Evidence of a U.S. home, U.S. tax filings as a resident, employment or business activity in the United States, and, for any long absence, a re-entry permit obtained before leaving.
Residence is proven by the life lived, not by the card
Once permanent residence is granted, the documents that matter are the ones showing that the United States has become home: a lease or deed, utility accounts, U.S. resident tax returns, daily-use accounts, children’s school enrolment and U.S. work or business activity.
A consultant planning an extended temporary absence should apply for a re-entry permit while physically present in the United States and before departure. The permit is a travel document that helps show a planned temporary absence and can avoid the need for a returning-resident visa during its validity, but it neither guarantees admission nor conclusively prevents abandonment. Keep complete travel records.
Gold Card receipts prove the program payments, not residence. Hypothetical example: a medical-device product manager keeps a receipt but not the dated official program material that described the payment and process. A receipt proves only that money moved.
The first review should preserve the official page, the applicant’s payment record, identity documents, and the evidence required for the stated immigrant category. The payment must be by the applicant to the U.S. government; it is not proof of EB-1 or EB-2 eligibility and is not a conventional visa application.