Check if you qualify for a US green card through employment, family, investment, or diversity lottery. Free eligibility quiz based on USCIS data.
An Indian software engineer in California on H-1B visa with a Master's degree and 6 years of specialized experience wants to know his best green card path.
Result: Checker identifies EB-2 NIW as potential self-petition option — he discovers a path he did not know existed and consults an attorney the next day.
A US citizen in Texas wants to sponsor her parents for green cards but is unsure of processing time and document requirements.
Result: Checker shows Immediate Relative category (no wait list), required documents listed — she starts Form I-130 the same week.
A qualified applicant from an eligible country wants to understand DV Lottery odds and requirements before spending time applying.
Result: Eligibility confirmed, country quota explained, odds contextualized — she applies with realistic expectations set.
Green card pathways: (1) Family: US citizen or LPR petitions for spouse, child, parent, or sibling. (2) Employment: EB-1 (extraordinary ability), EB-2 (advanced degree), EB-3 (skilled workers), EB-5 (investor, $800K+). (3) Diversity Visa Lottery: 50,000 visas annually for underrepresented countries. (4) Asylum/refugee status after 1 year. (5) Special categories (VAWA, special immigrants).
Timelines vary enormously by category and country of birth: Family (spouse of US citizen): 12–24 months. Family (sibling): 14+ years for some countries. EB-1 (priority workers): 12–24 months. EB-2/EB-3 (India, China): decades-long backlogs. Diversity Visa: processed same fiscal year. Asylum adjustment: 1–2 years. Consular processing vs adjustment of status affects timelines.
For oversubscribed green card categories (family preferences and most employment categories), the priority date is the date USCIS received your initial petition. You can only file for permanent residence when your priority date is 'current' per the State Department's monthly Visa Bulletin. India and China EB-2/EB-3 wait decades due to per-country caps.
The DV Lottery offers 50,000 green cards annually to nationals of countries with low immigration to the US. Excluded countries (too many immigrants): Mexico, China, India, Brazil, Philippines, South Korea, UK (except Northern Ireland), Canada, El Salvador, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Cuba. Registration is free, held October–November each year.
Yes — the PERM labor certification process: (1) Employer proves no qualified US workers available (job ads, interviews). (2) Files PERM with DOL (90–180 days). (3) Files I-140 immigrant petition with USCIS. (4) Waits for priority date to be current. (5) Files I-485 adjustment of status or consular process. EB-1A self-petition is faster for extraordinary ability workers.
USCIS filing fees vary by category: I-130 (family): $535. I-140 (employment): $700. I-485 (adjustment of status): $1,440 (includes biometrics). I-751 (remove conditions): $595. Total government fees: $2,000–$4,000 typically. Attorney fees add $1,500–$5,000+. Employer-sponsored cases often have fees paid by employer.