CBP focuses especially on green card holders who frequently travel overseas or have extended visits abroad.
Some Koreans have had to go to court to restore their green cards because the government has expressed strong doubts about their status, and subjected them to day-long questioning about their travels, subsequently stripping them of their green cards. Mr. Kim, 45, who obtained a permanent visa in 1995, was stopped twice and investigated upon reentering the States in January. He was questioned about his frequent travel abroad and whether he really wants to live in America. CBP authorities held him in custody all day, interrogated him about the nature of his visits to Korea, and how he paid his airfare. Because he traveled two times a year to Korea, Mr. Kim was held from morning until night at the airport.
The case for a grocery cashier, also named Kim, had different result. When CBP investigators interrogated him, he responded that he is the only member of his family here in America and lived alone. CBP agents indicated if he still wanted to live in the United States, Mr. Kim had to go to court for a deportation judgment in order to restore his permanent resident visa; otherwise, he would need to return to Korea immediately. In the end, he decided to give up his green card; On Feb. 4th, after just one week in America, he returned to Korea permanently.
The second Mr. Kim is but one of the many Koreans forced to reconsider their visa status since the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service began stepping up investigations of green card holders, in October of 2009. Furthermore, the number of NTAs [notices to appear] for deportation judgment issued by CBP to visa holders who have spent long periods abroad, or who have a criminal record, is on the rise.
According to statements by immigration lawyers, prior to October 2009, anyone with a criminal record or who had raised the authorities' suspicions and who wanted to live in the United States as a permanent resident, would receive a notice for inquiry. Since October, 2009, however, it seems that the CBP has gone directly to issuing NTAs to green card holders at the time of reentry. Investigators are looking more closely at persons who have been outside of the United Sates for more than 180 days during one year or who cannot adequately explain why they frequently travel abroad in a given time period. If detained in an airport during reentry, a green card holder, as in the case of Mr. Kim, may be faced with the unexpected choice of giving up his or her green card, and choosing a tourist visa. In cases where the green card holder chooses the tourist visa option, an I-407 must be filled out immediately; the person may then enter the country for the purpose of arranging departure, following which the person must leave America.
Should the green card holder wish to retain permanent status, an appearance in court is mandated; the CBP will issue an NTA, and a judge must verify the card-holders' clear intention of wanting to remain a permanent resident of the United States. The judge will review indicators in the case: the applicant's employment; family or relatives in the United States; financial documents; community activities and ties; and testimony by witnesses who know the person.
"The number of Koreans returning to Korea at the end of last year who were unable to satisfactorily prove to a judge their intention to remain permanently in the United States has increased," stated Song-whan Kim, an immigration lawyer. Because reentry has become such an issue, he advises He advises immigrants to carefully consider frequent travel or extended stays abroad.
A Korean-American officer at a local airport said, "The USCIS has really stepped up investigations, and is strongly enforcing actions against those who have had extended travel or stays abroad in the past three to five years, especially where the overseas stay is longer than the actual time in the States. Many Koreans have been investigated by the CBP at the airport; many eventually give up their green cards."
