Immigration Green Card

What is an Immigration Green Card?

An immigration green card refers to a document that allows you to live permanently or work in the United States. If you are from a foreign country you are considered to be an “alien” and you must have a status that makes you “legal” if you are going to stay within the country.

With an immigration green card you are able to work as an American and you can within about five years (in most cases) apply to be a permanent citizen. It is important to note that in order to keep your immigration green card you will have to be in the country most of the time.

Some people think that if they are in the United States at least once a year and they are living in another country, they will retain their immigration green card. This is not true and in most cases is only hearsay. The important thing to note is that you must have a way to make yourself legal in order to keep within the law.

The challenge with an immigration green card is that it can be a lengthy process to get one. Many people opt to apply for the Green Card Lottery in hopes that they will get to stay in the United States without all of the red tape that goes into getting a regular green card.

The United States allows 50,000 aliens to come into the country via the lottery each year; however the lottery is always granting status two years after the application. As an example, if you want to come to the United States through the Green Card Lottery you will have to apply in 2009 for the year 2011.

When you want an immigration green card it is a good idea to know why you want to come to the United States. Perhaps you see it as a better opportunity for you and your family. Perhaps working in the U.S. is going to gain you better wages and give you the ability to help your family in your country.

The reason it is a good idea to make sure that you have some idea of why you want to come to the United States is because you will have to pay fees that go with your application. You must also go through all of the forms and check points that the USCIS has set up in order to help you through the process. It may take a long time to get an immigration green card if you have not submitted all of the paperwork needed.

After the green card many people strive to become U.S. citizens. There are classes that an individual must take and then there is a test in order to become a citizen. Many people apply for this each year. Some of the benefits of becoming a U.S. citizen include:

• You can vote in the various elections that the U.S. holds
• If you want to run for an office you can do so
• You can apply to have a government job
• You can help other family members immigrate to the U.S.
• You will not have to remember to renew your immigration green card
• You can have an American passport when you are traveling

If you are really interested in becoming a part of the United States the immigration green card is the first place to start. This is the only way that aliens can legally come to the U.S. and stay for any length of time. This is very important to note since Homeland Security has made stricter rules about entering.