Immigrant Visa Process in America
There may be a time in your life when you may have to shift your base to the United States of America. There may be several reasons for this shift to the US. If you get a job in one of the companies in the US or your family member asks you to stay with them in the US, you may have to apply for a relevant visa before you can travel abroad permanently according to U.S. Esta.
It is good for you to know about the different categories of people who may shift to the US and the various types of visas along with the necessary forms and steps involved in the process of getting a proper visa.
Different Situations for Getting A US Visa
In order to be eligible to get a US visa, you need to be sponsored either by a US lawful permanent resident or a US citizen relative or a prospective employer. In most of the cases, immigrants receive a US visa based on either employment or family visa categories. Here are the detailed steps of these 2 primary visa categories for foreign immigrants.
- Family: It is important for you to note that a US citizen can file an immigrant visa either for the spouse, daughter or son, parents or sisters and brothers. On the other hand, a US lawful permanent resident or a green-card holder can file for an immigrant visa for either the spouse or an unmarried daughter or son. As the first step, the sponsoring family member needs to file an I-130 Petition for Alien Relative with the USCIS or US Citizenship and Immigration Services.
- Employment: The second most important and common visa category for immigrants in the US is the employment visa. In this category, a US employer is allowed to sponsor some skilled workers, who will get hired in the future into permanent positions in the company. However, in some specialized professions, the US law allows prospective foreign immigrants to sponsor for themselves. There are also some special immigrant categories according to the US law along with an immigrant investor program. As the primary step, your sponsoring employer needs to file an I-140 Petition for Alien Worker with the USCIS. However, there are some categories wherein you can file the petition yourself.
These are certain immigration visa categories that come with a limited number of visas every year according to the US law. These are also further limited based on countries. In these visa categories, if the number of qualified applicants exceeds the annual limit of visas, there will be a waiting list. In such situations, the number of available visas will be issued in a chronological order in which all the petitions were filed. The date when you file your petition is known as the priority date.
There are several other visa categories provided by the United States of America. It is important that you go through the list of visa categories before you decide to apply for one in order to shift your base to the US.
About Christian Reynolds
Christian is the chief reporter, editor, and webmaster at Cleveland Leader. An aspiring news anchor, his hobbies outside of investigative reporting are golf, martinis, and adventure travel. If you have a scoop on any developing story, please contact him on this page.
