Pathways To A Green Card

For many people who come to the United States, earning permanent residency status (more commonly referred to as a “green card”) is a major milestone. However, there are many ways to earn a green card, which can vary depending on your legal status and what form of immigrant visa you have. Here are the most common potential pathways to get a green card, and potentially work your way towards being an American citizen:

1. [ ] Family connections

   • One of the most common ways that people can earn a green card is by having a relative who is already, themselves, a US citizen. This may mean that you are married to a citizen, or that a parent, child, or sibling is a citizen. You may also seek a green card if you are engaged to be married, or are the child of an engaged couple, and have a K-1 or K-2 visa. Widowers of US citizens may also be eligible under certain circumstances.

2. [ ] Employment status

   • You may also be able to become a permanent resident if you are in the US on some work-related visa. This generally means highly skilled or educated workers, such as doctors or academics, but many professions can potentially qualify for a green card. These are generally broken up into three groups:

     • First preference workers: those with extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics; outstanding professors or researchers; certain multinational managers or executives

     • Second preference workers: people in professions with advanced degrees; those who have exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business; those who are seeking a national interest waiver

     • Third preference workers: skilled workers in jobs requiring two or more years of experience; professionals in jobs requiring a bachelor’s degree or higher; unskilled workers in jobs requiring two or fewer years of experience

3. [ ] Physician national interest waiver

   • A foreign physician who agrees to work in an underserved area of the country for a certain period of time may be eligible for a green card. These are typically rural areas or other places where there are inadequate medical services for the population.

4. [ ] Immigrant investors

   • Any immigrant who invests at least $1,050,000 in a commercial enterprise in the US, or $800,000 in a “targeted employment area or infrastructure project,” can be eligible for a green card. These targeted employment areas typically include rural areas, and places with high levels of unemployment.

5. [ ] Refugee or asylee status

   • People who enter into the United States as refugees or asylum seekers may also be able to get green cards. To seek permanent residency through this method, you must have legally resided in the US as a refugee or asylee for at least one year.

6. [ ] Victims of crime or human trafficking

   • Even if you did not initially come to the US legally, you may be able to become a permanent resident if you were the victim of crime or human trafficking. This requires first getting a “T” or “U” nonimmigrant visa, however, depending on your exact circumstances.

7. [ ] Victims of abuse

   • The spouses, children, and parents of a US citizen may also be able to get a green card if they were victims of physical or emotional abuse. This is generally done as a Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) self-petitioner, but there are other statutes that may apply.

8. [ ] Green card through registry

   • Anyone can potentially qualify for a green card if they have resided continuously in the US since before January 1, 1972. This means that they cannot have lived in another country since then, and must not have left the country for an extended period of time.

9. [ ] “Special immigrant” status

   • There are a number of types of “special immigrant” categories that are also eligible for green card status. These include:

     • Religious workers

     • Special Immigrant Juveniles (SIJs)

     • Afghani or Iraqi nationals who worked for the US government

     • International broadcasters

     • Employees of NATO or certain other international organizations

     • Residents of Laos, Cambodia, or Vietnam paroled into the U.S. on or before Oct. 1, 1997 under the Indochinese Parole Adjustment Act of 2000

10. [ ] Other categories

    • There are also a host of other types of immigrants who may potentially qualify for a green card, which do not fit into any other category. These include, but are not limited to: 

      • Diplomats stationed in the US (Section 13)

      • Children of diplomats born in the US

      • Liberian Refugee Immigration Fairness (LRIF) beneficiaries

      • Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act (HRIFA) beneficiaries and their children

      • Winners of the Diversity immigrant Visa Program lottery

      • Cubans seeking residency under the Cuban Adjustment Act

      • Lautenberg parolees

      • Native Americans born in Canada

If you are interested in getting a green card or pursuing other forms of legal immigration status, contact attorney John Zaher at 631-310-4655 or on his mobile phone at 631-375-8770, where he can be reached 24/7/365. He will help you explore your options and get you on the path to permanent residency and citizenship.