52.2 Filing and Receipting Procedures.

(a) Application .

(1) Reason(s) for Applying for a Reentry Permit .

There are a number of situations wherein an alien may apply for a reentry permit , including:

· A resident alien who intends to remain outside the U.S. for a period of more than one year but no longer than two years and who does not intend to abandon residence in the U.S. may apply in order to establish his or her intention to return to the U.S. after his or her temporary absence from this country.

· Although a resident alien in possession of Form I-551 who intends to remain outside the U.S. for less than one year does not require a reentry permit, a resident alien who is "stateless" or who is unable to obtain a passport from the country of his or her nationality may apply for a reentry permit for use as a travel document.

· On occasion, a resident alien may apply because he or she will need a reentry permit to visit a certain country because that country will not honor a passport of the resident's country of nationality.

· A resident alien may apply for a reentry permit for any other bona fide reason.

Note:

Certain resident aliens can reenter the U.S. with only their Form I-551 even after an absence of more that one year. Included in this group are civilian employees of U.S. Government agencies returning from assignments abroad on official orders and a spouse or child of a civilian employee of the U.S. Government or a spouse or child of a member of the U.S. Armed Forces as described in 8 CFR 211.1(a)(6) .

(2) Application Form .

An alien seeking a Reentry Permit must do so on Form I-131, Application for Travel Document. This form is also used when requesting issuance of a refugee travel document or when requesting advanced parole (see Chapter 53 and Chapter 54 of this field manual).

(3) Filing Location .

An application for the issuance of a reentry permit must be filed at the following address:

USINS, Nebraska Service Center

P.O. Box 87131

Lincoln, NE 68501-7131

An alien must be physically present in the U.S. in order to file the application, and any application submitted by an alien who is abroad when the application is made must be denied. See 8 CFR 223.2(b)(1) .

(4) Initial Evidence .

Form I-131 should be submitted with evidence of permanent resident status, normally a photocopy of I-551. Evidence that the alien has been processed for Form I-551 may also be presented as evidence of permanent residence.

(b) Verification of Status .

The first employee reviewing the application shall verify the status from the documentation submitted (normally a Permanent Resident Card, Form I- 551), and place the proper notation on the Form I-131. The Permanent Resident Card shall then be detached from the application and mailed back to the applicant. If the application is received without a Form I-551, and the alien’s A file is available, the employee shall verify the alien’s status and place the notation "file seen" beside the "A" number on the Form I-131, and initial and date his or her annotation. If an "A" file cannot be found and the applicant is not able to present a Form I-551, other evidence of admission for permanent residence listed in 8 CFR 103.2(b)(17) may be accepted. A reentry permit will not be issued until there is satisfactory evidence on file to substantiate that the applicant is clearly eligible.

(c) Photograph .

Any photograph accepted must conform with ADIT instructions.