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Green Cards

Permanent Residents (often called green card holders) are authorized to live and work on a permanent basis in the U.S. Whereas most nonimmigrants must document their intent to depart the U.S. after a period in the U.S., green card holders should have the intent to remain in the U.S.

There are several ways to obtain permanent residency in the U.S, including:

  • An employer-sponsored green card application, based on a specific, permanent, full-time job offer.
  • The employment-based green card application system allows for five preference categories, commonly abbreviated as EB-1, EB-2, etc. Each preference category may have several sub-categories.
  • A self-sponsored employment-based green card application without the need for a specific job offer.
    Self-sponsored green card applications can generally be filed under EB-1 Extraordinary Ability (EB-1A) and EB-2 National Interest Waiver (NIW)
  • Marriage to a U.S. citizen
  • Sponsorship by a close relative who is a U.S. citizen or legal permanent resident
  • The U.S. Department of State diversity lottery program.

While each application process ultimately leads to the same goal, the green card, the application procedures and associated costs vary. The timeline for completing a green card application heavily depend on the type of application as well as the country of birth of the applicant. Applications under the first employment-based preference category might be completed in as little as 6-8 months, whereas the process for individuals born in India or mainland China under the second and third preference categories will take years. Please consult with FSIS to discuss the timeline of a given green card application. Note that the University of Michigan generally does not sponsor green card applications that do not require employer sponsorship, such as EB-1A, NIW or family-based applications.

Sponsorship Policy

The University of Michigan will sponsor green card petitions in the first three employment-based preference categories (EB-1, EB-2 and EB-3). To initiate a green card petition, a department must submit the request form to FSIS. FSIS will either file such applications in-house or assign them to retained counsel. Pursuant to SPG 201.18, the university will not pay for, or reimburse, the costs and fees associated with a green card petition that was not filed by FSIS or assigned to retained counsel by FSIS.

The University of Michigan does not limit green card sponsorship to certain employment classifications (e.g. staff, research faculty) as long as the foreign national can meet the governmental eligibility requirements. However, individual departments, schools, colleges or other units may limit who they will sponsor or what categories of applications they will sponsor. Foreign nationals are not entitled to green card sponsorship. The University also cannot and will not guarantee the outcome of any immigration petition.

The two constant regulatory requirements are that positions for which a green card is sponsored must be full-time and “permanent.” While tenure-track positions are considered permanent, to qualify for sponsorship, the position does not need to be on the tenure-track. Positions that do not have a specified end date or maximum duration may qualify but many (e.g. Postdoctoral Research Fellows) do not. Positions that are renewed annually may still qualify as long as the intent is that the position will indeed be renewed.

If a unit decides it wants to sponsor a foreign national for a green card, the department is responsible for the associated fees and costs. The total cost of an application depends on the type of application and on whether the petition is filed by the International Center or Retained Counsel. With limited exceptions, all employment-based green card applicants must now attend an in-person interview at USCIS as part of the Adjustment of Status application process, i.e. the final step of the green card application process. Given the additional scrutiny experienced by citizens from travel banned countries, the UM Office of General Counsel (OGC) recommends that citizens of Chad, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Syria, Somalia, Yemen and Venezuela attend the interview with retained counsel. This fee can be paid by either the hiring department or the individual.

  • The International Center on the Ann Arbor campus has sole discretion in deciding whether or not a petition is prepared by Retained Counsel.
  • All requests for a green card application must be reviewed by the International Center on the Ann Arbor campus.
  • Only the International Center and retained immigration counsel, as assigned by the International Center, may file immigration petitions on behalf of the University.
Employment-Based Preference Categories

In the employment-based green card process at the university, there are three preference categories:

Green Card Application Process

There are essentially three steps in the employment-based green card application process:

1. Labor Certification (PERM)

With limited exceptions, all EB-2 and EB-3 green card applications require that the employer obtain a Labor Certification from the U.S. Department of Labor. For petitions requiring this step, the Labor Certification process is often the hardest and most arduous step. Prior to being able to file the Labor Certification application, the employer must obtain a prevailing wage from the Department of Labor and prove that there are no minimally qualified U.S. workers available for the positions through the completion of a competitive recruitment process.

In the case of positions that contain teaching duties, the employer must document that the selected applicant is the “best qualified” for the position. This process is commonly called “Special Handling.”

