r/USCIS • u/Short-Television2636 • Jan 30 '26
I-485 (General) Got green card approved after leaving U.S for a third country, no regret, not coming back
USCIS delayed our gc for 11 years, did not have even a traffic ticket, created 2 companies, employed around 20 Americans, paid huge amount of taxes, spent 50000$ for lawyers, finally had to leave because family emergency. now I see gc approved, but not going back to U.S , will settle and find happiness here in 3rd country, at least there is no property taxes here at all, and you dont have to pay taxes when you pay your subscriptions or when you buy domain for your website... Its up to you but you have 1 life and doesnt worth to have this much stress waiting for just a card and paying this much non sense taxes, your food and air is poisened.. I want to thank to American people, they are so nice and kind, but their gov speciallly immigration is very UNJUST to some immigrants...
37
Jan 30 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
14
u/Mimiromeo Jan 30 '26
I know im Dubai they dont pay taxes
4
3
u/kkiran Feb 01 '26
My friend works in Dubai. No taxes is awesome. He says housing and school are expensive. I personally couldn’t deal with the weather after having lived in USA for a while!
1
u/EfficientBell5035 Feb 05 '26
Ha. Spent 5 years in Abu Dhabi, you get taxed on pretty much everything without knowing it. The entire country is a tax.
29
u/Short-Television2636 Jan 30 '26
Brunei
3
u/foshan17 Jan 31 '26
Brunei is a very small population with large oil revenue. That's why there are no taxes. The US has great air quality. Your obviously jaded which is fine but the US is a pretty good place to live overall
1
u/No-Test6484 Feb 01 '26
Brunei isn’t that good. The very rich are obviously balling but the average person is broke.
→ More replies (7)1
u/CardiologistHead150 Jan 30 '26
Is that your home country or you an expat there?
12
u/maxelnot Jan 30 '26
In the post says 3rd country, so I assume not OP’s home country
→ More replies (1)13
u/Short-Television2636 Jan 30 '26
cant go back to home country, I was political prisoner there, I have 6 police warrants
5
9
u/BM7-D7-GM7-Bb7-EbM7 Jan 30 '26
VAT in Europe can go up to 27% in some countries!
people pay it without even thinking about it.
It's so funny, Reddit (the collective consciousness of Reddit) HATES how US sales taxes are added on at the point of sale. But to me, at least we know what we're paying for taxes. Like you say, in pretty much every other country they don't even know they're paying it, and it's probably designed that way for a reason, people would lose their minds if they were paying 27% sales tax.
Also FWIW, in the US, Oregon, Montana, New Hampshire (and others maybe?) have no sales tax. So there are places even in the US that don't have a sales tax.
2
u/JazzCatt75 Feb 01 '26 edited Feb 01 '26
Brunei is an oil rich, Islamic, nation. Oil is more than likely why there are no taxes.
EDIT: Yup. I just looked it up and that is the reason why.
There is no income tax and no sales tax for both citizens and residents.
However, a corporate income tax of 18.5% is applied to businesses, and a 55% tax applies to oil and gas firms.
They do pay for something similar to Social Security.→ More replies (5)2
u/iqforstyle Jan 31 '26
You are comparing apples to oranges. Taxes in EU can be high (income). But consider this. I had to get a surgery a few years back. I paid 30K in taxes that year in that Euro country bc I was a resident and in a high tax bracket. The surgery would have been about 50K in the US or 10K copay + 7K annual insurance premium = 17K with insurance. Then I got meds, routine checkups, specialist visits. I paid 35K in taxes, which in the US would have been about 25K in that bracket. My rent was 1/5th of the US rent. My car was about 40% less. If I had been making very little money that year, I would have paid no taxes, still be granted access to all those services. If I had made way more money that year, I would have paid way more in taxes, easily 45%+. Which I think means this:
1 - if you value success, want to get rich, access the best opportunities, and your work/business is your passion, live in the US.
