Immigrant Visas
Immigration, obtaining a “green card” and Lawful Permanent Residence are all equivalent terms. Having lawful permanent
residency enables a person to live and work in the United States indefinitely, but obtaining this status is quite complicated
and fraught with pitfalls and therefore applicants regularly need help navigating the process.
Generally, a prospective
immigrant must fit into one of the following categories for Lawful Permanent Residence.
1. Employment-based
immigrant visas
- Immigrants with extraordinary ability in business, arts or sciences
- Managers
and Executives of multi-national businesses
- Outstanding professors or researchers
- Immigrants with advanced
degrees and performing work in the national interest
- Immigrants with job offers and a Bachelor degree or higher, or
work experience
- Religious workers and ministers whose services are required by their non-profit religious organization
- Immigrant investors with substantial funds invested in the U.S.
PERM process: Some employment-based
applications require you to go through a process called Program Review Electronic Management (PERM). This is a procedure by
which the U.S. Department of Labor certifies there is a lack of qualified U.S. workers in your job category. Once the labor
shortage is certified you can apply at the CIS level for your immigrant visa. We can help you navigate this procedure as well.
2. Family-based immigrant visas- You are an immediate relative of U.S. citizens, such
as parent, child or spouse
- You are the adult child, married or unmarried, of a U.S. citizen
- You are the spouse
or unmarried child of a lawful permanent resident
- You are the brother of sister of a U.S. citizen
- You are
being adopted by a U.S. citizen
Diversity Lottery VisaEach year, the Diversity Lottery
Program makes 55,000 new immigrant visas available for individuals from under-represented nations. Administered by the U.S.
State Department, the Diversity Lottery Program requires that you have either a high school education, its equivalent, or
two years work experience within the last five years in a job which demands two years training. You or your spouse must be
a native of a nation eligible for the Diversity Lottery Program.
