How To Get A Green Card?

As you will have understood, the Green Card with SimVisa for example is the royal way to live in the United States and then be able to claim American nationality. So, how to receive this famous Green Card?

The Wedding

The easiest way to get a Green Card is to marry a U.S. citizen. In order to prevent fictitious unions, the government issues temporary green cards for the first two years of marriage, followed by final permanent residence cards after this time period. The granting of this is not done automatically either. The spouses go through an interview with an immigration officer who will be in charge of assessing the legitimacy of the marriage. After the two-year “trial period,” the immigration service sends the couple a form to fill out to check if the couple is still married. The definitive Green Card is granted to the foreign spouse if this is the case. Its validity is 10 years.

It should be noted that the American citizen must carry out the steps related to applying for a permanent resident card. The procedure is not the same, depending on whether the husband or wife is already on American territory or abroad. If the spouse is already on American territory, the American citizen spouse must apply for a green card at the same time as the application for a work permit. This work permit allows the spouse to exercise a professional activity and move around the United States while waiting to obtain the permanent resident card. Generally speaking, this work permit is issued 90 days after the application.

If the spouse is still overseas, the U.S. spouse must apply for a K-3 visa simultaneously with the Green Card application. This visa allows the spouse to stay and work in the United States while waiting to obtain their permanent resident card. The duration of this visa is 2 years, renewable until the Green Card is obtained.

Sponsoring A Family Member

You don’t have to put the ring on your finger to get the Green Card! The other alternative to get a green card is sponsorship by a family member who is already a U.S. citizen or a green card holder. A 21-year-old U.S. citizen can initiate a green card application for a family member. The procedure is more or less long depending on the family relationship between the American citizen and the person who wishes to become a permanent resident of the United States.

In the family, the green card is immediately available upon approval of the request for an immediate relative (spouse, fiancé, parents, parents, minor children under 21, but also parents-in-law). The process may take some time if the application is for a distant relative (single children over 21, their married son or daughter, or their brother or sister). Indeed, for so-called distant relatives, the issuance of the Green Card is subject to annual quotas, hence the deferrals of file processing which can go up to 4 years.

The U.S. citizen or permanent resident sponsoring the Green Card application must file an immigration application with the center of the USCIS Service (the Immigration and Naturalization Service) that has legal jurisdiction for their place of residence. To do this, complete Form I-130 and return it to the USCIS.