US green card: routes to permanent residence

Family: immediate relatives of citizens and the F1 to F4 preference categories. Employment: EB-1 (extraordinary ability, outstanding researchers, multinational managers), EB-2 (advanced degrees or exceptional ability, including the national interest waiver), EB-3 (skilled workers, professionals and other workers, usually with PERM labour certification), EB-4 (special immigrants) and EB-5 (investors). Diversity Visa: a yearly lottery for nationals of countries with low US immigration. Humanitarian: asylees and refugees can apply 1 year after their grant or admission.

The DV program draws entrants by lottery from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States; eligibility by country is published each year in the DV instructions on travel.state.gov. Entry is free online during the registration period, and selected people pay a $330 application fee. Since a State Department rule of March 2026, entrants must give valid, unexpired passport information when they register. Selection does not guarantee a visa: applicants must meet education or work experience requirements and be interviewed before the end of the fiscal year.

Immigrant visa processing: $325 for family cases, $345 for employment cases, $205 for other categories and $330 for DV (22 CFR 22.1). After admission the $235 USCIS Immigrant Fee is paid online. In the US, Form I-485 costs $1,440. Employment petitions (Form I-140) cost $715 on paper ($665 online) plus a $600 Asylum Program Fee for regular employers.

If you are outside the United States, an approved petition (or DV selection) leads to National Visa Center or Kentucky Consular Center processing and an interview at the responsible U.S. embassy or consulate, followed by admission as a permanent resident. If you are lawfully in the US and eligible, you can instead file Form I-485 with USCIS ($1,440). Every immigrant visa applicant needs a medical exam by an embassy-approved physician.

Permanent residents must keep the US as their home: long absences, especially over 1 year without a re-entry permit, can lead to loss of status. Report address changes, file US tax returns as residents, and carry proof of status. You can usually apply for citizenship with Form N-400 after 5 years (3 years if married to and living with a US citizen); the fee is $760 on paper or $710 online.