Moving to the United States is what many people first think, those who want to immigrate to another country. A country that provides various opportunities for working and settling down. Economic success attracts people from all corners of the world as potential immigrants and visitors. Everyone is asking how to get a Green Card?

 

How to get a Green Card, what are the requirements and which one can you apply for, this article will answer it all.

 

What is a Green Card?

 

The Green Card USA is a document that allows you to move permanently to the U.S. and stay there. It will allow you to find jobs to work and earn money, you can move to any state in the U.S., as well as settle down with your family.

 

Moreover, the Green Card will allow you to travel in and out of the U.S. However, you are not permitted to stay outside of the U.S. for more than one year, otherwise, your Green Card will expire and you will have to go through the process of applying again.

 

The situation of the applicant will determine how will you obtain the different types of U.S Green Cards. The Green Cards are categorized into four, each one with their separate U.S visas and requirements as follows:

 

  • Family-sponsored Green Cards – this Green Card is given to you if you have a close family in the U.S. and you want to reunite with them. This type of Green Card is given only to immediate families, such as spouses, children, siblings, or parents of a U.S. citizen or a U.S. permanent resident.
  • Employment Sponsored Green Cards – this Green Card is given to you if you have found a job in the U.S. from your home country. Your employer will pay for the forms and application procedure and will sponsor you to stay in the U.S. With an employment-sponsored Green Card, you are bound to that employer and you must work for that company until your contract expires. Only after your sponsorship conditions are completed, you can find a different job with a different employer.
  • Returning resident Green Card – this Green Card is for those who previously had a Green Card but traveled outside of the U.S. and did not come back for more than one year for reasons beyond their control. Reasons beyond your control are if you have been detained in another country or are not being allowed to come back for family or cultural reasons. You must prove that you had no opportunity to come back through various documents to be granted this visa.
  • Diversity Visa Green Card – every year, the U.S. holds a visa lottery for citizens of countries with low immigration rates to the U.S. If you apply for this lottery and get a diversity visa, then you are on your way to getting a Green Card.

 

The situation for immigrant U.S visas and Green Cards is different, whereas the U.S non-immigrant visas are processed when you apply. Many immigrant U.S. visas have a limit on the number of visas issued each year. For instance, the F visa category for families has a limit on the yearly number of visas given to people.

 

The yearly limits mean that those who apply before it is reached will get processed. Your visa will be processed next year if you apply for a U.S. visa once the limit has been reached. Because there is such a high demand for some types of Green Cards and immigrant U.S. visas, you might have to wait for a very long time for the petition or the case to be processed. The waiting period can go up to 5 or 10 years, for some U.S Green Cards. So, if you are planning to apply for a particular Green Card, you must check with the U.S. institutions or this article for how long it takes to get a Green Card and apply as soon as possible.

 

What are the Green Card Requirements?

 

There are various requirements that you must need to attain, for whichever USA Green Card you choose to apply. Each immigrant with a U.S. visa has its own specific set of conditions that you must fulfill, but there are also a few that you must have for each U.S. visa, as detailed below.

 

  • You must live in a foreign country – most people seeking a Green Card must apply from their home country. If you are within the U.S., there are other requirements that you must meet.
  • If you are in the U.S., you must have a dual intent visa – a dual intent visa is temporary but allows you to apply for a Green Card after a certain period. An example of a dual intent visa is the H-1B visa.
  • For family-based Green Cards, you must have a family member living in the U.S. – your family member must either be your fiancé/spouse, your child, your sibling, or your biological or adoptive parent. The family member must be a U.S. citizen or a U.S. permanent resident and willing to sponsor your application forms. Additionally, the family members must prove that they are financially able to support you for the first few months after you move to the U.S. until you find a job.
  • The family member must be at least 21 years old and must have a valid U.S. address – if your family member is under 21 years old, then they are not allowed to sponsor you for a Green Card. Also, your family member must be currently living in the U.S. and present a valid U.S. address where you would also be moving once you get the Green Card.
  • For employment-based Green Cards, you must have a job offer – if you have found a job in the U.S., then you must have proof of it. This includes a signed contract or a signed letter from your employer stating when you will start working after you get your Green Card. Oral agreements are not accepted by any U.S. institution when it comes to Green Cards, so make sure that you have a valid document that proves you have a job in the U.S.
  • Your employer must meet minimum conditions on financial stability – even if you have a job, you must make sure that your employer has enough money to pay your salary. The U.S institutions responsible for Green Cards and immigrant visas will request financial statements from the company sponsoring your visa. If the financial statements show that the employer does not have enough money to pay your salary, then you will not get an approved Green Card.
  • If you were in the U.S in the past, you must have respected all laws and regulations and not overstayed your visa
  • You must not have a criminal past

 

How to Apply for a Green Card?

 

You can start to process the Green Card after you have gone through the types of U.S immigrant visas, reviewed the requirements, and decided which one you can apply for. For most Green Card applications, there are a few steps you must take, as follows:

 

  • Your sponsor must petition on your behalf – this petition can be from a family member or employer. The form for family-sponsored petitions is Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relatives, while the form for employment-based petitions is Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker. The petition must be filed with the U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the Green Card fee must be paid.
  • If the petition is approved, NVC will send you a package – USCIS will go through the petition and will decide whether you qualify. If they approve your petition, your documents will go to the National Visa Center (NVC), which will send you a package to your country of residence. The package will contain all instructions and forms that you must fill out for your application. NVC will not send this package until your priority date is current.
  • You must apply for the visa at a U.S Embassy – following the instructions from the NVC package, you will pay all necessary application fees and apply at a U.S Embassy in your country of residence. You will submit supporting documents as well as have your visa interview.
  • If your visa is approved, you must travel to the U.S. with your arrival package – after you have completed all the steps, your visa is approved, and the U.S. Embassy will give you an arrival package. You cannot open the arrival package but must bring it with you when you first travel to the U.S. Only a U.S. immigration official at a port of entry is allowed to open it and decide whether you are allowed to enter the U.S. or not. Remember that even if you have a visa, it does not guarantee that you will be allowed to enter the U.S. The immigration officials at any U.S. port of entry have the authority to decide.
  • Once in the U.S., you must file Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status to USCIS. This form is the one that will get you the permanent residence card. After USCIS processes your request for one to four weeks, you will get your Green Card in the mail.

 

Traveling Abroad as a Green Card Holder

 

There’s a restricted period within which you can remain outside the U.S. if you are a green cardholder. The standard period you can travel abroad is limited to one year. However the duration of this period depends a lot on whether you intend to become a naturalized citizen or not.

 

Holding a green card will make it possible for you to visit the following countries visa-free:

 

  • Canada
  • Mexico
  • Belize
  • Costa Rica
  • The British Virgin Islands
  • Dominican Republic
  • Caribbean part of the Netherlands
  • Jamaica

 

Under other conditions, whether you can enter other countries visa-free or not, it all depends on your nationality and the visa policy between your home country and destination country. For instance. if you are planning to visit the Schengen countries in Europe, your nationality will determine whether you will have to apply for a Schengen Visa from the US or not.