Permanent residence, also known as ‘Green Card’, is the permission granted by the United States so that eligible immigrants can live and work legally and permanently in the United States,  according to the US Government .

“In most cases, a sponsor (employer or family member) is the one who applies for permanent residence or ‘Green Card’ (green card) in favor of another person,” says the US government.

However, these are not the only ways to request it. Next, we tell you what your options are to be eligible when applying for permanent residence in the United States.

• United States visas: data, definitions and how to process them for work or tourism
• How to apply for asylum in the United States? We explain it step by step
• Everything you need to know about Temporary Protected Status (TPS)

Categories to be eligible for residency

family green card

1. Immediate family member of a US citizen

Immediate relatives of a US citizen such as a spouse, unmarried children under the age of 21, or parents of a US citizen who are at least 21 years of age are eligible for this category.

These relatives, says the US government, “will always have a visa number immediately available.”

Please note that in order to file this form for immediate family members, you will first need to create an account with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

You will find all the instructions to create  your account in this link.

If your immediate relative already lives in the United States, you can fill out, at the same time as the previous form, the ‘Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status’, of which you can  find all the details here , from costs and delivery formats to addresses of the places to present it.

If your immediate family member does not live in the United States, you must wait for Form I-130 to be approved and then proceed through the process using Form I-485.

2. Non-Immediate Relatives of a US Citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident

Children over the age of 21, unmarried or married, of US citizens are also eligible; siblings of a US citizen who are at least 21 years old; spouses of lawful permanent residents; children under the age of 21 of lawful permanent residents; and unmarried children, regardless of age, of lawful permanent residents who are at least 21 years of age.

In these cases, two steps must be followed. The first is that the non-immediate relative must file ‘Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative’. You can do it online here.

As in the case of immediate family members, an account must first be created with USCIS to file Form I-130. Follow these instructions to make the process easier.

The second step is for the US citizen or lawful permanent resident to complete Form I-485. All the details of this step  are here.

The foregoing applies to non-immediate relatives residing in US territory.

In cases where the non-immediate relative lives abroad, you must first fill out Form I-130. If approved, the National Visa Center will contact the relative with additional information.

For all cases of this point, the US Government will give the following preference:

• First Preference (F1): Sons and daughters of US citizens, who are single and 21 years of age or older.
• Second Preference (F2A): Spouses and children (unmarried, under 21 years of age) of Lawful Permanent Residents.
• Second Preference (F2B): Unmarried sons and daughters, age 21, of Lawful Permanent Residents.
• Third (F3): married sons and daughters of US citizens.
• And the fourth preference (F4): brothers and sisters of US citizens if the US citizen is 21 years of age or older.

In cases of non-immediate relatives, permanent residence may be denied. For all the information on vetoes, illegibility and causes of inadmissibility,  consult the following link .

3. Fiancées (and their children) of a US citizen

At this point, these cases will be taken into account:

• Person admitted to the US as a fiancé(e) of a US citizen (K-1 nonimmigrant visa).
• Person admitted to the US as the child of a fiancé(e) of a US citizen (K-2 nonimmigrant visa).

Residency can be applied for if both people are legally free to marry and plan to do so within 90 days after the fiancé is admitted to the United States.

Or it can also be requested if both of you have known each other in person during the two years immediately since you filed this petition. This requirement is stricter, so it can be skipped in the following cases:

• The requirement that you meet your fiancé in person would violate the strict and long-established customs of your fiancé’s foreign culture or social practices, and that every aspect of the traditional arrangements has been or will be met in accordance with customs or practices.
• The requirement to meet your fiancé in person would result in extreme hardship for you.

Once the above is clear, it is necessary to fill out ‘Form I-129F, Petition for Alien Fiancé(e)’. It must be filled out and delivered physically (just like Form I-485 in the cases of point 1 and 2 of this text).

To know the instructions, costs, where to apply, have access to the form and more details,  you must access this link .

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4. Widow(ers) of a US citizen

You can apply for permanent residence if your US citizen spouse died and you were still married at the time of death.

To obtain residency, you must show that you were “lawfully married to the US citizen, and that you entered the marriage genuinely (in good faith), not just to obtain the benefit of immigration,” says the US government.

If you live within the United States, you must file the ‘ Form I-360, Petition for Amerasian, Widow(er), or Special Immigrant ‘ at government-approved establishments. To see both the form and the requirements and the places where you can present it,  go to this link .

You can file, at the same time as the previous form, the  ‘Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status’  in order to speed up the process.

If before the death the spouse had already filed the ‘Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative’ (which can be seen in point 1 on direct relatives), then this, regardless of whether it is approved or in process, automatically becomes on a Form I-360, so only Form I-145 would suffice.

In case you have already submitted Form I-145 as part of the immediate relative process, then you already need to submit another document.

If you live outside the US and want to start this process, you can file Form I-360 at the US embassy or consulate that has jurisdiction over the area where you reside.

For more information on the above, you should contact the US embassy or consulate where you live. In addition, you can review more information  on consular procedures at the following link .

5. Victims of abuse or extreme cruelty by a US citizen

According to the US Government, you may be eligible for this type of residence, under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), if you are the victim of abuse or extreme cruelty committed by:

• A spouse or former spouse who is a US citizen.
• A parent who is a US citizen.
• A son or daughter who is a US citizen.
• A lawful permanent resident who is your spouse or former spouse.
• Or by a parent who is a lawful permanent resident.

