Law Offices of Taraneh Khorrami - Family-based Green Ca

FAMILY-BASED GREEN CARDS

Green Card through Marriage

An alien who marries an U.S. citizen can obtain a green card. If the marriage was entered into within 2 years prior to being given permanent residency, the alien will receive "a conditional permanent residence". This means that the permanent resident status can be terminated if, within two years after the permanent resident status is granted, the marriage is annulled, ends in divorce, or was completely fraudulent.

In the petition to the USCIS a spouse of a U.S. citizen will have to establish eligibility and apply for either adjustment of status or go through visa processing.

During the two years the alien receiving the green card is entitled to all rights and entitlements that a regular permanent resident enjoys. That is, he or she can work, travel in and out of the U.S, and accumulate time for purposes of obtaining naturalization for U.S. citizenship.

Green Cards through Family Members

People who want to become immigrants are classified into categories based on a preference system. The immediate relatives (IR) of U.S. citizens, which include parents, spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21, do not have to wait for an immigrant visa number to become available once the visa petition filed for them is approved by USCIS. An immigrant visa number will become immediately available. The relatives in the remaining categories must wait for an immigrant visa number to become available according to the following preferences:

1st Preference: Unmarried children of U.S. citizens over 21.
2nd Preference: Spouses of lawful permanent residents, their unmarried children (under 21),
and the unmarried children of lawful permanent residents over 21.
3rd Preference: Married sons and daughters of U.S. Citizens.
4th Preference: Brothers and sisters of U.S. Citizens.

For an application through either the IR category or one of the preference categories, your US relative should first submit an immigrant visa petition, I-130 Petition for Alien Relative. This form should be accompanied by proof of your relationship to your relative.

Upon approval of this petition, the Department of State will determine if an immigrant visa number is available for you. Immigrant visas are always available for persons in the IR category. When a number becomes available, you may apply for an immigrant visa if you are abroad. If you are in the US, you may be able to file an Application to Register