The US's Immigration Regulations at a Glance

Do I qualify for immigration to the US?

Which class should I apply under?

What conditions do I need to satisfy?

Generally to qualify for Legal Permanent Residency (LPR) status, commonly known in the United States as a ‘Green Card’, nomination is required.  Nomination may be by a relative or employer and in rare cases by oneself. LPR status can also be achieved through the Diversity Lottery. 

Once LPR status is obtained you must spend 5 years in the United States before applying for citizenship which is conducted through the process of naturalisation. 

Everyone applying as the sole applicant for LPR must initially or concurrently obtain a work permit.  Permits are awarded to skilled workers under an H1B visa or an L1 visa or to spouses and fiancées under the K1 and K3 visas.  Permits are able to be renewed.

There are essentially two main classes you can apply under for LPR i.e. Employer Nomination and Family Nomination.  Both classes require a multi step application process:

Work Permits (or Employment Authorisation Document)

Work permits are usually the first step towards permanent residency in the United States.  Most classes require you to have a work permit in order to be eligible for LPR although it is possible to apply for a work permit and LPR concurrently.

The work permits available include the following:

H1B Visa

This visa is aimed at specialty workers and can last up to 6 years. In order to obtain an H1B visa you must first find an H1B job with a US employer who files your application with USCIS (US Citizenship and Immigration Services).  You cannot apply for your own H1B visa only your employer can.

The visa is points based and you must meet the threshold AND have an occupation on the specialty list. Occupations on the list include IT, Computing, Finance, Accounting, Banking, Marketing, Advertising, PR, Sales, Recruiting, Engineering (all types), Teaching, Health Care/Medical, Legal, Lawyers, Networking and Telecommunications.

 Requirements for this visa are:

• A bachelors degree (or foreign equivalent) or higher; or
• 12 years work experience in a speciality occupation; or
• A mix of tertiary education and work experience to total 12 years. 
• Sometimes a license to practice in the chosen occupation is needed.  

In order to be eligible to apply 12 points must be obtained.  Points are awarded for work experience and qualifications. 

Dependants of H1B visa holders are able to emigrate with the H1B visa holder.  Once an H1B visa is obtained it is possible for the visa holder to leave the US, however, re-entry to the US must occur while the visa is still valid.

If you would like to remain in the US after six years you must apply for LPR.

For a FREE initial assessment of your eligibility under this visa class please click here to proceed to our free QUICK-CHECK immigration assessment form
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L1 Visa

This visa allows the transfer of employers between companies in other countries.  The visa can last up to 7 years and if there are any dependants of the employee they will have to apply for a separate L2 visa.

Requirements for this visa are:

• The employee is part of any subsidiary, affiliate or branch of the company which has obtained the L1 visa.
• The employee must be at managerial or executive level to apply.

For a FREE initial assessment of your eligibility under this visa class please click here to proceed to our free QUICK-CHECK immigration assessment form
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H2B Visa

This visa is designed for people who wish to work temporarily in the United States -  it is often used by people who are on their working holidays.  In order to apply under this visa you must have an offer of employment and meet all the qualifications required for the job offer.  Your employer needs to file an application to the US Immigration Bureau on your behalf for a visa which can be up to one year in duration.  During this time you must continue working for the employer and you must intend to leave the US once the job ends (and the visa expires).

Job offers under this visa must be of a particular nature and include: Seasonal work, one-off jobs, peak load jobs and jobs due to intermittent needs. This visa does not lead to legal permanent residency.

For a FREE initial assessment of your eligibility under this visa class please click here to proceed to our free QUICK-CHECK immigration assessment form
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Fiancée and Spouse Visas

The sole purpose of the fiancée visa is to allow a spouse or fiancée of a US citizen to enter the US with the main aim of obtaining LPR. 

These visas are not used by a couple or family who want to emigrate to the US together. Rather, they are aimed at potential partners or partners of someone who is already a US citizen. There are two types of visas:

K1 Visa (For fiancées of US Citizens)

• Both parties must remain unmarried until the fiancée enters the US.
• The couple must have met personally at least once in the two years before filing the K1 visa application.
• The couple must marry within 90 days of the fiancée arriving in the US.

K3 Visa (for spouses)

• The US citizen and spouse must be in a valid marriage.
• The US citizen spouse must have already filed a relative based immigrant visa petition for the alien spouse (see ‘Family Nomination’ below).
• Once the spouse obtains their K3 visa they can enter the US to await the approval of a LPR petition.

The K3 visa does not give the spouse immediate LPR.

Applying for Legal permanent residency (LPR)

Multi step application process:

This 3 step process is used for both the employer nomination and family nomination schemes. Each scheme has its own modification to the process.

• An immigrant petition is filed by the nominator and must be approved by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). 
• Your application will be entered into a pool from which selections are made by preference by the Department of State.  Selections are made when immigrant visa numbers become available.  Waiting times will vary as there are annual quotas on visa numbers.
• Upon availability the applicant must accept the visa number and apply to adjust their current onshore status to LPR or apply offshore for an immigrant visa, to allow entry into the United States.

For a FREE initial assessment of your eligibility under this visa class please click here to proceed to our free QUICK-CHECK immigration assessment form
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Employer Nomination

This scheme allows highly skilled workers into the US.

