Use this form to apply for lawful permanent resident status if you are in the United States.
What This Form Can Help You?
- Become a Lawful Permanent Resident (Green Card Holder) Through a Job Offer
- Become a Lawful Permanent Resident (Green Card Holder) Through Asylee Status
- Become a Lawful Permanent Resident (Green Card Holder) Through Refugee Status
- Green Card Eligibility
- S. Citizen Petition for a Preference Relative to Become a Lawful Permanent Resident
- S. Citizen Petition for an Immediate Relative to Become a Lawful Permanent Resident
- Become a Lawful Permanent Resident (Green Card Holder) Through a Job Offer
You may be eligible to become a lawful permanent resident based on an offer of permanent employment in the United States.
Several immigrant visa categories are based on employment. Your education, skills and work experience are some of the factors used to determine if the individual is eligible for a specific type of employment-based visa.
Priority Workers
This category includes individuals who have/are:
- Extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or who are athletes who have national or international acclaim and whose achievements are recognized in their fields.
- Outstanding professors or researchers.
- Certain multinational executives or managers.
Professionals
You must have an advanced degree or an exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business (the requirement for a job offer may be waived for those in this category if such waiver is in the national interest).
Skilled Workers, Professionals, and Other Workers
If you don’t petition for yourself, your employer must obtain a labor certification from the Department of Labor (DOL) and then file Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers, on your behalf. For occupations where DOL has already determined that there is a shortage, you do not need a labor certification.
Employment Creation
Foreign nationals who are making investments in a new commercial enterprise (business) in the United States, may qualify under this category and may file Form I-526, Immigrant Petition by Alien Investor.
Visa Availability
The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) sets the number of immigrant visas that may be issued to individuals seeking lawful permanent resident status (a “Green Card”) each year.
The U.S. Department of State is the agency that distributes immigrant visa numbers. Employment-based immigrant visas are limited to 140,000 per year. In addition, there are limits to the percentage of immigrant visas that can be allotted to each country. Immigrant visas for individuals are limited and not always available. For more information on employment-based preference categories, please see our Green Card Eligibility and Visa Availability and Priority Dates pages.
- Become a Lawful Permanent Resident (Green Card Holder) Through Asylee Status
If you have been granted asylee status, you are eligible to apply for a Green Card (officially known as a Permanent Resident Card) one year after receiving your grant of asylum.
Eligibility
You are eligible if:
- You are in the United States when you file the application and you have been physically present in the United States for at least one year after being granted asylum;
- You continue to meet the definition of an asylee (or continue to be the spouse or child of an asylee);
- You have not abandoned your asylee status;
- Your grant of asylum has not been terminated;
- You are not firmly resettled in another country; and
- You continue to be admissible to the United States. (A waiver may be available to you under section 209(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act if you are now inadmissible).
Your spouse and children are also eligible to apply for a Green Card if they were admitted to the United States as asylees or were granted asylum and have been physically present in the U.S. for one year.
- Become a Lawful Permanent Resident (Green Card Holder) Through Refugee Status
If you were admitted to the United States as a refugee, you must apply for a Green Card (officially known as a Permanent Resident Card) in the United States after one year of being in the United States as a refugee.
You are eligible to apply for lawful permanent resident (LPR) status if you:
- Have been physically present in the United States for at least one year after being admitted as a refugee;
- Are physically present in the U.S. when filing Form I-485;
- Have not had your refugee admission terminated; and
- Have not already received a Green Card.
- Green Card Eligibility
U.S. immigration laws provide a variety of ways for people to apply for a Green Card. You may be eligible to apply for a Green Card (Permanent Resident Card) through your family, a job offer or employment, refugee or asylum status, or a number of other special provisions. Someone else usually must file the petition for you (often referred to as sponsoring or petitioning for you), although you may be eligible to file for yourself in some cases.
Having a Green Card, also known as a Permanent Resident Card, allows you to live and work permanently in the United States. The steps you must take to apply for a Green Card depend on your individual situation according to the immigration category you are applying under. These include applying:
- Through family;
- Through employment;
- As a Special Immigrant;
- Through refugee or asylee status;
- As a human trafficking or crime victim;
- As a victim of abuse;
- Through a registry; or
- Through other categories.
- S. Citizen Petition for a Preference Relative to Become a Lawful Permanent Resident
If you are a U.S. citizen, you may be able to apply for certain family members to become a lawful permanent resident (get their Green Card). Becoming a lawful permanent resident is a two-part process which includes the petition you file for your relative (Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative) and your relative’s application for adjustment of status (Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status) or an immigrant visa through the Department of State.
As a U.S. citizen, you may file for the following “preference” relatives:
- Your unmarried sons or daughters over 21 years of age;
- Your married sons or daughters (any age); and
- Your siblings.
If your qualifying relative currently resides in the United States and wants to apply for lawful permanent resident status, he or she may apply when a visa is available. See our Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status page and visit the Department of States Visa Bulletin page for more information.
If your qualifying preference relative is abroad, he or she will apply for an immigrant visa through the Department of State after your petition is approved. See the Consular Processing page for information about how to apply for a Green Card as a preference relative.
- S. Citizen Petition for an Immediate Relative to Become a Lawful Permanent Resident
If you are a U.S. citizen, you may be able to petition for certain family members to become a lawful permanent resident (get their Green Card). Becoming a lawful permanent resident is a two-part process. You must file a petition for your relative (Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative) and your relative must apply for adjustment of status (using Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status) or for an immigrant visa through the Department of State.
As a U.S. citizen, you may file a petition for the following “immediate relatives”:
- Your spouse;
- Your unmarried child under 21 years of age; or
- Your parent (if you are 21 years of age or older).
If your qualifying immediate relative currently resides in the United States and wants to apply for lawful permanent resident status, they may apply using Form I-485 at the same time or after you file Form I-130. See our Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status webpage for more information.
If your qualifying immediate relative does not live in the United States, they must wait until we have approved your Form I-130 petition before they apply for an immigrant visa through the Department of State. See the Consular Processing webpage for information about how to apply for a Green Card as an immediate relative.
Some immediate relative children may have already acquired U.S. citizenship at birth. For more information, see USCIS’ webpage on Citizenship and Naturalization: I am the Child of a U.S. Citizen. If your immediate relative child is already a U.S. citizen, they are not eligible for an immigrant visa and you should not file a Form I-130 on their behalf. Your immediate relative child may be eligible to apply for a U.S. passport. For information about applying for a U.S. passport, see the Department of State’s Passport Information webpage.
Widows or widowers of U.S. citizens should go to USCIS our Green Card for USCIS Widow(er)s webpage for information.