Practice Area

Immigrating to the US (Green Cards)

There are a limited number of paths to obtaining a green card (permanent residence) to the US. They are as follows:

1. Family Sponsorship: A foreign national may be sponsored by a US Citizen or Resident Alien (“green card” holder) family member. The qualifying relationship must be close (spouse, parent, child, step-child, or brother/sister), and there are quota for various individuals can result in extensive waiting periods.
2. Employment Sponsorship: A foreign national may be sponsored by a US company offering permanent employment for a green card. This is a complex process and due to country and educational quotas, there is some extensive waiting periods.


3. Diversity Lottery: Also referred to as the “green card lottery”, this program grants 55,000 green cards each year to high school graduates who meet certain requirements. Foreign nationals from certain countries that have large populations in the US are excluded from this program (i.e. China, Mexico, India, Canada, etc.). This is a lottery and registration is done via the web. Please note, the US government does not charge for this lottery.


4. Asylum or Refugee Status: Foreign nationals who have fled their home country due to persecution may obtain a green card by applying for asylee status. They must demonstrate that they will be persecuted by the government of their home country based on their race, religion, ethnicity, social group, or political opinion, and that their government cannot or will not protect them.
5. Self Sponsorship: Certain foreign nationals that can demonstrate that they qualify under one of the following categories may obtain a green card through self-sponsorship: Amerasian: individual born between December 31, 1950 and October 22, 1982 in Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Kampuchea or Thailand, whose father was a US Citizen; Widow/Widower: individual married for at least two years to a US citizen who has died, where the foreign national and the US spouse were living together as a married couple at the time of the US Citizen’s death; battered or abused spouse or child of a US Citizen or Permanent Resident.


6. Self Sponsorship Based on Employment: Highly qualified foreign nationals may obtain a green card by demonstrating through extensive and specific documentation that they possess exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics, or that their work benefits will continue to benefit the US national interest. The immigrant investor category is also available to foreign nationals who can demonstrate that they will invest approximately $1 million of personal funds into a new business that will create 10 or more new US jobs.

Employment Based Green Cards (Permanent Resident)

An employer who wants a foreign national to work for an indefinite period in the US may sponsor him/her for green card status (Immigrant Visa). Lengthy processing times mandate that this process should start considerably prior to the expiration of a foreign national’s temporary work status. Otherwise, it is likely that authorized employment in the US would be interrupted. In a majority of cases, the initial step involves filing a Labor Certification application with the US Department of Labor (DOL), through the PERM process.

Step 1. PERM (Labor Certification):
A majority of employer sponsored green cards require the filing of a Labor Certification application online with the Department of Labor through PERM (Program Electronic Review Management). The PERM
application must be approved in order to move on and file the case with the Citizenship and Immigration Services. A select group of individuals is exempt from this process (see step 2 below). The sponsoring employer must conduct extensive recruiting and advertising for the position, and evaluate the qualifications of applicants for the position, to demonstrate to the DOL that there are no US citizens or US permanent residents ready, willing and qualified to perform the particular job.

Generally, PERM cases are processed within 45-60 days. All advertising and recruitment must have taken place within the last 180 days, but not within the last 30 days, prior to filing. All PERM cases require the following: an application to the local State Workforce Agency (SWA) to confirm the minimum salary required (prevailing wage), given the minimum requirements to do the job; evidence of an on site job posting (posted for 10 consecutive business days); and evidence of advertising in 2 Sunday ads in a paper of significant circulation (i.e., Detroit News/Free Press for Metropolitan Detroit). Additionally, certain applications for professional positions require at least three more methods of advertising including: job fairs; employer’s website; job search website other than the employer’s (i.e. Monster.com, etc.); on-campus recruitment; trade or professional organizations; private employment search firms; employee referral programs; notice of job opening at a campus placement office (if no experience is required); local and ethnic newspapers (if appropriate for the position); and radio and television advertisements.

Step 2. Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker:
This process is required of ALL employment-based green card cases. It is the second stage of the process for employees who have an approved PERM application from DOL, as the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) must confirm the PERM approval. Individuals who have specific qualifications are exempt from the PERM process and file directly with the USCIS regional service center.

The following classifications are all exempt from the PERM process:

Outstanding Researchers: This category is available to an individual who is recognized internationally for his/her pioneering achievements in the sciences or other academic areas, demonstrated by extensive objective evidence and original scholarly contributions including: publications in peer-reviewed journals; patents; the individual’s serving in a role requiring judgment or critical review of other’s work; citation of the individual’s work by other authors; significant awards or prizes; and reference letters by preeminent members of the field supporting the individual’s international acclaim and achievements. This category requires university or company sponsorship.