In both the “basic” and the “special handling” process, the employer must complete a formal recruitment process to document that there are no minimally qualified U.S. workers available or that, in the case of positions that have a teaching component, that the selected candidate is the best qualified. It is common that this recruitment process must be completed well after the foreign national employee started their position at the University.

As soon as the Labor Certification has been filed with the Department of Labor, the “priority date” for the applicant is established. This date is important to determine when someone can complete step #3, i.e. the Adjustment of Status. (If no Labor Certification is required, the priority date is established with the filing of the Immigrant Petition/ Form I-140.

2. Immigrant Petition

Once the Department of Labor approves the Labor Certification, the Immigrant Petition (Form I-140) can be filed with USCIS. In cases where no Labor Certification is required (e.g. EB-1), the filing of the I-140 is the first step of the green card process.

3. Adjustment of Status or Obtaining an Immigrant Visa

Once the I-140 application has been approved by USCIS, the foreign national can apply for the adjustment of their non-immigrant status (Form I-485) to that of a legal permanent resident. Instead of applying for the Adjustment of Status, a foreign national may also apply for an immigrant visa at a U.S. consulate or embassy abroad.

The I-485 Adjustment of Status application cannot be filed until and unless the “priority date” is current. In practice this means that, depending on one’s country of birth and EB-category, there may be a backlog. The backlog exists because more people apply for green cards in a given category than there are available green card visa numbers. The total number of green cards is further restricted by the fact that, with some exceptions, no more than seven percent of all green cards in a given preference category can go to individuals born in a given country. The backlog is updated each month by the U.S. Department of State and is published in the Visa Bulletin.

Once someone’s priority date has been reached, as indicated in the Visa Bulletin, the I-485 can be filed. The priority date is the date on which the Labor Certification was filed with the Department of Labor, or, if no Labor Certification was required, USCIS received the I-140 petition.

Note that the Visa Bulletin contains two separate tables with priority cut-off dates. The actual cut-off dates are indicated in table A “Application Final Action Dates for Employment-based Preference Cases.” However, in some instances, USCIS may accept the I-485 application if the priority date is current based on table B “Dates for Filing of Employment-based Visa Applications.” Note that USCIS will make a determination whether Table B may be used several days after the official Visa Bulletin is published. USCIS publishes this information on its website dedicated to the Visa Bulletin.

In some cases, it may be possible to file the I-140 and I-485 at the same time. This is not always recommended, even if it is possible. If the I-140 is denied, the I-485 will also be denied if filed concurrently.

Whereas the International Center will file both the Labor Certification and I-140 (unless the petition as a whole is assigned to retained counsel), the Adjustment of Status application and related applications (Advance Parole and EAD) are filed by retained counsel only.

Request Process

The green card request process depends on the type of application that is being considered:

  • Tenured/tenure track positions as well as similarly permanent research positions may qualify for an application under the EB-1b (Outstanding Professor/Researcher) category if the employee meets particular requirements and is recognized internationally as outstanding. Please consult with FSIS to determine if EB-1b sponsorship is an option. These types of applications are normally assigned to Retained Counsel.
  • Positions that include didactic teaching duties, e.g. instructional faculty, will generally qualify for an abbreviated application process ("Special Handling"). Research faculty, librarians and certain staff positions may also qualify for this process, depending on the nature of their (non-didactic) teaching duties. Please contact FSIS to discuss the nature of an employee's teaching duties to determine if Special Handling is an option. Special Handling applications are exclusively filed by FSIS.
  • Green card applications for positions that do not qualify for Special Handling are normally filed under the basic PERM (Labor Certification) process, unless they qualify for EB-1b sponsorship (and the department agrees to such sponsorship). FSIS will generally handle PERM applications for Research Faculty, though units may request an application for Research Faculty is assigned to Retained Counsel. PERM applications for staff positions are normally assigned to Retained Counsel.

Individuals who are interested in pursuing an employment-based application that requires employer sponsorship should contact their departments to determine whether the department is willing to sponsor such an application.

Once a decision has been made to sponsor someone for a green card application (and in which sponsorship category), the hiring department should submit the appropriate request/authorization form to the International Center.

Recruitment Requirements

When sponsoring someone for a green card in the second or third employment-based preference categories, the employer must document that the preferred candidate is the best qualified or, in the case of positions that do not encompass teaching duties, that there are no minimally qualified U.S. workers available. The U.S. Department of Labor prescribes the process that must be followed to document this. If the process is not followed to the satisfaction of the Department of Labor, the Labor Certification request will be denied. At that point, the green card application process comes to a standstill and the recruitment may need to be re-done.

