Finance & Business

Green Card of United Stats of America is also known as the United States Permanent resident Card. This is a legal government identification document for the alien residents of the country. The card holders enjoy few privileges and rights which the non residents can not. The green card is a legal proof of the permanent immigration of its holder and lawful residence in the United States. The status can also be revoked if certain conditions are not met by the holder.

Issuing Authority

The immigration and neutralization department of US used to issue the green cards in the past. But now the responsibility has been delivered to the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services. This Bureau is an integral part of the Department of Homeland Securities.
If an immigrant has applied for a Green Card, he or she can have the temporary work permit and the temporary travel document. You can obtain these decampments even if you have your application is pending.

The Application Procedure

There is a three step process attached in the application procedure of the Green Card. There is no fixed time for the processing of the document. It generally depends on few factors like-

• The type of Immigration
• Country of birth

The first stage of the process will have the immigrant petition filing. You have to have a qualifying relative or an employer who will sign on the form. In rare cases the applicant can sign it if he or she has an Investor Visa.
The second stage will be the availability of the Immigrant Visa. The National Visa Center of US issues an Immigrant Visa number to the applicant. The availability of the number might not be available always. The number of immigrant Visa to be issued is limited in the beginning of the year. The applications are then put into a lengthy queue.
The third and final stage of the process the applicant has to go to an US Consulate and change their status as the permanent resident of The United States of America.

Green Card through marriage

If you are residing in the US with a temporary visa or a student visa, you need to renew it after a certain period of time. If you are getting marred to a person who is a permanent resident of The United States, then you can apply for a green card. In these cases it is much easier to get a permanent residential permit easily.

Green Card Lottery

Through the diversity visa program every year around 50,000 green cards are issued to people who suites a special criteria. People who are from the Countries which has a very low rate of immigration fall under this program. The only qualification factor is the country of birth. The people who are selected in this lottery can also apply for permanent resident status for their spouse and unmarried children.