For this process, you need to file  Form I-360, Petition for Amerasian, Widow(er), or Special Immigrant , which was already discussed in the previous point.

If a visa is immediately available due to the immediate relative process, you do not have to wait for Form I-360 to be approved to begin filling out the next step, which in this case is Form I-485.

In the event that the visa is not available immediately after you fill out Form I-360, you may have to wait until it is before starting Form I-485. If it is, you can start with that form even if the I-360 is still in process.

6. Jobs with EB-1, EB-2 and EB-3 immigrant visas

You can apply for permanent residence if you are an immigrant worker with extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or sports; outstanding researcher or professor; or executive or manager of a multinational company.

All of the above jobs fall under the  EB-1 immigrant visa , which is the most preferred when applying for residency.

There are also  EB-2 immigrant visa holders : aliens who are members of professions that require a graduate degree or have exceptional aptitude (including applications for a national interest waiver).

Those of the third preference follow, which are those who have  an EB-3 immigrant visa : specialized workers, professionals and other types of employees.

For these three levels of preference, it is necessary to fill out ‘ Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status ‘ and also reside in the United States at the time the form was filed.

If you have your immigrant visa and file Form I-485, you can file ‘Form I-140, Petition for an Alien Immigrant Worker’ at the same time at this address:  https://www.uscis.gov/es/i- 140 .

With the above, you could submit your documentation to apply for permanent residence. Which are?

• The  Form I-485 .
• A copy of Form I-797, Notice of Receipt or Approval of Form I-140 filed on your behalf (unless you are filing your Form I-485 with Form I-140).
• Form I-485 Supplement J , to confirm that the offer of employment you were offered on Form I-140 remains a  bona fide  (good faith) offer of employment.

7. National Interest Waiver Physicians and Immigrant Investors

This application applies to a doctor who agrees to work full-time in a clinical practice in a medically poor access area for a specified period and who also meets other eligibility requirements, according to the US government.

In this process, you only have to present the ‘Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status’ and follow  the instructions in this link .

EB (employment-based preference immigrant) visas also consider foreign investors for permanent residence.

In this case, they are EB-5 immigrant visa holders, which includes “aliens who have invested or are in the active process of investing $1 million (or $500,000 in identified areas of employment) in a new business venture that will benefit the US economy and create at least 10 full-time jobs for qualified employees,” the government said.

In  this link you can review the requirements  that are asked of you for this process.

Keep in mind that, for foreign investors, they must first pass the ‘Form I-526, Immigrant Petition by Foreign Investor’ (find the instructions by clicking here) and that a visa is immediately available. Once this is completed, Form I-485 can be filed.

Special cases

8. Special Immigrant

At this point, it applies to the following cases:

• For the person who is coming to the US to work as a religious worker for a non-profit religious organization. Read more about the process here.
• A minor who needs the protection of the Juvenile Court because he or she has been abused, abandoned, or  neglected by one of his or her parents.
• For those who served as  an Afghan or Iraqi translator  for the US government; who was  employed by or for the US Government in Iraq  on or after March 20, 2003, for at least one year; or for whom he was an Afghan employed by the  International Security Assistance Force .
• Also for those who come to work in the United States as a member of the media of the United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM, for its acronym in English), or as a beneficiary of the USAGM. Read more about  this at this link.
• Or to retired officials or employees of an eligible international organization or NATO, or is a member of the eligible family of such employee. More information here.

9. If you are a refugee or asylee

Immigrants can have refugee status if they suffer or have suffered persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, or for belonging to certain social groups or having certain political opinions, according to the USCIS. Usually these people “are out of their countries who are unable or unwilling to return because they fear serious personal harm.”

To apply for asylum in the United States, you must “meet the refugee definition,” or be in the United States or apply at a US gate of entry.

Asylees can apply for a green card one year after they are granted asylum. To do this, it is necessary to present a form, the application for permanent residence or adjustment of status.

In the case of refugees,  you can consult all the information here.

As for asylees,  check the requirements here .

10. Victims of human trafficking and other crimes

If you are a victim of human trafficking and have a T Nonimmigrant visa, you may be eligible to apply for permanent residence.

This type of visa “allows victims to remain in the United States and assist law enforcement authorities in the investigation or criminal prosecution of human trafficking cases,” says the US government.

Residency can be requested if the person has been in T-1 nonimmigrant status for three years and also maintained continuous physical presence in the country during those 3 years.

“If you file your application before you meet the three-year continuous physical presence requirement, USCIS will deny your application unless you submit a certification from the Attorney General of the United States that the investigation or prosecution of the acts of trafficking has been completed. To inquire how to obtain this certification send an email to T-Adjustment.Cert@usdoj.gov”, details the Government.

Once the above is clear, you must file  Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status  and send evidence that you meet all the  eligibility requirements .

Victims of other crimes who have a U nonimmigrant visa can also apply for a permanent resident card. These people “have suffered substantial mental or physical abuse as a result of the crime,” explains the US government.

The process is different from that of trafficking victims.  You can check it here.

11. Other cases

If you were a victim of abuse (spouse and children abused under the Cuban Adjustment Act, under the Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act or under VAWA; and abuse against minors in Special Immigrant Juvenile status) or if you continuously reside in the United States States since before January 1, 1972, you can apply for permanent residence.