Permanent resident status: How it differs from citizenship

Key Takeaways: 

• Permanent resident status provides many legal protections and lasts indefinitely but may leave you vulnerable to deportation.
• Citizenship provides greater protections, including protection from deportation, placing you at equal status to citizens by birth.
• Becoming a U.S. citizen through naturalization may or may not require you to give up ties to your home country.

When a noncitizen becomes a lawful permanent resident (LPR), they obtain a green card and become eligible to live and work in the U.S. indefinitely, with limited restrictions. After a few years, an LPR may apply to become a U.S. citizen through a process called naturalization. But is citizenship better than being an LPR?

This article will help you compare permanent resident vs citizen status. Understanding the rights each has, as well as what you might have to give up if you decide to become a citizen, may help you to make an informed decision.

Permanent resident vs citizen status

Permanent residency and citizenship have pros and cons, explained in more detail below.

What is permanent residency?

Permanent residency authorizes a non-U.S. citizen to live and work in the U.S. You may establish permanent residency through: 

• Family- or employment-based sponsorship
• In limited circumstances, sponsoring yourself for a family- or employment-based visa
• Refugee or asylee status 
• Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) classification
• Crime or human trafficking victim visas
• Informant visa sponsorship
• The diversity visa lottery

Each path to permanent residence brings its own timeline. The fastest is usually the immediate relative visa, which often takes one to three years but may take more or less time depending on whether and what issues arise. The slowest is the family-based fourth preference visa for U.S. citizens’ siblings. Due to extensive backlogs and yearly limitations, those visas may take more than 20 years. Most green cards, however, take a handful of years.

Conditional permanent resident status

Green cards typically last for 10 years, but in some instances, people receive a conditional permanent resident card, which lasts only two years. Investor visas and marriage-based green cards issued when the couple has been married for two years or less are conditional. 

To obtain a 10-year card, conditional green card holders must apply to remove conditions in the 90-day window before the card expires—no earlier and no later. If you miss the deadline, you risk the government initiating removal (deportation) proceedings against you. 

Pro-tip:

Because of processing backlogs, conditional permanent resident status is becoming less common among marriage-based applicants. Which green card someone in this category receives depends on how long they’ve been married at the time they get their green card. So, if you get married and apply for a green card but don’t get the card until after you’ve been married for two years, it should last 10 years.

Maintaining permanent residence

Generally, permanent resident status is what it claims to be—permanent. Yet every permanent resident must:

• Renew their green card every 10 years
• Live in the U.S.
• Not become deportable

We discuss each of these requirements below.

Card renewal

You don’t lose your status for failing to renew your green card before it expires. You may, however, lose your ability to prove your LPR status, potentially causing employment issues and preventing you from traveling into or out of the U.S.

Live in the U.S.

To maintain your status, you must not explicitly or implicitly abandon it. You may inadvertently abandon your status if you leave the U.S. without returning for one year or longer. To ensure you don’t lose your status, you generally want to apply for a reentry permit before you depart. Even with a reentry permit, if you remain outside the U.S. for two years or longer, you’ll need a returning resident (SB-1) visa to reenter the country, which you typically only get if something prevents you from returning despite your intentions.

Pro-tip:

If you plan to leave the U.S. for an extended period and want to maintain your LPR status, apply for and have a reentry permit in hand before you go. If possible, return to the U.S. before the permit expires. 

There’s one exception to the requirement that LPRs live in the U.S.: permanent resident in commuter status. LPRs may live outside the U.S. if they:

• Live in Mexico or Canada
• Are employed in the U.S. in the six months before filing
• Regularly commute to a job in the U.S. or regularly enter the U.S. to perform seasonal work 

To later obtain a non-commuter green card, you must apply to remove your commuter status using Form I-90, Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card (Green Card), the same form you use if you’re wondering how to renew a permanent resident card. 

Follow immigration law

Despite their residence being “permanent,” LPRs may be deported. The U.S. government, at the president’s direction, decides who to target for removal. LPRs are rarely a high priority. 

