Getting a green card can be time-consuming, expensive and challenging. Hence, it would be tragic to have it taken away from you. Here are a few of the ways you could jeopardize your status:
Immigration doesn’t believe you are residing in the U.S.
One way people risk losing their green card is protracted absence from the U.S. You might need to travel, for work or to look after an elderly relative but, staying too long outside of the U.S. could cause problems if immigration determines you have abandoned your permanent residency. If you need to be outside of the U.S. for a while it would be good to speak to an attorney regarding applying for a reentry permit.
Immigration grows suspicious about your original application
Maybe you received your green card through a marriage petition, but the marriage ended within months of you celebrating it. This can happen, as couples can think they are compatible when they aren’t. But, because some people marry just to get a green card, and immigration can get suspicious when a marriage only lasts a short time. They may think that was the plan all along. It is important that you speak to an immigration attorney before you apply to remove your conditions on your green card (this applies if you only have a 2-year card) or naturalization to make sure your good faith marriage evidence is well-documented.
A court finds you guilty of a crime
Not all crimes impact your immigration status, but it is important that you speak to an immigration attorney before you plead guilty to any crime to make sure such plea will not impact your immigration status. In addition, if you were convicted of a crime it is important that you speak to an immigration attorney before any international travel to make sure you are not found “inadmissible” and placed into deportation proceedings when you return from your trip.