Can I keep both, the U.S. Green Card and Canadian Landed Immigrant status?
Yes, you can keep both…but you better have a good story! Here’s the problem: to keep your green card, you have to have the intent to reside permanently only in the United States. Canada requires a similar intent of it’s landed immigrants. How can you intend to reside in both countries at once? If INS suspects that you no longer intend to reside permanently in the U.S., they can lift your green card. This usually happens during border crossings. The issue can also come up during naturalization: to become a U.S. citizen you must have intended to reside permanently in the U.S. continuously since the day you got your green card. As a practical matter, you’ll have some explaining to do at the border if INS finds out you hold residency in both countries. Nevertheless, courts have held that application for and receipt of landed immigrant status in another nation, without more, does not establish intent to abandon permanent residency in the U.S. It is a significant factor showing that one in
