Get a Green Card | Homeland Security (2024)

FAQs

How can I increase my chances of getting a green card? ›

The best way to increase your family's chances of success is to have all eligible family members register for the DV lottery. A winning applicant can bring both spouse and unmarried children under age 21.

It will not affect your ability to become a citizen. However, using cash welfare could be a problem if you travel outside of the U.S. for more than 6 months (see the question on travel below). Using noncash benefits will not cause a problem for you. ►I have my green card and I get cash welfare.

Whether this question changes in the future as USCIS updates their form, ultimately, if the question asks whether you're subject to the public charge ground of inadmissibility, and you are not exempt, you should answer “yes,” since it is a statutory and regulatory mandate that you do so.

In a Nutshell

Of these, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (“USCIS”) approves about 88% and denies 12%. The denial rate has been relatively consistent over the past four years.

What is the fastest you can get a green card? The Diversity Immigrant Visa Program offers one of the quickest routes to obtain a green card. But it's based on luck. Family-based visas for immediate relatives also offer faster paths, typically within 1-2 years.

Before the caps were imposed in 1921, an average of 98 percent of immigrants were approved each year. After the caps, the average year saw just 16 percent admitted. By 2023, just 3.8 percent of green card applicants received them—a 96.2 percent exclusion rate. In 2024, the rate will be even lower: just 3 percent.

These include crimes of "moral turpitude," multiple crimes, and specified crimes such as drug trafficking, prostitution, commercialized vice, money laundering, severe violations of religious freedoms as an official working within a foreign government, and fraud.

In the fiscal year of 2021, about 135,181 people who obtained legal permanent resident status in the United States, otherwise known as green card recipients, lived in California. Florida, Texas, New York, and New Jersey rounded out the top five states for green card recipients in that year.

Health-Related Denial

You do not have the required vaccinations or cannot provide proper documentation showing that you were vaccinated; You have a communicable disease; You have a physical or mental illness that poses a threat to other people; or. You are suffering from drug addiction or abuse.

Chiranth Nataraj, a renowned travel insurance expert, says, "Even if you're waiting for your green card, you can still get health insurance in the US. You're seen as a visitor until you get that card. And while you won't qualify for Obamacare until then, there are plenty of other insurance options available to you".

Why does the i485 get rejected? ›

A missing supporting document from the I-485 checklist, such as a certified police report for a moving violation or passport-style images, would serve as an example. Another illustration would be an application that was turned down because it was sent in after the deadlines indicated on filing charts.

Public charge is defined as a non-citizen who is likely to become primarily dependent on the government for support, by receiving either: cash assistance for income maintenance (like CalWORKs, SSI, and General Relief/Assistance), OR ● being institutionalized for long-term care at government expense.

Do not go off on tangents or tell your life story. Only answer the question that is being asked and do not provide more details than necessary. Remember, the immigration officer is doing many interviews a day, and you do not want to annoy them.

The national average for processing a green card is just over nine months. For naturalization, it's about nine months. The Miami and Oakland Park field offices will keep you waiting the longest. Both are the slowest for green cards and naturalization processing.

While the USCIS typically conducts interviews as part of the green card application process, there are circ*mstances in which an I-130 petition may be approved without the need for an interview.

California. With the largest numbers of immigrants living in the US, California is one of the best states to go with your dream card.

The government filing fees for getting a family-based green card is $3005 for an applicant living in the United States or $1340 for an applicant living outside the United States.

On average, it takes about two years for a green card to become available and three years total to get permanent resident status. It may take longer for citizens of Mexico, China, India, and the Philippines because they have a much higher volume of green card applicants annually.

In most cases, it takes about two years for a green card to become available, and the entire process takes around three years. It can take slightly longer for citizens of Mexico, China, India, and the Philippines.