==== ==== Show Your Support For Legal Immigration www.supportlegalimmigration.com ==== ====
The starting step to legally immigrate to the United States is to get an immigrant visa. Most foreign nationals get visas by being sponsored by close family members or employers. Others get visas as asylees or refugees, fleeing persecution in their home countries. There are four most common ways to get an immigrant visa. Family-based: A US citizen or a legal permanent resident (green card holder) can sponsor a family member for immigration. Waiting periods for getting such visas differ depending on the closeness of the relationship with the sponsor, and processing times can be lengthy, because a limited number of visas are available each year Employment-Based: Qualified US employers can sponsor a potential foreign employee for immigration. In certain cases, extraordinarily-qualified foreign nationals can immigrate without being sponsored by an employer. It is required that employer sponsors demonstrate that there are no sufficient number of qualified workers available in the US to fulfill their need. The processing time can last 7 to 8 years because of the restriction on the number of visas. Asylum and Refugee Status: Visas are also available to people who are unable or not willing to return to their home country because of persecution or a well founded fear of persecution due to race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion. To put it in simple terms, asylee status is granted in the United States and refugee status is granted abroad. Diversity Lottery: Foreign nationals who wish to migrate to the US but do not have a family member or employer to sponsor them, can apply for the Diversity Lottery Program. Only 50,000 winners are issued visas every year through this program. Not all countries are eligible to enter this program. The aim of this program is to promote immigration from underrepresented countries, so each year the State Department issues a list of countries whose citizens may not apply. An foreign national should have a legal immigrant visa to be eligible for legal permanent resident status and US citizenship, but the visa alone is not sufficient. To get a green card, the foreign national has to apply to adjust his status to legal permanent resident. The Department of Homeland Security will verify that there are no medical, financial, criminal or prior immigration violation grounds to reject the application. Many people seek the help of an attorney to navigate the sophisticated process. Legal permanent residents qualify for American citizenship after five years. If they are married to a US citizen and living with that citizen spouse, they will qualify for American citizenship after three years. To qualify for citizenship, they must demonstrate good moral character and have a basic knowledge of English, U.S. history and government. The citizenship form, N-400 costs $680 that includes a $85
biometric fee. US immigration law is a sort of administrative law. Immigration legal procedures like deportations do not go through the US Judicial system. They take place within the US Department of Justice. As deportation is considered an administrative correction and not a criminal punishment, undocumented immigrants (illegals) facing deportation do not have the right to legal counsel provided by the government. As most cannot afford legal representation, they have to face the system by themselves.
Legal permanent residents qualify for American citizenship after five years. The citizenship form, N-400 costs $680 that includes a $85 biometric fee.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kevin_Kallis
==== ==== Show Your Support For Legal Immigration www.supportlegalimmigration.com ==== ====