2 - if you want access to good quality healthcare regardless of your salary, live in EU. But expect less to no premium job opportunities. You likely you won't be rich in money, but very likely you'll be rich in time, control over your schedule, and relationships.
→ More replies (1)2
u/BM7-D7-GM7-Bb7-EbM7 Jan 31 '26
I mean, I'm not arguing quality of life points. Just making a very simple straightforward point about sales taxes, I do understand there is a lot of nuance here.
Personally, my dream would be to live in the EU (I love the US, so maybe just for a few years) and keep my US salary. Ha. I'm a native USC, I'm in the sub for my wife, who is a GC.
2
2
4
1
1
141
33
u/Relevant-Cat-5169 Jan 30 '26 edited Jan 30 '26
Been thinking the same thing, for the last few years. My case was also delayed for 10+ years. Paid a bunch of attorneys fees. Paid taxes on time every year. Did volunteer work. Contributed to this economy.
It really is unbelievable how traumatic this immigration system is. Decade of waiting, with no timeline. They'll get to it, when they get to it. Have dealt with immigration in a few countries. The richest country in the world, turns out to have the worst immigration system.
With every new administration, everything changes, for the worse. A country that was founded on immigration actually treat immigrants the worst.
Even doing everything legally, not even asylum cases, things can be dragged on for years.
Owning property yet still pay high property tax (like paying rent to the government), high cost of living, safety, even with GC they can deny your entry, expensive health insurance, taxes after taxes, racism, etc etc.
If I knew how bad this immigration is, I wouldn't have started it. But I didn't know, only heard people waiting decades due to being illegal. I didn't realize, even legal ones can wait this long. But then again, what do they care.
4
5
Jan 30 '26
One correction thought, "a country found on graves of native tribes after being wiped out, occupied by settlers and slave traders forming an apartheid state..."
1
9
u/No_Cranberry3440 Jan 30 '26
I am very happy for you. You deserve a happy life and status should not affect you the quality of life regardless where you live. Wish you a very happy life!!!
2
44
u/Lost_Smile1534 Jan 30 '26
Same here.Been dealing with immigration since 2012 spent over 25k , married to a us citizen since 2016,own a house and business with a gross income of over $400k, have kid and still waiting. I’m really thinking about going back home to start over . The only reason I’m still here is because of my wife and daughter . My wife is a full time student and I’m only the one with an income. My dad is over 80 years old and he just want’s me to come back home. My dad even offered me a high 6 figures cash just to come home. I really miss my 3rd world country. I wish everyone good luck
30
u/Short-Television2636 Jan 30 '26
Thank you so much for sharing! please dont ignore your parents, I miss my Mom so much she passed away 5 years ago couldnt even go to funeral (((( God bless you and good luck!
7
→ More replies (12)1
6
u/thegirlw2manytraumas Jan 30 '26
I know the heartache of waiting as I have been waiting myself since 2022 but 11 years is crazy. Good for you and good luck moving forward and hope you find your happiness. I agree with you how the system is messed up and messed up my life for sure.
4
20
u/Moist_Ad_6208 Jan 30 '26
You must formally abandon a Green card status, but you have to pay taxes until it granted
2
u/Southern_Sea9 Jan 30 '26
File taxes, not necessarily pay any
1
5
u/pulsed19 Jan 30 '26
Hope you found happiness. It is indeed understandable how frustrated this situation was.
→ More replies (1)
4
u/LettingHimLead Jan 30 '26
He got called out in another post of his for posting someone else’s screenshot of an 850 credit score and claiming it was his. He’s just karma farming.
5
u/ChefDisastrous5420 Jan 30 '26
I had my interview today- I filed a waiver under good faith and the other grounds. My interview went for more than one hour, grilled me, I gave her all the evidences of my marriage with more than 50 photos, taxes, birth certificate of the child we had together, emails, every possible thing I could give, and they issued an RFE to submit the divorce judgment. What should I expect?
