Question on citizenship application, GC expiring in 7 months

[nnsa]

My 10 yr GC is going to expire in Feb 2020( in 7 months from now). I plan to apply for US citizenship, this month or next month. Can i apply for US citizenship when my GC is going to expire in 6 months OR is there a requirement that GC must be valid for more than 6 month?If i apply for US citizenship, i stiil need to apply for renewal of my GC as US citizenship process might take more than a year, is this correct?or would it be better to first apply for renewal of GC and then apply for US citizenship once my GC is renewed?Please advise

[Enub4]

From what I read, you can apply for citizenship this month or the next and you don't need to renew the GC.
As you said, the process can take more than a year, if you GC expires then you can't travel abroad and maybe can't renew the driver license (depending on state and local office), until you finish the process.
If it is important to you to have a valid GC all the time and you can afford the payment, then you can renew your GC even if you started the citizenship process (no experience, just information from a few websites). Good luck.

Edit: Thank you newacct for your information, very good as always.

[newacct]

If it is important to you to have a valid GC all the time and you can afford the payment, then you can renew your GC even if you started the citizenship process (no experience, just information from a few websites). Good luck.

If they need proof of permanent residency after the GC expires while the naturalization is pending, they should get an I-551 stamp. Renewing the GC would be a waste of money and it would take about a year anyway, so they would still need to get an I-551 stamp in the meantime.

[nnsa]

Thank you for your responses.How and when can i get I-551 stamp? With I-551 stamp on my passport, will i be able to travel to India and come back?Also if i still decide to renew my GC, should be applying as soon as i enter the 6 months timeframe for my GC to expire, and not anywhere when its only 4 or 3 months to expire?

[newacct]

Thank you for your responses.How and when can i get I-551 stamp? With I-551 stamp on my passport, will i be able to travel to India and come back?Also if i still decide to renew my GC, should be applying as soon as i enter the 6 months timeframe for my GC to expire, and not anywhere when its only 4 or 3 months to expire?

Call USCIS to make an appointment at your local office to get an I-551 stamp because your card will expire while your N-400 is pending. An I-551 stamp is equivalent to a green card (which is also an I-551) for all purposes.

[nnsa]

How long is the I-551 stamp that is issued valid for? If it is valid one year and if if citizenship is still taking time after that 1 yr, can we renew I-551 stamp for one more year in passport, so it wont affect if we have to travel to India in the meantime? Also if i file for citizenship, can i also file for renewal of GC once i enter the 6 month period before GC expires? ( in case i dont opt for I551 stamp ) .Option 1: Is it better to first renew GC and then apply for citizenship? Option 2: Is it better to file for citizenship and also apply for renewal of GC ( not sure if this is allowed). Option 3: Is it better to just apply for citizenship( if so is there any minimum time period before my GC expires that i have to file for citizenship?) and then get I551 stamp on paspport.

[newacct]

How long is the I-551 stamp that is issued valid for? If it is valid one year and if if citizenship is still taking time after that 1 yr, can we renew I-551 stamp for one more year in passport, so it wont affect if we have to travel to India in the meantime?

yes

Also if i file for citizenship, can i also file for renewal of GC once i enter the 6 month period before GC expires? ( in case i dont opt for I551 stamp ) .

yes, but like I said, renewing the GC takes around a year, and if you need proof of permanent residency in the meantime, you still still need an I-551 stamp anyway.

Option 3: Is it better to just apply for citizenship( if so is there any minimum time period before my GC expires that i have to file for citizenship?) and then get I551 stamp on paspport.

There were some old documents that are no longer online that said you have to file for naturalization more than 6 months before the GC expires if you don't want to renew it. But other people say that it is not necessary, that you can apply for naturalization at any time since you are still a permanent resident. So I am not sure.