# Green card



## sharabang (Mar 17, 2008)

Hi everyone i haven't been here before , I was wondering if anyone could please answer a question!. I have been in this country 30 years and just recently heard about people having to get new green cards , I read on a government page where it said people with form 1-551 don't have to get new ones but it would be a good thing to consider for the future. Does anyone know if this is the case or do i in fact have to get one ?.

thanks 
Sharon


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## Rachel_Heath (Mar 16, 2008)

The Green Card - AKA The Permanent Resident Card is also AKA Form I551.

Each I551 is valid for 10 years at which point it simply needs to be renewed by using form I90. You can renew your card once your it reaches 6 months before expiry.

When was the last time you renewed your card?

More information can be located at How Do I Renew My Permanent Resident Card (Green Card)?.


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## sharabang (Mar 17, 2008)

*green card*

Hi rachel ,
I have never had to renew it ! until they created the homeland security office no one i know did .


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## Rachel_Heath (Mar 16, 2008)

Sharon,

I have the info you require. It can be found here.

It looks like there was a 120 day window set back almost a year ago to allow people with cards issued before 1989 to get the new cards. There will be a cost (over $400) to get the new card.

Since you're outside this window I suggest you call the USCIS to find out what th ramifications are.

Hope this helps!


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## sharabang (Mar 17, 2008)

My god $400 good lord !!!!. I wish the Uscis had sent out some kind of notice to us , my friend and i never got anything.


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## sharabang (Mar 17, 2008)

BY the way thanks Rachel . They should have different rules for people who have been here as long as i have LOL . I;m from Scotland if your wondering , I married an American service man i think there's a whole set of other rules that i can also apply under at least according to the USCIS And i did call them they said nothing about the deadline.


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## Rachel_Heath (Mar 16, 2008)

I did find the old INS particularly obtuse to deal with. After I moved I asked them should I notify them of my new address and they told me that there was no need and they had nowhere to annotate it - this was in late 2002.

I can only imagine the same folk moved over to the USCIS to continue the grand old tradition of providing little or no pertinent information.

Sigh...


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## Rachel_Heath (Mar 16, 2008)

I also found this which may be helpful. Currently I'm unsure when the 120 window started (if it has). If I find anything else I'll let you know!


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## sharabang (Mar 17, 2008)

You hit the nail on the head there, in 30yrs i have never known the government to do anything informative !


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## sharabang (Mar 17, 2008)

Yep thats what mine looks like .i guess it depends on how quickly you need it This to me seems to say only if and when you want to.
Since the replacement program is only proposed, affected individuals are not yet required to replace their cards. However, they nevertheless may choose to apply now to replace their cards. Early applications may be processed in shorter times than those filed later, given the number of permanent residents affected.
USCIS Home Page


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## Rachel_Heath (Mar 16, 2008)

Although I think it will only be a matter of time before they do push this through so you may want to start the ball a rolling now before you get a letter informing you that they decided to invalidate your card as from yesterday! LOL


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## Rachel_Heath (Mar 16, 2008)

Well for one reason, I'd imagine having (at the time) a permanent resident visa with no need to renew or anything was a good start.

Not everyone who comes here wishes to take the oath of allegiance, not matter how much they love the country.

Granted there are some benefits (like being able to vote) but gaining citizenship (even if it's dual nationality) can also open a whole new can of worms and there are occasions where one could find they've lost their original citizenship without realizing it. There can also be various tax ramifications that make gaining dual nationality a costly exercise.

Sometimes gaining dual citizenship is just not worth the hassle; for example gaining security clearance over here is a privilege open to US Citizens - including those with dual nationality. However the moment said citizen exercises their dual nationality (for example not destroying their passport) they can loose their security clearance.

Just making the case for remaining a Greed card holder is all


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## sharabang (Mar 17, 2008)

Rachel got it 100% right i never wanted too or needed to , and up until Bush started running the country i never cared about voting!!.


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## Rachel_Heath (Mar 16, 2008)

I'm sure you had a typo in your last post - didn't you mean ruining instead of running?


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## sharabang (Mar 17, 2008)

*oh yes rachel*

 oh yeah i guess i did then


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## sharabang (Mar 17, 2008)

Hi ray ,
What did you mean death duties ? i know you didn't mean anything by it , But my husband just passed away in January . And if i don't have to pay as much tax Please tell me how cause i have to pay taxes on his life insurance which is coming to me !!.


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## Rachel_Heath (Mar 16, 2008)

Sharon,

First off please accept my sincere and deepest regrets about your loss.

Next, I think what Ray's talking about is setting up something like a qualified domestic trust (QDOT). Whilst normally this would be set up as part of the citizens will, it can be set up post death so long as the money being left was accrued before death. The purpose of the QDOT is to circumnavigate the issue of a citizen leaving money to an alien spouse after death (normally it would be considered a spousal gift between two citizens).

I highly recommend you speak to an attorney who will be able to help you out with this.


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## Rachel_Heath (Mar 16, 2008)

*Clarification*



> All LPR are required to notify by using the AR11 form
> any change of address within 10 days of moving ...


I know that - however the point being made was that there are many folk who work for the USCIS who do not know what policy is and how it should be implemented.


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## Rachel_Heath (Mar 16, 2008)

There's instructions for filing information for a QDOT here.

I'm unsure though how this would effect the payout of a life insurance policy. In general, according to the IRS here, life insurance payments are not considered taxable income.

Hope this helps.


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## Rachel_Heath (Mar 16, 2008)

Ray1 said:


> Of course there are always a few ...( the rules change so often) the biggest mistakes made of course are by the Mis-information line ..it is staffed by contract workers reading a script.. and not USCIS staff ... I would never suggest people call them ...
> 
> ALWAYS make an Infopass appointment for real info ...


In this day and age you are so right. Sadly, way back in 2002 the online presence was nothing close to as good as it is today.

I was especially entertained by speaking to two different people once who gave me two opposing points of view. The 2nd then had the temerity to accuse me of lying and saying that I would have never been told what the first person said. I found out a month later person one WAS correct and it was person 2 that was talking out of her...ahem


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

I wasn't aware of any difference in tax rates for non-citizens, but another factor to think about is that a surviving non-citizen spouse isn't entitled to any marital deduction on assets that pass to them when their American spouse dies.

However, the thing to remember is that (at least for the next few years) the threshold for estates subject to Federal estate tax is pretty high - $2 million. State estate taxes kick in at somewhat lower levels.
Cheers,
Bev


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## Rachel_Heath (Mar 16, 2008)

Bev,

That's where the QDOT kicks in - it's sort of like a tax shelter for alien spouses. Instead of the money being left directly to the spouse, it is kept in he trust with the 2nd member of the trust (the alien spouse) then being able to access the monies left therein. The trust MUST be set up though with one member either being a US Citizen or domestic corporation.

There's a Californian attorney who's published more information on the purpose of a QDOT here.

Got to love the red tape...!


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Interesting - I'm beginning to think, though, that it's much simpler to simply stay too poor to be subject to estate taxes. <g>
Cheers,
Bev


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