According to the US immigration laws, a Green Card holder is a person who has been granted lawful permanent resident status in the United States. A non US citizen, living in the United States as a permanent resident is conferred certain rights and responsibilities. People who are granted permanent residence in the United States, are allowed to live and work permanently, anywhere in the United States. They can own property, attend schools and colleges. Then may also join the US armed forces in select branches.
There are different ways through which a foreign national may obtain legal residence in the United States. If you wish to become a permanent resident in the United States, you must apply for an immigrant visa. To get an immigrant visa, you must be sponsored by a US citizen family member or an employer by getting a job offer in the United States. If you are sponsored by a US citizen relative and if you are an immediate relative, you need not wait for a visa number to become available in your category. Other categories of relatives who do not come under the immediate relative category must wait until a visa number is available in their particular category. You may also be granted permanent residence in the United States based on various humanitarian programs. That is possible, if you had entered the United States as a refugee or an asylee and if you face a danger of persecution in your home country.
Though a permanent resident is given the right to live and work permanently in the United States, this right may be ended in certain circumstances, if the Green Card holder is absent from the United States for more than a year. A permanent resident is a person who has been granted immigration status in the United States, unlike the foreign nationals who enter the United States, temporarily as non-immigrants. People who are granted permanent residence may reside in the United States for their life time, whereas the non-immigrants are allowed to stay only for a stipulated period of time and according to the purpose for which they had obtained their non-immigrant visas.
A legal resident is granted a Green Card or permanent resident card as a proof of his legal status in America. A legal resident or a person who is granted permanent residence is not a US citizen. The Green Card holders are not granted US passports. They are not provided with citizenship rights, such as the right to vote. But they can become US citizens, after residing in the United States as lawful permanent residents for 5 years and more and on satisfying the eligibility requirements. Hence, a foreign national may obtain permanent resident status in the United States, through a US citizen family member, by getting an employment offer in America, by investing in a business venture in the United States, through Diversity Visa lottery or through humanitarian programs.
Applying for green card is a necessary and important step to become a legal resident of United States of America. When you have a green card you can spend whole life living in US and work there. Your immediate relations can also live with you on the basis of your green card.
How to obtain a green card and where to apply?
There are many ways to get green card. Many people get it by being sponsored by some family member or employers. Other people obtain the right of permanent residence in US by winning green card through lottery, through asylum and other means.
If you are a qualified person to get green card then you can submit the request in form of application and forms to INS or USCIS- United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.
You can apply for the green card to get permanent residency on the basis of the following:
Applying on the basis of marriage
Applying on the basis of employment
Apply on on the basis of family relationship
Applying on the basis of investment
Applying on the basis of lottery
Other special categories such as international adoption, religious workers etc
Read More: Adjustment of Status
After holding a non-immigrant visa for a couple of years people dream of getting the Green Card. So they apply for a green card either by way of employment or through family members. The permanent resident card or the Green Card as it is popularly known is an authorization given by the government to people to live and work in the United States. This is considered the proof of status for that individual.
There are several different ways by which one can become a Legal Permanent Resident. Most people prefer to be sponsored by an immediate family member or by their employers. In order to unify family members, the government and the immigration laws allow eligible relatives to come and live permanently in the U.S.
A Green Card holder can petition for his spouse and unmarried children of any age to immigrate to the U.S. However, the Congress has limited the number of relatives who may immigrate and because of this limitation there is generally a long waiting period before an immigrant visa number becomes available under the family preference category.
Married Green Card holders can apply for a green card for their spouse. For this, they should apply for I-130 and I-485 together. I-130 is the petition for relative and I-485 is for adjustment of status. Your spouse will be required to accompany you for the interview for adjustment of status. Your attorney is also allowed to go along with you. After applying for I-130 there is a long wait for the application to get processed. Your spouse cannot enter the U.S. while her I-130 is pending. She cannot take a visitor visa and visit. Another option for your spouse to enter the U.S. is through employment, that is entering with a H-1 visa sponsored by her employer.
One other option would be to apply for a ‘V’ nonimmigrant visa while waiting for the processing of the immigrant visa. This visa can be applied under the following conditions:
1. The I-130 should have been file on or before December 21, 2000.
2. Priority date is current and at least three years old.
3. Applicant is not inadmissible.
The most effective option however, is for the Legal Permanent Resident to become a naturalized citizen which will make the I-130 current based on the immediate relative category. After the status becomes current you may file for adjustment of status. This way the priority number goes up and the green card process will not get further delayed.