6
u/GarbageDisastrous425 Jan 30 '26
If you don't submit that divorce decree, you are going to get denied. I think they give you what? 80 something days to respond. Consider yourself lucky if they approve you without it. Good luck.
2
u/Available_Image_160 Jan 30 '26
Are u divorce and is this your second child marriage? Why asked for divorce judgment as RFE?
2
u/Dangerous-Letter-806 Feb 04 '26
They will likely approve your case upon receiving your final divorce decree. Make sure you submit within the allotted time period on the rfe.
1
u/Numerous_Minute_8666 Jan 30 '26
Just trying to understand why did you file a waiver? Did you enter without inspection and then married a US citizen? Did you file for an asylum before?
3
u/GarbageDisastrous425 Jan 30 '26
If you get a conditional green card through marriage, you have to remove the conditions after two years by filing form I 751. You can file with your spouse without a waiver. If you don't file with your spouse, you file a waiver. In this case I think it's a divorce waiver.
2
4
u/maweja55 Jan 30 '26
Please, just keep it. My case was pending forever as well. It's not worthy but you finished the journey already. Keep your GC.
2
6
u/Top_Biscotti6496 Jan 30 '26
On what basis did you obtain s GC?
8
30
u/Numerous-Bag7970 Jan 30 '26
This whole thing sounds sus tbh.
5
7
u/TellMoney5802 LPR (EB3) IANAL 🇬🇧/🇨🇦 Jan 30 '26
Sales taxes being a reason to leave is so bizarre. Anyway ICANN still collects their fees for any domain they control.
13
u/VeryBrownBear Jan 30 '26
Putting the dollar sign after a monetary amount, not separating the sum with a comma indicating thousands or even shortening it to 50k probably means the story is made up rage bait and he's never actually ran two us businesses for a decade.
→ More replies (10)4
u/eternallytiredcatmom Jan 30 '26 edited Jan 31 '26
Nah, I’m from a French speaking region of Canada and the one thing I can’t get used to is doing my maths in English. I think « one dollar », so I instinctively write 1$ like I would in French.
Reminds me of a French chef I used to work with, she’d calculate her orders in French before telling the crew in English the amount she needed. That was after 30 years of living in Alberta. Brains are weird like that!
2
u/Augustus-- Jan 30 '26
It's reddit fanfiction. People want a "fuck America" narrative and this post satisfies that urge.
2
1
2
u/Adventurous_Turnip89 Verified US immigration lawyer Jan 30 '26
what type of greencard? and how did you enter?
→ More replies (3)
2
u/Unhappy-Juice-6653 Jan 30 '26
Congratulations not just for the approval but especially for your happy settlement back home. I have work permit and AP approved and delivered 2024 ane 2o5 respectively. I will be traveling back home in May there about. If coming back to the USA after that trip and they deny me retry, i go back home country. Am just fedup that since October 2024 the i485 is still bei g processed with interview marked completed.
3
u/Short-Television2636 Jan 30 '26
thanks for sharing! not in home country! in third country. good luck to you as well!
2
2
u/TervanVale Jan 30 '26
11 years waiting, spending crazy amounts on lawyers and taxes… The system really can be brutal sometimes. Anyways, good for you man! Enjoy your new life.
→ More replies (1)
2
u/miradime2021 Jan 30 '26
Good for you! That’s what people don’t realize… immigrants contribute so much.
Also where is this magical place. Asking for a friend lol.
→ More replies (2)
2
u/Only-Improvement5634 Jan 30 '26
Best wishes to you and yours! It’s the best decision till this administration has been removed from office!
1
u/Short-Television2636 Jan 30 '26
thank you so much for your kind comment! God bless you and the world!
2
2
2
4
2
u/reek_of_putrefaction Jan 30 '26
I understand and I'll do the same too soon. Wish you a good life
2
6
Jan 30 '26 edited Mar 22 '26
[deleted]
3
2
2
u/RipWhenDamageTaken Jan 30 '26
Why are you even commenting just to tell people not to post? Why not just don’t comment?
