green card definition: a complete test of your eligibility

Copyright 2016 www.DoItYourselfGreenCard.com

Green Card Definition: Test Your Eligibility

www.DoItYourselfGreenCard.com

March 2016

http://www.doityourselfgreencard.com/



Green Card Definition – From USCIS

A Green Card holder (permanent resident) is someone who has been granted authorization to live and work in the United States on a permanent basis. As proof of that status, a person is granted a permanent resident card, commonly called a "Green Card."

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Common Knowledge – Folk Name

• Green Cars is

• Informal name for a document that identifies

• “Legal Permanent Resident”

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Green Card Benefits

• Right to live in the United States

• Right to work

• Right to travel (enter and leave, with some limitations)

• Right to enjoy certain privileges available to general public (like services of police, social security, health care, public transportation, etc.)

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Responsibilities of Green Card Holders

• Pay taxes

• Obey laws

• Follow certain residency requirements and address regulations as defined by immigration authorities

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Green Card Path to Citizenship

• Available but not automatic• One has to apply• Pay fees• Pass medical and civic test• Take oath

• Generally, green card holders are eligible for citizenship after being a permanent resident for five years

• Green card through marriage allows for a fast track to citizenship –three years

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How to Get A Green Card

Green card is NOT available to all who wants it

“You can get legal” is not available for all immigrants, legal or illegal

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How to Get a Green Card (continued)

• One must be eligible

• One must apply and prove their eligibility

• One must pay fees

• One must submit one’s biometrics (photograph and figure prints, etc.)

• One must participate in an interview

• One has to receive a green card number (may take years!)

• Once the number is available, one can have his or her green card –finally!

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Green Card Categories

• Family

• Employment

• Diversity visa/lottery

• Refugee

• Asylee (aka asylum seeker)

• Other

• Approximately 1 million green cards are issued every year

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Green Card Categories: Family (Immediate Family)• Green card through marriage

• Sponsor: US citizen or • Sponsor: green card holder

• Green card through marriage to US citizen is the largest green card category• ~25% of all green cards issued

• Green card through marriage to a green card holder (together with green card holder children) account for 10% of green card issued annually

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Green Card Categories: Other Family

• Available to people sponsored by US citizens• Adult unmarried children of U.S. citizen and their children

• Married children of U.S. citizens, their spouses and their children; and

• Adult brothers/sisters of U.S. citizens, their spouses and their children

• These categories combined account for ~11% of the green cards issued annually

• Note: green card holders can only sponsor their spouses and unmarried/minor children – they cannot sponsor “other” family members

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Green Card Categories: Employment

• Require employer/corporate sponsorship:

• Foreign executives of domestic or international businesses operating in the United States

• Skilled employees

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Green Card Categories: Employment (continued)

• No sponsorship required• Advanced degrees (designated by the government, such as medical doctors)

• Aliens with exceptional abilities (example: Noble Prize winners, Olympic medalists)

• Alien US government employees abroad (example: Afghani translator to US military)

• Religious workers

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Green Card Categories: Employment (continued)

• No sponsorship required but must qualify

• EB-5 program

• Investors spending between $500,000 and $1,000,000 in direct contribution to the United States economy

• Must demonstrate the investment creates job

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Green Card Categories: Diversity Visa or Lottery• As the name implies distributed through lottery

• 50,000 green cards annually

• Favor given to countries, from which immigration to the US was low over the past five years• Certain countries are ineligible because of too high of immigration rates

• For 2013 lottery, 12.5 million people applied• Chance of winning this lottery is 0.4%, or 4 out of 1,000

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Green Card Categories: Refugees

Applicants

• Must demonstrate that they were persecuted or fear persecution based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group

• Must be outside of the United States

• Must secure referral to the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP)

• Must enter the United States as refugee

• Must wait one year to apply for green card

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Green Card Categories: Asylum

Applicants

• Must demonstrate that they were persecuted or fear persecution based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group• Note this condition is the same as for refugees

• Must be at the port of entry to, or inside of, the United States

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Green Card Categories: Other

• Very small “bucket” of green cards – less than 2% annually• Typically not considered an immigration path

• Includes previously scheduled to be deported illegal immigrants, who petitioned their case in front of the immigration judge and received authorization to stay

• Also includes continuous residents since 1972

• Direct order of certain government agencies like CIA

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What About Your Eligibility Test?

• In short, it is tough to qualify

• Unless you are married to a US citizen – easiest and most certain green card path

• Other categories require sponsorships, may involve spending a lot of money, time or both

• When politicians argue “get legal” to illegal immigrants, or “illegal is illegal is illegal”, perhaps they should try going through the green card application themselves

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Link to the Detailed Article

http://www.doityourselfgreencard.com/blog/green-card-definition-complete-test-of-your-eligibility

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http://www.doityourselfgreencard.com/blog/green-card-definition-complete-test-of-your-eligibility


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Disclaimer

• The statements expressed in this presentation are opinion of the author.

• The opinions are based on research of public information, and may not be complete nor 100% applicable to one’s specific situation.

• One should seek qualified legal advice regarding his or her specific circumstances.



Thank you!www.DoItYourselfGreenCard.com

800-756-9706

[email protected]

www.plus.google.com/+Doityourselfgreencard_Now

www.facebook.com/doityourselfgreencard

www.twitter.com/DIY_GreenCard



mailto:[email protected]

http://www.plus.google.com/+Doityourselfgreencard_Now

http://www.facebook.com/doityourselfgreencard

http://www.twitter.com/DIY_GreenCard

green card definition: a complete test of your eligibility

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