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Legal Eagle

Overseas

Q: Green Cards

I am keen to work as an entertainer in the United States and obviously need to get a Green Card. How can I improve my chances of obtaining one, and does it help that I have family over there?

A: A Green Card is a US immigrant visa which legally entitles the holder to work and live permanently in the United States, as distinct from an alien's or non-immigrant's visa for someone who wishes to work there temporarily.

There is no time limit on the validity of a Green Card as long as the holder is permanently resident in the USA. The holder will have the same rights as a US citizen except for voting or running for president. After five years continuous residence the holder of a Green Card can apply for American citizenship.

Probably the easiest, cheapest and quickest way to obtain a Green Card is to enter the annual Green Card Lottery for which it is possible to pre-register through Green Card Services' Web site on www.greencard.co.uk Winners' applications effectively jump the queue but still need to be approved. Information can also be obtained from the US Department of State's Bureau of Consular Affairs on http://travel.state.gov/

In order to obtain a Green Card an alien must first be admitted to the USA as an immigrant. This can be done either through family relationship with an American citizen or with a legal permanent resident, or alternatively through proof of employment. Information is available from the INS (Immigration and Naturalisation Service) which is operated by the US Department of Justice. Your chances of obtaining a Green Card are therefore clearly improved if you have a job to go to and/or if you have family living in the USA.

There are specific grounds on which a visa of any kind can be refused, eg criminal record, national security and related grounds, and for various categories of undesirable aliens.

Green Card applications are divided into two categories. The first relates to persons who may obtain permanent residence status without numerical limitation. The second category is subject to an annual numerical limitation and is further divided into sub-categories for family sponsored applicants, employment-based applicants and diversity immigrants.

If you are a spouse, widow(er) or parent of a US citizen aged 21 or older no numerical limit will apply. Similarly if you are a previous US lawful permanent resident who is returning to the US after a stay of more than one year abroad. Otherwise the number is currently limited to 675,000 persons per year, and this figure is further sub-divided among different categories of relatives and different categories of employment-based applications.

In some over-subscribed categories there may be a waiting period of several years because of the numerical limitations. Persons with "exceptional ability" in the arts, sciences or business, ie having a degree of expertise significantly above that ordinarily encountered within their particular field concerned, may be given priority.

The cost of each formal immigrant visa application is $260 on application and $65 on issue. A medical examination is essential. Immigrant visas will be issued in strict chronological order according to the date when the applications are filed until the annual numerical limit for the category concerned is reached.

For the sake of completeness, in case you only want to work temporarily in the USA, I would mention that there are also annual numerical limits on certain applications for non-immigrant work visas. Applications for these are also broken down into a number of different classifications with numerical limits and there are several such classifications for artists or entertainers. Non-immigrant temporary work visas are subject to fixed time limits which, however, may be extended until completion of a particular approved work programme.

There is a wealth of additional detailed information available on the Internet and there is also a US Visa Services Public Enquiries Branch helpline on (001) 202 663 1225.

First published June 2000