yeah if you use your native passport they wont allow you entry on your arrival back to United states. I also wanna ask, how long did your asylum based greencard take from application to approval?

I have done some research and they only request for my green card when I enter. so I’m confused. It took a year. I filled up 2 years ago for Asylum

@victor, it actually depends on the officer that paroles you in. I have traveled outside the US a couple of times without the officers asking for my native passport and also met officers that requested for my passport about 3times.

it looks like they can either request or not the passport. But does it necessary need to be the travel document or my native passport could work without any issues?

even if I’m a green card holder through asylum

tbh,I don't know but it's just not to present your native passport

I’m reading the USCIS website (Travel Document) and I don’t know if I’m understanding right… but it looks like asylees and refugees need the travel document but not the lawful permanent residents. Although, these lasts can get one

I got my green card through asylum as well, I have traveled overseas 3 times, every time when I come back at the port of entry they take my passport and make me wait for an hour or two , then let me go

victor to return back you just need to have GC and passport(native). GC will allow you to enter to US… I understand your concern but think in other way even if you asylee here in the USA then you cannot be a person without nationality and your passport cannot be an issu even if you have religion or any other problems in your native country… but you still have nationality of that country…. just be ready to answer additional questions. could you please share your timeline for GreenCard?

@Al Ros, where are you from? If you don’t mind me to ask

@here I am I applied for asylum on Feb 2019 and got approved by Aug 2019, then I applied for my GC on July 2020 and was approved by December 2020.

wow…. I’m waiting for green card since October 2019….. been approved in October 2018

where did you apply? which Service Center is processing it? tbh, my immigration processes have been pretty fast. I even got a Travel Document when I got my asylum granted and was issued in 3 months only. But I guess because of Covid all those processing times have been delayed.

my case is in Texas Service Center

yeah, Usually that service Center takes some times with certain cases… i filled a I-130 for my wife and they are processing it. I’m just praying to get an answer within the time range they say

@Victor V Cuba

@Al Ros I’m from Venezuela. So basically we are on the same situation then

if you use your country of origin passport to travel, then your asylum will be canceled 😞 and you will automatically be on deportation proceedings. you should not even be in possession of your country passport as an asylum GC holder.

@Mitch NK I believe you 100%

The issue is that you need ur passport as a form of national identity after GC. To my best knowledge, you can travel all over the world with ur passport, except ur country of origin. Ex-asylees said in their comments that they travel 'overseas' but never clarify if countries of origin are among the destination. You see why u need to be careful. Again, in other comments, there's assumptions that ex-asylees cannot travel with their country of origin passport, so on which country passport they can travel with? If it's before getting GC true, but after GC false.

@Eko Law I have read a lot of articles. I have been reading USCIS travel document usage very detailed and very precisely & there’s a lot of gaps regarding that information. I found a communication that CIS was giving some recommendations to USCIS and it stated I couldn’t use my origin passport to travel, but again USCIS has not clearly stated anything about it. As a matter of fact, I went a bit further and check CBP manual and LPR are NOT required to present a passport at the entry port but the GC instead (or some other documents which don’t remember now). Indeed, there’s a lot of confusion. I have also checked with 3 different immigration lawyers and 2 of them agreed that I can travel and get back presenting only the GC and 1 of them RECOMMENDED me not to do so. I took this as a recommendation but I’d like to be extra careful with it that’s the reason why I created this post to hear out some opinions.

@Victor V I Agree u need GC to enter USA wherever u coming from, but do u still use same card to enter wherever u coming from. Certainly no. Being ex-asylee does not deny u freedom of movement (universal human rights), except ur country of origin due to prevalent issue of the asylum. For instance ex-asylee from Ghana can travel to Europe or UK. But he/she will need Visa, now how will it get it without passport, or whose country national he'll claim, and what does he show for claim a nationality? You'll agree with me with my conclusion.

Yes, you’re correct @Eko Law I do agree with you. Yet, there are so many escenarios that I wish USCIS can clarify in the future for future asylees and refugees. But historically they have been working the same way, explaining certain things not very clear and leaving to your own interpretation some times. Let’s see what happens, I hope more people can comment and share their experience. I’m sure there should be more ppl out there in the same situation and I’d like to see how they did go through it.

it's not even safe to keep your country passport with you at home. if anything happens to you someday and ice finds out you are carrying your country passport and you're an asylum GC holder, Asylum is Automatically canceled. because you deny that country in court.

Victor V I just confirmed that ex-asylee can only travel with asylum documents in lieu of passport and can travel anywhere except his country of origin.

Mitch NK where you get this info that you cannot use or carry your national passport ? how do you imagine that person without nationality and how do you imagine travel if you need to have visa ? I did travel with combination national passport and refugee document two time… and in a way back I gave them only refugee doc and they asked me where I been and that’s it!

@Eko Law: do you know the reason why Asylum is giving to someone? means you can't go back to your home country and you are settling in another country until your problem is resolved in your home country. during this period of Asylum. you can not go to your home country embassy, and have nothing to do with anything related to your country until you become a citizen of the United States then you are out of Asylum status.

asylees do not need his or her native passport to travel, whether having a greencard or not. Refugee Travel Document is a passport like document that an asylee or refugee can you to travel, apart from that USCIS or CBP has the right to revoke your asylee status or initiate removal proceedings against you. So dont even think of using your native passport, rather apply for refugee travel document n use. that's the only document asylees n refugees are authorized to use when traveling

travel document you can use as passport but it require to have a visa everywhere and now due to COVID it’s hard to get any visa… GC is only allowing you get back to USA

Hey victor I was wondering which service center processed your I-485 application? thanks.

@Dan A it was Nebraska Service Center

how do I know what service center should apply for green card through asylum. I live in North Carolina.

@Dan A you can only adjust your status once you have 1 year already with your asylum granted. Basically, you will fill up the form and send it to the address posted on USCIS website. After that, they send your application to one of the service center. Unfortunately, we cannot control which service center processes it, it is basically based on your location I guess.

thanks for all the information, it helped me a lot.

@Dan A it’s alright. If you have any question, let me know. USCIS May be tricky sometime, specially if you are doing the process on your own.

thanks. I appreciate your help.

who is waiting for asylum based GC please join https://t.me/joinchat/k8Ecc-pxXdE3MTkx

there is no additional question. if your national passport still not expired you can you it. i did and came back without problem.

Hi Victor and everyone. I am currently in the same situation as you were Victor. I have refugee status and really confused whether I can use my native passport or I need to apply for Refugee Travel document in order to be able to enter United States back... Please please share your experience if you still see my comment in your post I would greatly appreciate you taking your time and it can really help me. Thank you in advance. Serkan.

Same here. I was going through all the articles I found related to this matter but I haven't found any confirmation if we can use our passport of origin. Please share more experience.

I have been wondering about this,Victor must be a citizen now.Please guide us on this did u use your passport and did u encounter any issues during the citizenship interview?