Tanner Law is located in Camp Hill near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and provides immigration services for individuals, families, and employers throughout Central Pennsylvania. If you need the assistance of an experienced immigration lawyer, call us at 717-731-8114 to schedule a consultation.
A limited number of visas are allocated each year to four preference categories of qualifying relatives of U.S. citizens and permanent residents. These applicants can only be sponsored once the Department of State’s monthly Visa Bulletin shows that the relevant preference category is “current” or that the relative’s “priority date” is current.
Legal Help for Permanent Residents Sponsoring Loved Ones
The following relationships fall into the preference categories for green cards for non-immediate family members:
- Priority category: Unmarried sons and daughters (over the age of 21) of U.S. citizens
- Second priority:
- (A): Spouses and children (under the age of 21) of lawful permanent residents
- (B): Unmarried sons and daughters (over the age of 21) of lawful permanent residents
- Third: Married sons and daughters (over the age of 21) of U.S. citizens
- Fourth: Brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens
To qualify, the applicant must be sponsored by a relative who must also meet certain financial support conditions.
What is the Green Card Lottery/Diversity Visa?
Because of the limited number of green cards available each year, USCIS conducts a “diversity visa” lottery among eligible applicants. Eligibility for the lottery depends upon meeting minimum required education levels, meeting health requirements, and having no disqualifying criminal record.
As the name implies, the lottery is designed to encourage diversity among legal immigrants from nationalities around the world. Entry into the lottery is restricted to applicants from countries that have not had a net migration to the U.S. exceeding 50,000 at any time during the previous five years.
If your relative is not an immediate relative and does not fall into one of the preference categories, hire an attorney with experience and knowledge in this critical area of the law. Call 717-731-8114 or contact us online for a case evaluation.