I am a full time employee on H1B status, what should I do to apply for green card ?

Question

I am asking what is the next step for applying for a green card. what are the prerequisites and is that something I should do or my company should apply for me ?

Answer 1

If you are doing an employment based petition, you should discuss the particulars with your employer.  If your employer is not sure what to do, then you will want to consult with a reputable immigration attorney.  You may want to find one through www.aila.org or ask a friend who has gone through the process.

You can find general information about employment based permanent residency on the USCIS page http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/m... or in this article, http://www.millermayer.com/resources/imm...  The most common preference for H1Bs is EB-3.

Good luck.

Answer 2

If your company wants you to keep long term, they will petition you for the Employment based green card.

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/m...

Answer 3

I am on an H-1B myself and it is perfectly legal for you to apply for a greed card. However, it has to be through your employer. Generally they want you to split the cost with them. To be sure, hire an immigration lawyer or consultant. It takes about 3 years and costs about $14,000 in total  between government fees and the lawyer.

You cannot apply for a green card if you are on a TN visa but that only applies to Canadians. Like myself. That's why I got an H-1B.

Answer 4

You can't apply for a green card.  There's no basis for your application.  H1B is a non-immigrant visa.

After 5 years your employer can petition you with an I-140 application to the USCIS.