Obtaining Permanent Residence in the U.S.

1
Obtaining Permanent Residence in the U.S.

• Carl Shusterman
• Pincus Immigration Boot Camp
• March 4th, 2011

2
How to Obtain Permanent Residence

• Employment
• Relatives
• Visa Lottery
• Investment
• Asylum

3
Green Cards Through U.S. Citizen Family Members

• Immediate relatives
• 1st preference Unmarried sons and daughters of
  citizens (over age 21)
• 3rd preference Married sons and daughters of
  citizens
• 4th preference Brothers and sisters of adult
  citizens

4
Green Cards Through Legal Permanent Resident
(LPR) Family Members

• 2nd preference
• 2A- Spouses and children of LPRs
• 2B- Unmarried sons and daughters (over 21 years
  old) of LPRs

5
The Visa Bulletin

• Released by the State Department about 2-3 weeks
  before any given month
• Worldwide all countries excluding those listed

March Visa Bulletin 2011, Family Category.
Source
shusterman.com/statedepartmentvisabulletin.html
6
Green Cards Through Family Procedure

• Petitioner (qualifying citizen or LPR family
  member) submits I-130 for beneficiary
• Receipt date for the I-130 serves as the
  priority date in reference to the visa bulletin

7
Adjustment of Status

• Form 1-485 serves to adjust the immigrants
  status to LPR
• May adjust status in the U.S. if currently
  residing in the U.S. in legal status
• Otherwise, must apply for an immigrant visa
  with a U.S. Embassy or Consulate abroad.
• 3/10 year bar?

8
Section 245 (i)

• Magic date April 30th, 2001
• Physical presence requirement
• Employment or family petitions filed before this
  date can qualify and are transferrable to a
  different category

9
Green Cards Through Employment

• 1st preference Priority workers
• 2nd preference Advanced degrees or exceptional
  ability
• 3rd preference Skilled workers and professionals
• 4th preference Special immigrants
• 5th preference Investors

10
Priority Workers (EB-1)

• Persons of Extraordinary Ability
• Outstanding Professors and Researchers
• Multinational Managers and Executives

11
Persons with Advanced Degrees or Exceptional
Ability (EB-2)

• M.D., J.D., Ph.D, Masters or Bachelors Plus Five
  Years
• PERM Requirement recruiting U.S. workers
• National Interest Waivers for physicians
• National Interest Waivers for others

12
Professional and Skilled Workers (EB-3)

• Persons whose jobs require 4-year degree
• Persons whose jobs require 2 years of experience
• PERM Requirement recruiting U.S. workers

13
Green Cards Through Employment Procedure

• Demonstrate that there are no qualified U.S.
  workers for position
• Prevailing wage requirement
• Advertisements in print media, internet, job
  fairs, etc.

14
PERM

• Ensures that employer is hiring for a position in
  which no qualified and willing U.S. workers exist
• Labor certification required for the 2nd and 3rd
  preference petitions
• PERM receipt date serves as priority date
• When PERM is approved, the employer may file the
  immigrant visa petition (I-140) to USCIS

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Exceptions to PERM

• National Interest Waivers
• Shortage occupations (Schedule A) registered
  nurses and physical therapists
• 1st preference category petitions never require
  PERM

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Visa Bulletin Employment category

• Current indicates no backlog

March Visa Bulletin 2011. Source
shusterman.com/statedepartmentvisabulletin.html
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Other employment categories

• Special immigrants religious workers
• Employment creation- Investors
• Must create at least 10 jobs for U.S. workers
• Government-approved regional centers

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Green Cards through Employment Waiting Times

• Annual Numerical Cap 140,000 including Spouses
  and Children
• Visa Bulletin Published Monthly by State
  Department
• Per-Country Limitations - 7 Requirement
• Countries with Significant Backlogs
• Grounds of Inadmissibility

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How to Obtain Additional Information and Stay
Updated

• Immigration laws, regulations procedures are
  always changing
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• Contains thousands of articles/links
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