Nevertheless, by law, the government may deport an LPR who is convicted of:

• An aggravated felony
• A “crime involving moral turpitude” (CIMT) that includes a sentence of confinement for one or more years committed within five years of entering the U.S. if LPR status was obtained through consular processing abroad 
• A CIMT that includes a sentence of confinement for one or more years committed within 10 years of entering the U.S. if LPR status was obtained through adjustment
• Two or more CIMTs
• Certain controlled substance, firearm and domestic violence offenses

Pro-tip:

If you’re an LPR and you’re accused of a crime, consult a lawyer who knows both immigration law and your state’s criminal law. Many issues overlap between the areas of law. For example, whether a crime qualifies as a CIMT requires a complex analysis of state criminal law and federal immigration law. As a result, many refer to interrelated issues as involving “crimmigration”.

The government may also deport an LPR who:

• Falsifies documents or commits immigration fraud
• Presents a risk to public safety or national security
• Becomes a “public charge” (relies on government benefits to survive)
• Votes in a U.S. election in violation of U.S. law

Finally, the government may rescind a green card if, within five years of issuance, it discovers the LPR wasn’t qualified.

Pro-tip:

During the Trump Administration, the government declared its intention to target noncitizens receiving public benefits, like Medicaid, for deportation under the public charge doctrine. While the decision inspired anxiety, most noncitizens who qualify for public benefits, like asylees and refugees, are explicitly excluded from the public charge doctrine. If the government issues similar rules in the future and you’re unsure how the rule works, it may be beneficial to contact an attorney.

Benefits of permanent resident status

Benefits of LPR status include:

• Living and working in the U.S. indefinitely
• Traveling to and from the U.S.
• Bringing minor children and spouses to the U.S.
• Sponsoring spouse and unmarried children under 21 for visas
• Qualifying for programs not available to other noncitizens like student aid and certain benefit programs

Eventually, an LPR may become a naturalized citizen.

What is naturalization?

Naturalization is the process of becoming a U.S. citizen. If you obtained your green card through any path other than marriage to a U.S. citizen, to become a naturalized citizen, you must:

• Be 18 or older
• Have been an LPR for at least five years
• Have resided in your state for at least three months
• Have continuously resided in the U.S. for at least five years and while your application is pending
• Have been physically present in the U.S. for at least 30 months of the last five years
• Pass civics and English-language tests (unless you qualify for an exemption)
• Prove you have good moral character, typically by showing you haven’t committed any deportable crimes

If your U.S. citizen spouse sponsored your green card, you may naturalize sooner if you have:

• Been an LPR and living with your spouse for at least three years
• Resided in the U.S. for at least three continuous years
• Been physically present in the U.S. for at least 18 months of the last three years

If you qualify, you may submit Form N-400, Application for Naturalization. Then, you attend an interview and take the civics knowledge and English-language proficiency tests. Next, you attend a naturalization ceremony, take the Oath of Allegiance, and receive your certificate of naturalization to officially become a U.S. citizen.

Benefits of citizenship

When you compare permanent residency vs citizenship, citizenship comes with many benefits, like:

• No longer being deportable
• Gaining rights under the U.S. Constitution
• No document renewal requirements
• Opportunities unavailable to noncitizens, like federal employment
• Sponsoring your spouse and unmarried children under 21 for green cards
• Getting a U.S. passport and expanded travel opportunities

The U.S. allows citizens to hold dual citizenship, so you may be able to retain your other citizenship. Regardless, you must bring your U.S. passport when you enter or leave the U.S.

Pro-tip:

Although extraordinarily rare, you may lose your citizenship, whether you gained it by birth or through naturalization, if the government finds you guilty of treason. In some circumstances, you may also lose your citizenship by serving in the military or running for office in another country.

Trade-offs of citizenship

The primary trade-off of U.S. citizenship is that it may affect your relationship to your original country of citizenship. Some countries allow dual citizenship, but others may require you to surrender your citizenship to become a U.S. citizen. Among those countries that allow dual citizenship, some set terms and limitations on it. For more information, you may contact your country’s embassy or consulate in the U.S.

Pursuing permanent resident vs citizen status

If you’re an LPR trying to decide whether to apply for citizenship, the choice is yours. Citizenship comes with many benefits, like not being deportable, the ability to sponsor more family members for green cards, more rights and greater privileges. However, you may have to give up your home citizenship. When deciding whether to give up your home citizenship or become a U.S. citizen, no one can decide but you.

An immigration attorney often proves invaluable throughout the green card and naturalization processes. If you hire a lawyer, they can help you through both, anticipating issues and ensuring you provide the information you need to provide when you need to provide it. Should problems arise, your lawyer can guide you through them.