How to Apply for a Green Card
Applying for a United States Permanent Resident Card, also known as a Green Card, is generally broken up into three parts. The length of time the application process will last depends on which country you were born in and which immigration category you are applying in. The Immigration and Nationality Act specifies that permanent residence may be granted in the following categories: immigration via family member, immigration via employment, immigration through investment, immigration through the Diversity Lottery or Green Card Lottery, and immigration through what is known as The Registry Provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
Those categories are the broad names for them, and each has subcategories underneath that provide for different situations. Some of the categories also have quotas and limits regarding the minimum and maximum number of applications that can be approved per each category per a time period.
Regardless of the category you apply under, the application process itself will usually be the same aforementioned three part process: Immigrant Petition, Immigrant Visa Availability, and Immigrant Visa Adjudication. During the Immigrant Petition step, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) approves the petition. The petition will have been filed by a qualifying family member, an employer, or the applicant himself in the cases of an immigration through investment visa or similar. If the qualifying relative filing is a brother or sister of the applicant, they must have the same parents.
After the petition is approved, the second step is usually being put on a waiting list. Immigrant Visa Availability is determined by and subject to the number of visas available per category, and further subject to the number of visas available per specific country. The length of time you may remain on the waiting list varies, though immediate relatives like spouses or children are not subject to the quotas and can proceed to the third step, Immigrant Visa Adjudication, right away.
During this third and final step, if and when a visa becomes available to you, you must apply to the USCIS to adjust your current status to permanent resident status if you are already living in the States, or apply with the Department of State for an immigrant visa at the nearest US Consulate before coming to the country. Remember, the waiting period can be quite long, depending on which category you are applying under and where you are from, so make sure to follow all the rules carefully to avoid additional delays.