Note that this recruitment process may well vary from the standard recruitment processes in place at the University; the process is not designed to replace the standard HR hiring process. Instead, it is designed to be a blind test of the labor market to determine the availability of U.S. workers.

Standard Labor Certification Labor Market Tests

When filing a green card application that requires a standard Labor Certification, the test of the labor market required to determine that there are no minimally qualified U.S. workers available will almost always occur after the foreign national has been selected. The assigned retained counsel attorney and FSIS will assist the hiring department in completing the test of the labor market and will guide the process.

Special Handling Labor Certification Labor Market Tests for University Teachers

For teaching positions in institutions of higher education – this is not restricted to teaching faculty only – the U.S. Department of Labor the employer to substitute its own, good faith, competitive recruitment for the prescribed process for non-teaching positions. However, there are some specific requirements imposed by the Department of Labor:

Special Handling Labor Certification (PERM) applications must be filed on behalf of an employee with teaching duties within 18 months from the date of selection (i.e. the offer letter date). If that date has passed, or if the recruitment process that was used does not meet the specific requirements for the green card application process, the university may need to “re-test the labor market.” If the candidate is still found to be more qualified than any US worker who applied as part of the new labor market test (not the original recruitment), then a Special Handling Labor Certification application may be submitted within 18 months following the issuance of a new offer letter resulting from the labor market test.

Requirements for the (new) labor market test are:

  • An ad must be placed either in print OR online with a national professional journal.
    • Online ads must be posted for at least 30 calendar days. (Paper ads are only placed once.) Online ads must include the same information as paper ads (see below)
      • pointer ads are generally not acceptable; the language in the ad must meet the regulatory criteria on its own.
      • Be sure to retain a copy of the ad as it appeared (i.e. screen shot if posted online or copy of the relevant page pf the hard copy publication) as well as evidence of the publication dates (e.g. certified tear sheet, invoice, etc.).
  • The Department of Labor accepts ads placed in the paper version of The Chronicle of Higher Education for this purpose or you may use a national professional journal specific to your field.
  • The ad must include the
    • employment location (e.g. Ann Arbor)
    • If 100% telecommuting /remote work is permitted, this should be specifically stated.
    • number of positions (if multiple);
    • job title;
    • duties (teaching duties should be mentioned specifically and clearly);
    • minimum requirements;
    • If the degree needs to be in hand by the start date, please state this in the ad.
    • method of application, and
    • all language required by the relevant SPGs and other policies, including: SPG 201.22 - Recruitment and Employment and SPG 201.95 - Background Screening
  • Before placing the ad, please review the ad language and preferred journal with FSIS
  • You should make a copy of the ad on the first and last day the ad is run. You may also submit receipts from the journal listing the posting dates.
  • Resumes must be reviewed and evaluated in good faith to determine the qualifications of the applicants.
    • If the current employee is once again shown to be the most qualified for the position, document reasons why the other candidates are not as qualified.
    • Once the recruitment is completed and you, in good faith, can say that your candidate is the most qualified for the position, issue or re-issue a letter of offer.
    • If the original offer letter was issued contingent on the applicant receiving their diploma, it is acceptable to issue an "offer confirmation" letter once all the requirements have been met.
  • Submit all documentation to the Immigration Specialist filing your case. Documents include:
    • ad with proof of posting dates;
    • offer letter and acceptance;
    • resumes of applicants;
    • document outlining recruitment procedures with reasons why selected applicant was the most qualified and why each of the other applicants was not as qualified.

Please reach out to FSIS with any questions and additional detail.

Green Cards for Dependent Family Members

The spouse and dependent children of the employee sponsored for a green card are eligible for derivative legal permanent residence. As part of the Adjustment of Status application the dependents are also eligible to file an application for employment authorization document (EAD) and/or Advance Parole (travel authorization) to use in place of their current nonimmigrant status. Once the EAD is issued, the holder of the EAD may work and use the advance parole for travel. Both the Advance Parole and the EAD are granted for a limited amount of time. Therefore, there may be a need to request an extension of both the EAD and travel authorization. Applications for such extensions should be filed as soon as possible. Please discuss this extension with the attorney handling your green card application.

Under certain circumstances, spouses in H-4 status become eligible for an EAD earlier on in the green card application process. Please refer to Applying for an EAD while in H-4 Status for more information.

