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Green Cards

Immigration Articles >> Green Cards >> Green Cards

U.S. Green Cards are identification cards for lawful permanent residents of the United States of America. Green Cards are the common name for a United States Permanent Resident Card.

U.S. Green Card Overview

If you are not a United States Permanent Resident yet, we recommend you apply for a Green Card. Our Green Card Information Guide can help you understand the application process. An immigrant usually has to go through a three-step process that may take several years depending on the type of immigrant category and the country of birth. Green Card holders must maintain resident status by residing in the United States. This serves as proof that the Green Card holder has permission to conditionally reside and take employment in the United States. The Green Card must be in the possession of the U.S. permanent resident at all times and be able to show it to a USCIS officer, if requested.

A Green Card can be taken away if you do not abide by the law and commit a crime. Other conditions that can cause someone to lose their permanent resident status would be if the Green Card holder were found to have abandoned their status by moving to another country to live there permanently, or for staying outside of the U.S. for more than 365 days without having obtained a re-entry permit before leaving the country. Also not filing an income tax return could be punishable by losing permanent resident status.

There are several ways to apply for a Green Card, including:

Important Information for Green Card Holders Planning on Applying for U.S. Citizenship
Before a Green Card holder can apply for U.S. citizenship through the naturalization process, he or she needs to fulfill a residency requirement. The time spent abroad does not count towards this requirement. Green Card holders staying abroad for lengthy periods may disrupt their residency, since the time spent abroad does not count towards the residency requirement for naturalization. However, it is possible to submit an "Application to Preserve Residence for Naturalization Purposes". Detailed information and application procedures can be found in the Green Card Information Guide.

For additional information about Green Cards, please check out these helpful links:

Green Card Renewal
Lost or Stolen Green Card
Green Card Address Change
Green Card Updates
Green Card Name Changes
Green Card Medical Exam (including list of approved doctors)

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