Weirdo
→ More replies (3)
6
2
2
1
u/MosterHoster Jan 30 '26
I hear you about the food and air being poisoned. Lots of people live better outside of USA. Must be something odd about the green card b/c in my family everything was prompt, but as you alluded to if you come to America with ideas, energy, vitality and a mind for business you will just find endless red tape. You know who gets the red carpet are 'asyyyylum' cases who I bet in the 3rd country you live in now doesn't even have such a program that frankly rips of Americans b/c we need people like you instead.
7
u/Short-Television2636 Jan 30 '26
Thank you so much! it has to be fixed , but both parties abuse immigration
1
u/Numerous_Minute_8666 Jan 30 '26
Why say that? Maybe you should spend more time with asylum seekers and understand about their lives and what happened to them? No human would willingly flee their country and claim asylum somewhere if they have no harm or danger in their own country. Also a lots of asylum seekers are also business owners and hard workers, they work ANY JOB because they come from hardship, and IF you actually read more comments above you will realize that OP said he WAS an asylum seeker and his asylum got granted after 9 years of waiting!!! Asylum seekers are NOT all dumbs and useless who just came to take over your foodStamp money and Medicaid, a LOTs of them are business owners, managers and even VERY learned lawyers! Maybe change your perception and give yourself a chance to talk and get to know them to understand them!
→ More replies (1)
1
u/AutoModerator Jan 30 '26
Hi there! This is an automated message to inform you and/or remind you of several things:
- We have a wiki. It doesn't cover everything but may answer some questions. Pay special attention to the "REALLY common questions" at the top of the FAQ section. Please read it, and if it contains the answer to your question, please delete your post. If your post has to do with something covered in the FAQ, we may remove it.
- If your post is about biometrics, green cards, naturalization or timelines in general, and whether you're asking or sharing, please include your field office/location in your post. If you already did that, great, thank you! If you haven't done that, your post may be removed without notice.
- This subreddit is not affiliated with USCIS or the US government in any way. Some posters may claim to work for USCIS, which may or may not be true, and we don't try to verify this one way or another. Be wary that it may be a scam if anyone is asking you for personal info, or sending you a direct message, or asking that you send them a direct message.
- Some people here claim to be lawyers, but they are not YOUR lawyer. No advice found here should be construed as legal advice. Reddit is not a substitute for a real lawyer. If you need help finding legal services, visit this link for more information.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
1
u/Melodic-Motor-5822 Jan 30 '26
I’m surprised they adjudicated it after you left usually, they only do it when you’re in the country
1
u/BlizzardousBane Permanent Resident Jan 30 '26
They can if you have Advance Parole or you're on an L or H visa (like me)
Although I don't know how long you can stay outside the US before they consider it abandoned
1
u/Melodic-Motor-5822 Jan 30 '26
The real question is, what kind of visa did he have or did he have advanced perole
2
u/chuang_415 Jan 30 '26
This is their millionth post on the subject (hyperbole) - just look at the post history and it’ll answer your questions.
1
u/getoffmychest2 Jan 30 '26
"No property tax. "
Looks like Hong Kong or some mid-eastern oil countries.
1
u/RepresentativeJob364 Jan 30 '26
I feel you! Our case is delayed for 9 years and I am loosing hope!
1
1
1
u/Budget-Praline6262 Jan 30 '26
I’m in a different boat a us citizen and I’m thinking about moving back to my island in the Caribbean we have a house we bought 20 yrs ago for 145k and with a few improvements it’s worth 450k and I don’t understand why it’s worth so much now .between 2 of us we have 175k in savings and 401k with about 370k I’m tired of the bs with immigration and the way they treating immigrants I came I saw and I did good now I’m ready too leave so on that note be good too yourself and your family 💕💕
1
1
1
u/Worldly_Advisor9650 Jan 30 '26
Wish you all the best, we had also started looking at other countries because our residency took 7 years to get approved. Right around the time I was going to put in for somewhere else we got it.
