The prospect of living and working in the United States has captivated many people throughout the world. With all of the country’s options, lifestyle, cultural diversity, and ideal prospects, who wouldn’t want to experience them? No one at all!
Obtaining a US Green Card, officially known as a Legal Permanent Residency, is one of the most important steps to accomplishing this aim. A Green Card allows people to live and work in the United States for the rest of their lives.
Despite being a tiny piece of plastic, it opens up a world of possibilities, such as lucrative careers, top-notch education, and the ability to live the American Dream.
This thorough guide will outline the requirements for obtaining a Green Card, the various types of US green cards, and some tips for doing so.
What is a Green Card?
Foreign nationals who have a green card can live and work in the US continuously and without limitations. Those who fulfill specific qualifying requirements are granted a Permanent Resident Card.
If you have a green card, you can remain in the country indefinitely as a lawful permanent resident. Many foreigners who want to live in the United States typically apply for a green card.
Meanwhile, the majority of people wish to earn it to reunite with family, pursue higher educational prospects, or get better employment.
Types of Green Cards
1. Family-based Green Card
A family-based green card is available to US citizens and existing green card holders. Spouses, kids, parents, siblings, the spouses and kids of those spouses, their adult children, and siblings are among the family members who can be eligible for this.
Widows and widowers who were married to a US citizen at the time of the citizen’s passing also fall under this category. However, if you apply for a marriage-based green card and your spouse is a US citizen or a current green card holder, you will need to provide proof of marriage before you may be granted a green card.
Grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and other members of the extended family are not eligible. They are eligible to apply for a permanent resident card only if they also have a family member who is a US citizen or current green card holder.
2. Marriage-based Green Card
Spouses of US citizens and lawful permanent residents (green card holders) are eligible for this kind of green card. Crucially, it would be beneficial if you both knew that you wanted to create the ideal life together when you got married.
As a result, it cannot have been signed in order to receive immigration advantages. The first step is for the US citizen or LPR spouse to submit an I-130 Petition for Immediate Relatives to USCIS. The I-485 Adjustment of Status, however, can be applied for concurrently with the I-130 by spouses of US citizens who are already in the country.
If the F2A category on the Visa Bulletin indicates Current (C), spouses of LPRs who are in the US may also apply for the I-485 at the same time as the I-130. However, foreign spouses who still need to be in the US cannot file the I-485 concurrently with the I-130.
Rather, after USCIS approves the I-130, the case will be forwarded to the National Visa Center, where the green card procedure will be finished.
3. Parents of a US Citizen-based Green Card
If you have a green card and wish to petition to bring your parents to the US, you must be a US citizen and at least 21 years old. The petitioner must submit an I-130 to USCIS, but the procedure is the same as for the marriage-based visa.
If the procedure is accepted and the parents reside outside the US, they will complete it with their local US consulate. However, if the parents are already in the US, they can apply for an I-485 to change their status as immediate relatives of US citizens while also filing an I-130.
4. Diversity Visa Lottery Green Card
The US government created the Diversity Visa Lottery green card as an option for foreigners. This is due to the policy interest in demonstrating that the US stays open to countries with low immigration rates.
Up to 50,000 immigrants are accepted annually through the Diversity Visa Program, and they are chosen at random. You must complete a form on the State Department’s website when it becomes available in order to be eligible for the lottery. Typically, the forms are accessible between early October and early November.
After completing the online form, you must keep your confirmation number to monitor the status of your application in early May of the following year. If you are chosen but live outside the US, you must apply for your green card at the National Visa Center using Form DS-260.
However, as soon as a visa becomes available, you can apply for a green card using an I-485 with USCIS if you were in the country when you were chosen.
5. Employer-sponsored EB2 and EB3 Green Cards
To qualify for the EB2 green card, you must have an advanced degree or its equivalent, such as a bachelor’s degree plus five years of progressive work experience in the field. However, to qualify for an EB3 green card, you must be a skilled worker, professional, or unskilled worker.
Skilled workers are individuals whose jobs require two years of training or experience. Professionals are individuals who hold at least a US baccalaureate or foreign equivalent degree and are members of the professions.
Unskilled workers are individuals whose jobs require fewer years of training, education, or experience. For these applications, a US employer will have to file an I-140 and show that they are capable of paying the offered wage.
Once the I-140 is approved, your spouse and unmarried children under 21 years of age will qualify to apply for admission to the US under E34, EW4, or E35.
6. Other Green Cards
In addition to the green cards we have already covered, the US government also grants many kinds of green cards. Among these are permanent residency cards for exceptional immigrants, such as religious and media workers, citizens of Afghanistan and Iraq who have worked for the US government in specific roles, and other employees who have worked for an international organization. Green cards for Canadian-born American Indians and Cuban citizens are among the others.
Green Cards Processing Time
From Inside the United States
The current processing time for spouses and immediate family members (parents and minor children) of US citizens applying from within the US through adjustment of status is 12.5–20.5 months.
However, spouses of US green card holders, other family members, and employment-based green card holders may have to wait two years or longer for processing.
From Outside the United States
Currently, it takes 14 to 15 months for spouses and immediate family members (parents and minor children) of US citizens to apply through consular processing from outside the US.
Processing times vary significantly, and all other categories are subject to country limitations. Additionally, the current processing period for spouses of US green card holders applying from outside the US is months.
Conclusion
One of the most important steps in realizing the American Dream is becoming a permanent resident. Even though the procedure can be difficult and perplexing, it can be completed flawlessly with the correct information, strategy, and support.