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Obtaining
U.S. Permanent Residency (Green Card)
Obtaining permanent residency involves a long and arduous set
of procedures with innumerable stumbling blocks. Although volumes
can be written about permanent residency requirements, we will
try to present the basic principles so that a proper course
of action may be taken.
Immigration law allows for residency by way of three routes:
- Family-based immigration. This involves individuals who
have certain close relatives residing in the United States.
A quota system applies in most cases and backlogs are common.
- Employment-based immigration.
-
The diversity immigration lottery. Although an unwarranted
aura of suspicion exists around the lottery, it is legitimate
and all eligible individuals are urged to apply.
Each year, the Department of State conducts a Diversity Immigration
Lottery program wherein 50,000 foreign nationals may immigrate
to the U.S. The sole requirement to qualify for the lottery
is the possession of a high school education or its equivalent,
OR two years of work experience in a job requiring two or
more years of training. A list of approximately 13 countries
whose nationals are NOT eligible for the lottery, based on
oversubscription of immigrants from those countries, is published
annually. Individuals born in all other countries are eligible
for the lottery. The lottery is based on country of birth,
not citizenship.
For more information, please see the official Diversity Lottery
site.
http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types
Most employers are faced with assisting their foreign national
employees in obtaining permanent residency by way of employment.
Those employees who are qualified through family immigration
have usually begun that process on their own.
Employment sponsorship for residency generally requires that
the employer file an application, also known as a labor certification,
with the Department of Labor. The purpose of this application
is to prove to the government that there are no qualified
U.S. workers available for the position the employee holds.
This procedure is a lengthy and complicated one and requires,
in almost all cases, that the employer advertise the position
and show other recruitment efforts through which the employer
has attempted to locate U.S. workers. The labor certification
process can in itself take from six months to two years, depending
on the location of the employment and on government backlogs.
Naturally, employers wish to avoid this process whenever it
is possible to do so. Employers should be familiar with applications
for permanent residency that are exempt
from the labor certification process.
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