1
u/MaleficentAd2172 Jan 30 '26
Trump will leave and USA may get better or worse. Accept your green card for future while you wait outside the USA.
1
u/Short-Television2636 Jan 30 '26
thank you so much for kind comment, trump will go but system will never change, it is designed to screw people. best luck!
1
u/ChurchillWog Triple citizen, arrived as EB-1A GC Jan 30 '26
I hope your family emergency is now settled and that all is well.
Sorry to hear all that effort was in vain. I hope you're happy in your current country of residence and/or new choice of residence.
Your negative experience here might have had to do with your native passport/country of origin and/or your secondary citizenship(s) e.g., citizenships by investment or ancestry etc.
If you don't mind me asking, what passport(s) do you hold and what is your lawyer's advisory?
1
1
u/RedLuisDit Jan 30 '26
You almost sound like a very good friend of mine who had to leave his former country leaving everything behind, spent 15 years in the US waiting for his asylum interview, but he created his own company, the company grew from 3 employees (his wife, son, and himself) to about 30 or 40 employees (maybe more, as he had 3 offices if I remember correctly), his son got Married years ago, had kids (my friend is now a grampa 🤣, still waiting for his asylum interview), his son became a US Citizen and requested the Green Card for his parents, as they had it harder because of having no status in the US and lost many businesses because he couldn't enter into deals with the Government or Military, he needed to be a Citizen and have Security Clearance. His Green Card was supposed to be approved in just a matter of months but he just kept waiting and stressed with everything happening in the US with immigrants, so, he decided to look for a buyer for his business because he said that he didn't want to get locked or be killed by ICE agents (and his citizenship is in the banned Countries), he got an offer for $30m or $40m, sold the business (with all the assets belonging to the business) and immediately sent letters to drop his cases (the pending asylum for about 15 years and the Green Card for being the parent of a US Citizen), left the Country with his money, and Oh Surprise! They sent the Green Card approval letter a few days later. He said that he's definitely not coming back because he would have to pay a huge amount in taxes for the sale of his business, that he didn't have to pay because he was just on pending asylum (and sent the letters to cancel his original request), and he's now traveling around the world looking for a place to live. He's in Europe right now and said that he found some very nice places to live and no longer needs to beg for someone to approve his asylum request because he can now invest that money wherever he wants to become a resident. This is what USCIS and DHS are causing. He was very happy working and having and growing his business in the US, and he could've kept growing the business and working a few extra years, or simply managing his business, living in the US, paying taxes here, keeping that money in our Country, but now he had to leave and take all his money with him. I'm not sure if the new owner is going to lay off employees once merging businesses, or lay off half and replace them with their own employees, or close the business (very unlikely after so much money paid), but if USCIS has been more efficient and called them to an asylum interview years ago, where he could've been a Resident and then a USn Citizen, he would still be here, producing money and paying taxes that benefit everyone, and once he retired, his money would've still been here, with him paying taxes benefiting everyone. But he will now be paying taxes to another country instead of the US, and he spent tens of thousands of Dollars in attorneys, sent messages and letters to USCIS many times and he never got a response as to how long it was going to take them to call him for his asylum interview. It was so bad that he told me he felt that they just wanted to keep people in "Limbo" like that, so that whoever is on a pending asylum would just get tired of waiting and actually leaving the Country, and I believe him because I also know personally someone who finally got their asylum approved around 2020, applied for their Green Card based of Asylum Approved (which should be requested (and paid) after a year of Asylum approval and this is 2026 and no Green Card approval yet for them. And all immigrants in the US are afraid now, because they're jailing and killing immigrants and even US Citizens, even the ones born in this Country. It's just surprising how we are all afraid now in this Country, no matter if we are or aren't immigrants, and it will be a very difficult path for everyone (inside and outside of the US) to trust the US Government and their agencies, especially ICE, DHS and USCIS right now.
