Are green card holders at risk under Trump?

There have been several news reports and viral videos concerning lawful permanent residents (LPR or green card holders) having their green cards taken away or revoked and then being in removal or deportation proceedings.

- MICHAEL J. GURFINKEL, ESQ

This has caused much anxiety and concern for many green card holders, and they are worried that Trump may come after them.

How is it possible that the US government can take away a person's green card? What can a green card holder do to defend and protect themselves, because if their green card is taken away, they can be deported.

By law, it is definitely possible for green card holders to lose their green card or have their status revoked for a number of different reasons. These include:

• Abandonment. This is where a green card holder might typically treat his or her green card as though it was a visitor visa, coming to the US for perhaps a few weeks a year but actually living abroad because of employment and/or family-related issues. Or they like their home country and prefer to live there most of the time. Staying outside the US for over a year without a re-entry permit could also be considered abandonment of their green card, and they could be put in deportation/removal proceedings, where a judge will determine if they have abandoned their green card.