In order to be eligible under this scheme you must be classed under one of the USCIS’ paths to LPR, have a permanent employment opportunity in the United States (and therefore a work permit) and in most situations your employer must be willing to nominate or sponsor you.  The paths to LPR are ranked by preference and are as follows:

EB-1 Priority workers

• Foreign nationals of extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics
• Foreign national that are outstanding professors or researchers
• Foreign nationals that are managers and executives subject to international transfer to the United States

EB-2 Professionals with advanced degrees or persons with exceptional ability

• Foreign nationals of exceptional ability in the sciences, arts or business
• Foreign nationals that are advanced degree professionals
• Qualified alien physicians who will practice medicine in an area of the U.S. which is underserved. Read more about this particular program.

EB-3 Skilled or professional workers

• Foreign national professionals with bachelor's degrees (not qualifying for a higher preference category)
• Foreign national skilled workers (minimum two years training and experience)
• Foreign national unskilled workers

EB-4 Special Immigrants

• Foreign national religious workers
• Employees and former employees of the U.S. Government abroad

You must be classed in one of the above sections and in addition your employer must carry out the following:

• Complete and submit a labour certification request.  To obtain certification the employer must prove that they have a need for you to work for them i.e. there is no US citizen that can fill the position.  This requirement does not need to be satisfied if you are in the EB-1 category.
• File for a ‘Petition for Alien Worker’ (the first step in the 3 step process).

The remaining two steps of the multi step process must then be completed.

For a FREE initial assessment of your eligibility under this visa class please click here to proceed to our free QUICK-CHECK immigration assessment form
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Family Nomination

You may be eligible under this scheme if you have a relative who is a citizen of the United States or who is a LPR – you and your relative must be able to provide documentation to prove this.  In addition your relative must prove they can financially support you at 125% above the poverty level in relation to their household size by filing an affidavit of support.

Sponsors that are United States citizens may petition for the following relatives:

• Husband or wife
• Son or Daughter of any age (including married children)
• Brother or sister (if the sponsor is at least 21 years old)
• Parent (if the sponsor is at least 21 years old)

Sponsors that are Lawful Permanent Residents may petition for the following relatives:
Husband or wife

•  Unmarried son or daughter of any age
• The multi step process is used for this scheme, however, where the relative is an immediate family member they do not need to obtain a visa number (this results in a faster application).

Applicants under the family scheme are also ranked by preference.

• First Preference: Unmarried, adult sons and daughters of U.S. citizens. Adult means 21 years of age or older.
• Second Preference: Spouses of lawful permanent residents, their unmarried children (under twenty-one), and the unmarried sons and daughters of lawful permanent residents.
• Third Preference: Married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens.
• Fourth Preference: Brothers and sisters of adult U.S. citizens.

For a FREE initial assessment of your eligibility under this visa class please click here to proceed to our free QUICK-CHECK immigration assessment form
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Investment

This category allows people to invest capital into a new commercial enterprise established by themselves.

The investor must prove that the enterprise will benefit the United States economy and create the required number of full time jobs. The investor may bring with them their spouse or any unmarried children.

In order to apply under the Investor category you must satisfy one requirement under each section below.

One of:

• Create an original business
• Purchase an existing business AND restructure or reorganise the business in a way that results in  a new commercial enterprise; or
• Expand an existing business by 140% of the pre-investment jobs or net worth; or
• Retain all existing jobs in a “troubled business” ( A business that has lost 20% of its net worth over the past 12 to 24 months – the business must have been in existence for at least 2 years).

AND

• Invest at least USD$1,000,000; or
• If the investment is being made in a “targeted employment area” at least USD$500,000.

AND:

• Create full time employment for no less than 10 qualified individuals; or
• Where investment has been in a “troubled business”  the number of existing employers must be maintained (at no less than the pre-investment level) for at least 2 years.

For a FREE initial assessment of your eligibility under this visa class please click here to proceed to our free QUICK-CHECK immigration assessment form
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H2B Visa

This visa is designed for people who wish to work temporarily in the United States -  it is often used by people who are on their working holidays. 

In order to apply under this visa you must have an offer of employment and meet all the qualifications required for the job offer.  Your employer needs to file an application to USCIS on your behalf for a visa which can be up to one year in duration.  During this time you must continue working for the employer and you must intend to leave the US once the job ends (and the visa expires).

Job offers under this visa must be of a particular nature and include: Seasonal work, one-off jobs, peak load jobs and jobs due to intermittent needs.
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Diversity Lottery

People from countries with low immigration rates to the US are eligible under this category.   This is an invitational category; people elect to enter a pool of potential immigrants from which a number are then invited by the Department of State to apply as a LPR.  Once an application is filed you will be granted LPR and be able to bring your spouse and children under 21 with you. 

In order to be eligible:

• You or your spouse must be of native descent of a country with low immigration rates to the US.
• You must have a high schools diploma; or
• The equivalent of twelve years elementary and high school education; or
  You must have 2 years work experience in an occupation that requires 2 years education/training.
• You must have a good command of English.

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Free Eligibility Assessment

 If you are interested in immigration to the US, please complete an online Free Immigration Assessment.

If this assessment is positive, we will then invite you to complete a more comprehensive paid Full Check Evaluation. This confidential service is an information gathering exercise and enables our immigration experts to assess your position under the official immigration regulations, without any obligation on you to proceed further.

Click here to complete an online Full Check Evaluation.  Please Note:The Full Check evaluation is a paid service and fees apply.

(CAUTION: Immigration Regulations can change without advance notice. You are strongly advised to seek the advice of a Migration Consultant before applying. Information on this page correct as at 2nd July 2008).