If you obtained your green card based on a marriage to a US citizen and you later timely filed an I-751 petition ( petition to remove conditions on your green card), you may be wondering if you can travel internationally given your green card is expired.
The answer is that you will be able to travel internationally but you will have to carry the following documents with you:
- Your expired green card,
- Your passport, and
- The Receipt Notice for the I-751 Petition you timely filed.
USCIS recently extended the validity of the I-751 Receipt notice from 18 to 24 months to better accommodate the current long processing times. The Receipt Notice will also serve as evidence of your right to work in the U.S.
Example
Your green card expired on June 1, 2021 and your I-751 was received on May 20, 2021. You received the I-797 receipt notice with validity dates from May 20, 2021- May 20, 2023 and you plan to travel outside the U.S. in August 2022. What documents should you bring when you want to travel internationally? You should bring your foreign passport, the expired green card, and the I-751 receipt notice.
Please note that you can also file an N-400 Naturalization Petition 90 days before the 3rd year anniversary from getting your marriage green card. Thus, it’s possible to have both the N-400 and I-751 petitions pending at the same time.