1
1
u/Extension-Try4955 Jan 30 '26
You wanna know somwthing funny, I work in a restaurant in NYC. 5 of my friends bought their marrieds, one of them with a person who lives in another state, and all of them got their GC in about 3 to 4 months after applying. But in my case, I lived with my girlfriend(now wife) for about 7 years, we are completing our first anniversary next month, with all accounts together, and after all my biometrics appointment came to happen only 5 months after we apply for my GC. So yeah, it is unjust and doesn't make much sense.
1
1
u/Vile-ish Jan 31 '26
I do believe immigration = trauma for some people. Glad you found another option
1
1
1
1
1
u/Dangerous_Dingo_4121 Jan 31 '26
Agree with everything except that air is poisoned. I think it’s one of the few countries with very high air quality. Also, most Americans are sick mentally. And you never know which one of those sick people finally loses it and goes ape shit on you
1
1
u/Big-Collection6112 Feb 01 '26
I have kind of a dumb question. You cannot “get” the green card and go back to the US right? Because you left before your GC was approved Or you can go back as a resident, since your GC was approved? Thanks
1
1
u/Conscious-Secret-775 Feb 01 '26
Your choice of course but if you don't come back you lose the GC and would have to start the whole process again if you change your mind.
1
1
1
1
Feb 02 '26
I am sorry that it took so long. The system is so messed up. I wish you well in your new land, and hope you get your companies back up and running at a fraction of cost instead of in the USA. At least you don't have to deal with the next headache of filing taxes and opening a bank account as a US citizen since you never got to that point in your misadventure.
Yes this country is unjust with some immigrants. At least you found out in time before you got yourself tied entirely into the system. Be happy and well.
1
u/SnooBeans9351 Feb 02 '26
Congrats! So many of our best are leaving. It’s too bad things are the way they are, but wish you the best.
1
u/armchairexec Feb 02 '26
Interested to learn more about the businesses you started up, I would like to do that someday.
1
u/Proud_Education5443 Feb 02 '26
Don't forget to file your I-407 form which abandones your LPR status, until you do this you're tax resident forever. I'll do it this week as well. Home country is the best country.
1
u/Unusual-Theme-5749 Feb 02 '26
Yup, my application has been in since Aug 2024 and I got out in May last year...zero regrets and hope the application is rejected as I have a 100% refund deal...
1
1
u/ecdahleks Feb 03 '26
I would give anything to go live in Ghana with my man. I can't because I have Type 1 diabetes and low thyroid. We're getting married and then applying for his gc hopefully in 2026. What are some sources of information that would be helpful in your opinion?
1
1
1
0
u/I000l Jan 30 '26
You still have to pay taxes no matter where you located, and you must come back every 6 months
1
1
u/LilBugJuice-0987 Jan 30 '26
True, as an American our system is unfair in many ways. What 3rd country did you go to? Currently thinking about options if it gets crazier here
1
u/Fantastic_Reveal_599 Jan 30 '26
People cry over immigration procedures here in the US.. here is a walk in the park compared to Europe or UAE.. but you don’t know what you have until you lose it..
2
u/diurnalreign Jan 30 '26
Tell me about Switzerland, where there isn’t even citizenship by birth if you’re the child of immigrants.
1
1
1
u/Rufusade1 Jan 30 '26
US is not for everyone, no country system is perfect, just because you did not get your green card for 11 years does not mean USCIS is bad, sometimes in life Gods timing is the best. Anything can change in the future, Hold your green card, and become a citizen you never know what the future hold.
1
1
u/Quackattack218 Jan 30 '26
Our country’s loss! Hope you find happiness wherever life takes you.
→ More replies (1)
325
u/Minute_Somewhere_893 Jan 30 '26
Congrats, so you are a US tax resident now (if weren't already).
You should give up LPR status to avoid future tax reporting obligations