Often, the issues are avoidable. Here are the most common errors individuals make. Learn from them so your software succeeds. Starting your Green Card course of can feel overwhelming.
General Necessities Across All Categories
Immigration rules are topic to change and may range based mostly on your particular person circumstances. For up-to-date recommendation and steering, please contact Smith Stone Walters. Typically https://execdubai.com/, when you might have a pending Form I-485, you could apply for employment authorization by submitting Type I-765, Software for Employment Authorization.
After studying this, you’ll know which alternative suits your goals. Whereas most immigrant visa petitions are filed in the Usa, submitting certain types of petitions outside the United States is possible. Learn about filing petitions exterior of the United States. Smith Stone Walters specialises in UK immigration, providing professional assistance in company transfers and individual visa functions. Our tailored approach merges skilled know-how with a private contact, guaranteeing a clean, stress-free journey for every shopper, from begin to end. If you are the partner or unmarried child underneath 21 years of age of an employment-based principal applicant, you might apply for a Green Card as a by-product applicant.
Immigration Library
Spouses of U.S. residents wait 12 to 18 months. Employment-based Green Cards can take three to 10 years. Family desire classes can take even longer. So, begin your course of as early as you can.

Various visas can serve as a pathway to a green card, together with family-based, employment-based, and special immigrant visas. Family-based visas are for immediate relatives of U.S. residents or lawful everlasting residents. Employment-based visas cater to professionals with specific expertise, buyers, and workers in particular categories. A Second Preference applicant must usually have a labor certification accredited by the Division of Labor.
- But all visas expire sooner or later.
- The Green Card path leads to citizenship.
- But they don’t meet the necessities but.
- Discover a trusted EB-3 sponsor and take step one toward your U.S.
- Solely the U.S. immigration official should open this packet when you enter the United States.
- But that doesn’t serve your long-term pursuits.
Green Card Eligibility Categories

Plus, it prices some large cash in legal fees. This guide reveals you when to choose a visa. It reveals you when to pick a Green Card. Plus, you’ll study the key information about immigrant vs nonimmigrant visa options.
Additional forms might embrace medical examination outcomes and police clearance certificates, relying on the particular requirements of the visa category. The green card utility process is a pivotal journey toward permanent residency within the Usa. At its core, the process entails both an adjustment of standing or consular processing, depending on the applicant’s present situation and location.
For further data, please see our FAQ’s. A Third Preference applicant should have an permitted Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker, Type I-140, filed by the prospective employer. All such staff typically require labor certification permitted by the Department of Labor. Thus, most individuals who qualify for a green card in a given year will not immediately get one, and as an alternative have to wait until a green card is out there.
Last modified: January 10, 2026