Self-sponsored Green Card Applications

Foreign nationals interested in pursuing a green card application that does not require the formal sponsorship of the University (e.g. EB-2 National Interest Waiver (NIW) or EB-1a Extraordinary Ability) may do so on their own and can work with their own immigration attorney. However, all costs associated with a self-sponsored petition as well as the work performed by such outside counsel are the responsibility of the applicant, i.e. the foreign national, and may not be reimbursed by the university. With limited exceptions, UM will not pursue green card applications that do not require sponsorship.

Work while Employment-Based Green Card Application is Pending

When filing the Adjustment of Status application (I-485), the foreign national can also apply for an Employment Authorization Document (EAD) and work on the basis of the EAD. While the cost of the application for the EAD may be included in the cost of the Adjustment of Status application, separate applications must be submitted for each benefit. Normally, these applications are prepared by the attorney who files the I-485.

Once the EAD card has been issued, one can work on the basis of the EAD instead of the underlying nonimmigrant status (such as H-1B). The employment restrictions that apply to the nonimmigrant status do not apply when one is working on the basis of the EAD. Note that the EAD has an expiration date. If it expires before the green card is issued, it should be renewed. Please discuss this extension with the attorney handling your green card application.

FSIS recommends that, if possible, employees who hold H-1B status maintain their H-1B status while their green card application is pending.

Green Card Holder Responsibilities

Your responsibility to the U.S. government does not end once you receive your Green Card. Below is a non-exhaustive list of important considerations and responsibilities for U.S. permanent residents. Additional governmental resources are listed at the bottom of this page.

Should you have any questions about these responsibilities or how to comply, please speak with an experienced immigration attorney.

Registration

Once you are a permanent resident, your green card will serve as evidence of registration and you should carry your green card on you. Children who become a legal permanent resident before age 14 must replace their green card when they turn 14 by filing Form I-90.

Change of Address

You must report any change of address to USCIS within 10 days of the move. This can be done online at the USCIS website and is free of charge.

Travel

You will need your green card to re-enter the U.S. after any trip abroad. Note that to enter a foreign country, you will also need your passport. Therefore, you should carry both your passport and green card when traveling internationally. Be aware that the foreign country may require further documentation, such as a visa, for entry.

If you plan to remain outside the U.S. for more than one year, it is necessary to obtain a re-entry permit before leaving the country. Additionally, it is recommended you obtain a re-entry permit for stays abroad lasting more than six months but less than one year to avoid potential complications when re-entering. Applications for a re-entry permit are made using Form I-131 application for travel document.

If you must remain outside the U.S. for extended periods of time, please note that obtaining a reentry permit or making a return trip to the U.S. once or twice a year for a few weeks may not be enough to maintain permanent resident status. USCIS examines the reasons for the extended absence, the individual's intentions, and other factors establishing the person's ties to the U.S.

Faculty and staff who will be on extended leaves from the University should take steps to preserve their permanent resident status prior to leaving the country. Therefore, if you plan to remain outside of the U.S. for an extended period of time, you should consult with an experienced immigration attorney.

Refer to International Travel Guidance for Legal Permanent Residents for additional context and information.

Social Security Number

It is recommended you update your immigration status with the Social Security Administration. Doing so will not change your Social Security Number. All U.S. permanent residents qualify for a Social Security number. For information, refer to the U.S. Social Security Administration.

Selective Service Registration

All male U.S. permanent residents between ages 18 and 26 are required to register with the Selective Service System. Please be aware that knowingly or willfully failing to register with the Selective Service when required may prejudice eligibility for U.S. citizenship. Selective Service Registration may be done online.

Taxes

As a U.S. permanent resident, you are required to file a federal income tax return as well as any applicable state, city or local tax returns. Note that U.S. permanent residents who are required to file their tax return as a resident but fail to do so, or who file their tax return as a “nonresident alien,” may be considered to have abandoned their status and may lose permanent resident status.

PR Renewal/Extension

Currently, USCIS is issuing the PR card (Form I-551) for a period of 10 years and it should be renewed prior to the expiration date using the Form I-90: “Application to Replace Permanent Resident Card.” Upon filing the Form I-90, you should receive a formal receipt notice. This receipt notice extends the validity of your PR card by 24 months. Note that if you received a “conditional” green card that is valid for two years, you will need to file a separate petition to have those conditions removed within the required time frame.

For Additional Resources, see: