Q: I have been a legal permanent resident of the United States for many years, but recently divorced my American husband and returned to Jamaica to take care of my ailing mother. I had a non-immigrant visa for over 10 years that was cancelled when my immigrant visa was issued.

I am considering surrendering my “green card” and status as a legal permanent resident (LPR) and applying for a new non-immigrant visa. I have heard though that the US Embassy does not look favourably on people who abandon their permanent residency. What is the procedure for surrendering my LPR status and green card, and will it affect my ability to get a non-immigrant visa to the United States?

A: Thanks for asking this important question. Relinquishing your “green card”, officially called an I-551, and LPR status does not disadvantage your application for a non-immigrant visa (NIV). On the contrary, it may confirm that you have no intention of violating the terms of your NIV by remaining indefinitely in the United States.

To relinquish your LPR status, mail your green card and a completed Form I-407 (found at www.uscis.gov/i-407) to either the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Eastern Forms Center or the nearest USCIS international field office.

Those two documents contain sensitive personally identifiable information (PII) about you, so please take proper precautions when mailing them. Alternatively, if you have obtained an NIV you may also submit the I-407 and green card to a US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer at a US port of entry such as while you are going through immigration at the airport in the United States.

If you are mailing the I-407 and green card via US Mail, use the following address:

USCIS Eastern Forms Center

Attn: 407 Section

P.O. Box 567

Williston, VT 05495

If you are sending the I-407 and green card via Courier (DHL, FedEx, UPS), use the following address:

USCIS Eastern Forms Center

Attn: 407 Section

124 Leroy Road

Williston, VT 05495

The closest USCIS international field office to Jamaica is in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The mailing address for parcels to USCIS Santo Domingo is:

Field Office Director

Department of Homeland Security

US Citizenship and Immigration Services

US Embassy

Avenida República de Colombia #57

Altos de Arroyo Hondo

Santo Domingo, D.N.

Dominican Republic

10605

The US Embassy in Kingston, Jamaica, does not regularly collect green cards on behalf of USCIS. In exceptionally rare circumstances, a consular officer at the embassy can accept your card and Form I-407 in person if you need immediate proof that you have abandoned your lawful permanent resident status. If you believe this applies to you, please e-mail KingstonIVAppointment@state.gov.

Surrendering your LPR status and green card and applying for a visa

It takes several weeks for USCIS to process and acknowledge your abandonment of your LPR status. You do not have to wait for that notification to apply for an NIV.

As do all NIV applicants, however, former LPRs will be required to demonstrate that they do not intend to reside in the United States. You should be prepared to discuss how you have established residence in Jamaica after having resided in the United States as well as evidence that you now intend to stay in the United States only temporarily.

During your interview, please talk honestly and openly about your reasons for abandoning your LPR status, your ties to Jamaica, and the purpose of your proposed travel to the United States.

To apply for a non-immigrant B1/B2 or “visitor’s visa”, go to usvisa-info.com for information on completing the application form, paying the fee, and scheduling an appointment.

Surrendering your LPR status, green card without applying for a visa

You are not required to apply for a visitor’s visa at the same time that you abandon your LPR status and green card. A word of caution is in order, however: Under no circumstances should you travel to the United States with the intent to abandon your green card unless you have already obtained a visitor’s visa or other appropriate type of NIV. In nearly all such cases, the CBP officer will have no choice but to return you to the country you left on the next available flight.

If you have additional questions about LPR status or US citizenship, we encourage you to visit the USCIS website at www.uscis.gov.

You can find more information about how to travel to the US on our website, www.jm.usembassy.gov and the website of our authorised service provider at usvisa-info.com . Keep on top of embassy news on our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/pages/US-Embassy-Jamaica and by following @USEmbassyJA on Twitter . We also answer general visa questions on our Facebook and Twitter pages.