Immigrating to the United States to live here permanently is an important and complex decision.
Permanent residency may be obtained via a family petition, an employment petition and, in some cases, a self-petition.
EMPLOYMENT BASED PERMANENT RESIDENCY: 5 Categories
1. PRIORITY WORKERS:
Includes:
A. Persons of extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics;
B. Outstanding Professors and Researchers; and
C. Multinational Executives and Managers
2. MEMBERS OF PROFESSIONS HOLDING ADVANCED DEGREES AND ALIENS OF EXCEPTIONAL ABILITY:
Advanced degrees is a U.S. Master's Degree or higher or equivalent or a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science Degree or equivalent plus 5 years of progressive experience in the specialty.
Exceptional ability means a degree of expertise significantly above that ordinarily encountered (rare or unusual talent, or unique or extraordinary ability)
Includes National Interest Waiver: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services may waive the requirement of a labor certification if it is in the national interest to do so (see information about labor certification below)
3. PROFESSIONALS, SKILLED AND OTHER WORKERS - LABOR CERTIFICATION:
In order to obtain permanent resident status in the United States, a job offer in a field in which the prospective employee has had experience, education, or both is necessary. After extensive recruitment by the petitioning employer and a determination is made by the employer that there are no qualified or available U.S. workers available for the position being offered to the foreign national, the application for labor certification is submitted to the Department of Labor. Upon certification by the Department of Labor, the Petitioning employer files a petition for the foreign national with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). If the foreign national is maintaining legal status, s/he will be allowed to apply for permanent residency as soon as a visa number becomes available.
4. SPECIAL IMMIGRANTS:
Includes Religious workers, children declared dependent by a juvenile court, persons who served honorably for 12 years in the Armed Services on active duty, and translators with the U.S. Armed Forces
5. INVESTORS:
Requires investment of $1,000,000 in a commercial enterprise that employs 10 U.S. Citizen or authorized immigrant workers full-time (investment can be $500,000 if investment is in a rural area with a population of less than 20,000 or an area which has experienced high unemployment of at least 150% of the national average).