From: stephen@sprunk.org   
      
   On 23-Jun-14 15:45, Adam H. Kerman wrote:   
   > Stephen Sprunk  wrote:   
   >> On 23-Jun-14 14:51, Adam H. Kerman wrote:   
   >>> Stephen Sprunk  wrote:   
   >>>> US non-citizen nationals have to apply for US citizenship if   
   >>>> they want it; it's not automatic.  They enter the process   
   >>>> roughly at the same stage as Legal Permanent Residents,   
   >>>> though.   
   >>>>   
   >>>> In fact, aside from a few screwy details, Legal Permanent   
   >>>> Residents are effectively the same thing as non-citizen   
   >>>> nationals, and it would be easier for everyone if we just   
   >>>> combined the two statuses.   
   >>>   
   >>> That's ridiculous. A permanent resident has immigrated but has   
   >>> NOT changed his nationality. An American Samoan who wants   
   >>> citizenship isn't immigrating at all, just nationalizing.   
   >>   
   >> We currently don't have any special process for non-citizen   
   >> nationals to become citizens; they have to go through the same   
   >> process to become citizens as LPRs do, i.e. they are _treated_ as   
   >> immigrants.   
   >   
   > I don't know why you find it necessary to screw with words, when   
   > using actual words will do.   
      
   I _am_ using actual words; it's not my fault you don't understand the   
   subtleties of the topics being discussed and relevant terms.   
      
   >>> Doesn't a permanent resident continue to use the passport from   
   >>> his home country in international travel?   
   >>   
   >> Yes, but when coming to the US, they also have to use their green   
   >> card, which substitutes for a visa.   
   >   
   > No, dude: A green card is an actual immigration visa.   
      
   No, it is not.  An immigrant visa is required to _get_ a green card, but   
   the green card is not itself the visa.  They can theoretically present   
   the visa instead, but since an LPR is required by law to have their   
   green card on their person 24x7 while they're within US borders, there's   
   no point in showing anything else.   
      
   > As long as they're carrying this upon re-entry to the United States,   
   > they don't even show their passport.   
      
   At land/water ports of entry, yes; at air ports of entry, they have to   
   show a passport, just like everyone else--and then they show their green   
   card in place of a visa.   
      
   > I wonder what immigrants do when their home country passports   
   > expire, especially if their home country no longer has friendly   
   > relations with the United States since they immigrated, say Iran, for   
   > instance. All passports of those who immigrated before the Shah fell   
   > must have expired by now.   
      
   They get Re-Entry Permits, Advance Parole, or Refugee Travel Documents   
   depending on their exact status.  All require proving that they're here   
   legally _before_ they leave, and in practice can take months or even   
   years to get.  Or they can just naturalize and get a US passport.   
      
   S   
      
   --   
   Stephen Sprunk         "God does not play dice."  --Albert Einstein   
   CCIE #3723         "God is an inveterate gambler, and He throws the   
   K5SSS        dice at every possible opportunity." --Stephen Hawking   
      
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