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How to Get a Green Card for the United States

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The United States is often called the melting pot or the salad bowl, where citizens from differing races, religions and cultures move to the US and adjust to American culture or integrate their own culture into the new society, respectively. Every year, numerous potential immigrants apply for a US Green Card which would give them permanent resident status and allow them to live and work in the US as well as attend public schools and own property. Those that are interested in applying for a Green Card may be eligible to apply through sponsorship from an employer, family member or from being a native of a qualifying country.

Green Card Through Employment

One way to be eligible to apply for a Green Card for the US is being sponsored by an employer. Often those that are highly skilled or are investors or entrepreneurs are given priority to immigrate. Before filing for sponsorship, the employer is first required to publicly advertise the job and see if there are any qualified US citizens interested in the position. If not, they can then apply for a Labor Certification with the Department of Labor who will confirm this. After the Certificate is approved, the employer can then file From I-140, the Petition for Alien Worker through the USCIS, which will allow the employee to legally work in the US and have permanent resident status.

Green Card by Marriage

If your spouse is a US citizen, you may qualify for a Green Card through marriage. The spouse will be able to sponsor you as an "immediate relative" and will be required to fill out Form I-130, the Petition for Alien Relative, and Form I-485 if you are both legally in the US at the time of filing. Because you are married and your spouse is a citizen, a visa number is made readily available and you can quickly apply for a Green Card. If your spouse is a permanent resident though, they can still sponsor you but a visa number will not be made available immediately and the process will undoubtedly take much longer.

Green Card Through Family

There are other ways to apply for an US Green Card through family members besides marriage. If the family member is a permanent resident or US citizen, they can sponsor you. There are different preference categories which ultimately determine how long you may need to wait to receive an immigrant visa number.

The first preference will be given to unmarried sons and daughters of US citizens that are 21 and over.

The second preference is for spouses of Green Card holders and their unmarried children under the age of 21 followed by unmarried children over the age of 21.

The third preference is for married sons and daughters of US citizens.

The fourth and final preference is allocated to brothers and sisters of adult US citizens.

Diversity Visa Program

The Immigration Act of 1990 created the Diversity Visa Program (DV) which allocated 55,000 immigrant visas to qualifying applicants every year and would give them all the benefits that a permanent resident has. The idea behind the lottery was to encourage diversity in the US and was specifically aimed at six geographic regions that have been underrepresented over the past five years.

As of the DV-2019 program, 50,000 Visas are made available and applicants have a one month window to submit their free online applications. Winners are then chosen through a random computerized drawing done by the Department of State but no one country can receive more than 7% of available DV's in one year.

Diversity Visa Requirements

Every year, the State Department of lists regions that potential applicants must be a native from. For 2019, these include 53 countries in Africa, 32 countries in Asia, 56 countries in Europe, 13 countries from Oceana, 24 countries from South and Central America and the Caribbean and one from North America. If the applicant is not a native of one of these countries though, other ways to register for a Green Card through this program would be to claim through a spouse or parent that is a native of one of the eligible countries.

One other requirement that applicants need to meet to be eligible for this lottery include having a high school education or an equivalent or having at least two years of work experience within the past five years in an area that requires a minimum of two years of training.