Extraordinary Ability Professionals: This category is available to a foreign national who holds sustained national or international recognition in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics, demonstrated by extensive objective evidence including: prominent publications regarding the individual and/or the individual’s work; publications written by the individual; significant awards or certificates; public recognition of the individual’s accomplishments in the media; the individual’s serving in a role requiring judgment or critical review of other’s work; the individual’s serving in prominent role in an organization; and the individual receives a high salary. Please note, this category requires significant accomplishments; however, a foreign national who qualifies under this classification may sponsor himself/herself, or may be sponsored by an employer.

National Interest Waiver: This category requires that the work of a foreign national substantially benefit the US national interest. It is available to a foreign national with a Master Degree or higher (or equivalent), whose achievements and recognition are significantly above their peers. The requirements are similar to that of an outstanding researcher above but below the extraordinary ability category. However, the impact of the accomplishment is crucial to determining the ability to qualify in this category. The foreign national may sponsor himself/herself or can be sponsored by an employer.

Intracompany Executives or Managers: A foreign national executive or manager who was employed outside the US for at least one year prior, with a company related to the US company (parent, subsidiary or affiliate), in immediately preceding three years to admission to the US, generally qualify for this status. Please note, the person must have been a foreign national or executive while employed abroad and he/she must be coming to the US in a managerial or executive capacity.  Persons in the US in L-1A status usually meet these qualifications. This category requires the company’s sponsorship.

Step 3) Immigrant Visa Application:
This is the final stage in the employment-based green card process where the foreign national, and his or her immediate family, apply to become US permanent residents. Applicants may select either Adjustment of Status or Consular Processing as the mechanism to complete the process.

A) Adjustment of Status: An application for Adjustment of Status (AOS) is available only to foreign nationals (and his/her family members) who are currently residing and physically present in the US, and in legal status. The AOS application is filed at the appropriate USCIS regional service center, and can be filed concurrently with stage 2, listed above. Concurrent filings allow for work and international travel authorization while they are pending, and help reduce processing times.

B) Consular Processing: Consular Processing is an alternate way to complete the green card process. A personal interview at the appropriate US consulate outside the US is required of the foreign national, and any dependant family members. No interim work or travel authorization is permitted, independent of the employee’s temporary work status, through Consular Processing.


Family Based Immigrant Petitions:

Immediate Relatives of US Citizens: US citizens can sponsor a spouse, minor children (under 21 years of age), and parents for US green cards (Immigrant Visa). No numerical limitation exists for this category. See below for a discussion on processing options.

Adult Children of US Citizens: US  citizens can sponsor adult sons and daughters (over 21 years of age) for US green cards (Immigrant Visa). Note: there is a significant backlog in the priority date for this category. A priority date is the date an Alien Relative petition (see below) is filed. These petitions can take several years to come to fruition, due to the high demand for these Visas, from the time that an Immigrant Relative petition is filed, until it is approved. See below for a discussion on processing options.

Relatives of Green Card Holders: US Resident Aliens, also called green card holders or permanent residents, can sponsor a spouse, minor children (under 21 years of age), and adult sons and daughters (over 21 years of age) for US green cards. Note: there is a significant backlog in the priority dates for these categories. A priority date is the date an Alien Relative petition (see below) is filed. These petitions can take several years to come to fruition, due to the high demand for these Visas, from the time that an Immigrant Relative petition is filed, until it is approved. See below for a discussion on processing options.

Step 1. Immigrant Relative Petition:
The US Citizen must file an Alien Relative application for ALL family-based green card cases. The petition is usually filed with the USCIS in the United States. When the petition is received a priority date is established. The US Department of State (DOS), which keeps track of and announces priority dates through its Visa Bulletin, must be processing cases on or after an individual’s case was filed, before that case can proceed to the second stage (example – a priority date of January 1, 2002, allows all cases filed in that category on or before January 1, 2002, to proceed to the second stage. Applications for Immediate Relatives of US citizens (not adult sons or daughters) are not subject to the priority date restrictions and can come to the US immediately upon final approval
of the application.

Step 2. Immigrant Visa Application:
The Immigrant Visa application is the final stage in the family-based green card process. Applicants may select either Adjustment of Status or Consular Processing as the mechanism to complete the process.

A) Adjustment of Status: In General the foreign national family member who is currently residing and physically present in the US in lawful status may apply for Adjustment of Status (AOS). The AOS application is filed at the USCIS Missouri Service Center (also called the National Benefits Center). Immediate relatives of US citizens can file the Alien Relative petition concurrently with the AOS application. These concurrent filings allow for work and international travel authorization while they are pending, and help reduce processing times.

B) Consular Processing: Consular Processing is an alternate way to complete the green card process, after the Alien Relative petition is approved and is the more likely scenario for an individual who resides overseas. A personal interview is required of each foreign national at the appropriate US consulate outside the US. NOTE: The sponsoring US citizen or green card holder MUST be "domiciled" in the US in order to
complete this process.