The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services reminds individuals applying for a green card to obtain Advance Parole (Re-entry Permit, also known as Return Permit) before traveling abroad. Many mistakenly believe that this immigration travel document is the same as the Re-entry Permit (also known as the White Paper), but the two documents are not applicable to the same individuals. The main difference lies in whether the applicant holds permanent resident status, i.e., a green card.
Advance Parole:
1. Advance Parole is for applicants who have submitted Form I-485 but have not yet received their green card.
2. It is a document that allows foreign nationals applying for a green card to re-enter the United States without needing an immigrant or non-immigrant visa after leaving the country for a period of time.
Advance Parole serves two main purposes:
1. Foreign nationals can return to the United States after leaving for a period of time without needing other visas, using Advance Parole.
2. It can protect the pending I-485 adjustment of status application or other statuses that can be protected. In fact, if a foreign national has submitted an I-485 application before leaving the United States and departs without Advance Parole before the green card is approved, and re-enters the United States using another visa instead of Advance Parole, they will generally be considered to have abandoned their original I-485 application.
Generally speaking, applying for Advance Parole does not require an interview. After reviewing the application materials submitted by the applicant, if the application is ultimately approved, the immigration office will mail the Advance Parole document directly to the applicant or their attorney. However, due to tightened national security policies following 9/11, some local immigration offices have changed the general procedures for reviewing Advance Parole applications.