In the US, you’ll find individuals numbering in the millions with green cards. They live here legally, but they’re not US citizens.
They must carry their green cards with them. We’ll talk about that in the following article. Any US resident with green card status who doesn’t carry that card with them can get in serious legal trouble.
What is a Green Card?
A green card is a permit that the US court system gives a foreign national in certain instances. It lets that person work and live in the US permanently.
If you get a green card, you are not a US citizen, but you might become one. You must pass a test and go through an interview process if US citizenship interests you.
First, though, you must live in the US with your green card for some time. You have what the court system calls lawful permanent resident status with your green card.
Must You Carry Your Green Card with You?
You must carry your green card in America if the courts grant you one. It’s like a driver’s license. It fits in your wallet, and you can present it if the police stop you for any reason.
Laws exist saying green card residents must carry them and let the police see them if they suspect you committed a crime or they must ID you for some other reason. In most instances, if you don’t have a green card, the police won’t immediately arrest you. They might just run your ID to see whether you have outstanding warrants, and it won’t go any further than that.
However, in some instances, the police might detain you if you have green card status. They’ll question you, and maybe you don’t have the card on you. Maybe they suspect you for some reason, but they can’t immediately prove anything.
In such situations, not having your green card becomes a convenient excuse. The police can detain you while they decide whether to charge you. That’s why you should have your green card on you at all times when you leave the house.
The Green Card Scarcity
You should also know that if you want green card status, the courts might grant it, but you might wait for weeks or months for your physical green card.
The USCIS grants you the physical green card that you must carry with you under the law. However, that office has severe budgetary issues right now. While that goes on, the office is not making as many physical green cards. That might frustrate you, but there is little you can do about it.
Very few physical green cards becoming available impacts many people. Thousands wait for their green cards while the backlog grows. If you are waiting, you might not have the physical green card you can easily put in your wallet, which means carrying legal residency proof becomes difficult, if not impossible.
What Else Does This Mean for You?
As a legal permanent resident with green card status, this sometimes means you can’t leave the country. You do not have the physical green card letting you out and back in again with no hassles. You also can’t renew your license in some cases.
Even worse, some job-hunting individuals can’t show their prospective employer that green card proving their legal residency. You might lose out if you can’t prove you can work at a company that might want you. They may feel you are a perfect candidate, but they won’t risk hiring you if you can’t legally work in the US.
What Else Does This Problem Mean?
There’s another population segment running into problems because they can’t get these green cards. The courts give them legal residency status, but they don’t have the physical green cards yet. Because of this, a cop who detains them might legally arrest them because they can’t prove their legitimacy as a permanent US resident.
It is technically a federal crime for someone with legal green card status to live in this country without carrying that crucial card on them. The police probably won’t enforce it, but they can.
The police can charge you with a misdemeanor for not having your green card on you, even if it’s not your fault. The court system can charge you up to $100. If a judge wants to throw the book at you, they can even imprison you for up to thirty days.
What Can You Do if This Happens?
If the police arrest you because you don’t have a green card but you have legal green card status, you should contact a lawyer who knows this legal niche. Some immigration lawyers help with these cases and charge reasonable rates to do so.
If you know anyone else who has run into these issues, you might ask them about lawyers as well. They may know a law firm that does these cases. They might even handle them pro bono in some instances.
Will This Issue Continue Impacting Green Card Residents?
Hopefully, the physical green card scarcity won’t continue for much longer. If funds free up and the court system addresses the backlog, green card residents can get the physical cards they need and carry them. It’s not as though these individuals willingly ignore the law. They just lack the physical cards that confirm their resident status.
If you do find yourself facing jail time for this offense, though, contact a competent lawyer. They can argue on your behalf and perhaps get you off the hook. Also, avoid any legal entanglements if you can. If the police never detain you, they can’t find out you do not have your green card on you.
Green card residents enjoy many legal protections, but the system isn’t doing them any favors with this physical green card scarcity. Till the court system and US government rectify this problem, you must tread carefully if you have green card status.
