Residency and citizenship: the complete guide
If you’re thinking about becoming a permanent resident or U.S. citizen—or you’re already here working through the process—you’re definitely not alone. Millions of people navigate these pathways every year, and while the system for acquiring residency and citizenship is complex, understanding your options can make all the difference. Here’s what you need to know about actually achieving permanent residency and citizenship in 2025.
Understanding the Green Card: Your Gateway to Permanent Residency
Getting a green card (officially called Lawful Permanent Resident status) is the crucial first step toward building a permanent life in America. In 2022, over a million people received green cards, but the competition is absolutely fierce. Here’s how the system actually works and what you’re up against. The pathway to permanent residency falls into several main categories, each with its own requirements, timelines, and challenges. Understanding which category applies to your situation is essential for developing a realistic strategy.
Family-based green cards
Family-based green cards represent the largest category of permanent residency approvals. If you’re married to an American citizen or your parent is a U.S. citizen, this is by far your best shot at permanent residency. Family connections accounted for over 650,000 green cards in 2022, and the closer the relationship, the better your chances and the shorter your wait. Immediate relatives of U.S. citizens—spouses, unmarried children under 21, and parents—received 428,000 green cards in 2022. There’s no numerical limit on these categories, so if you qualify, you’re essentially guaranteed to receive permanent residency eventually, though processing times can still take months or even years depending on your circumstances and country of origin.
Other family relationships fall into preference categories with much longer waiting periods. Adult children of U.S. citizens, spouses and unmarried children of permanent residents, married children of citizens, and siblings of citizens all face different priority levels and wait times. We’re talking years, sometimes decades, depending on your situation and country of birth. The demand from certain countries is so high that people can wait 20 years or more for their priority date to become current.
Employment-based permanent residency
Employment-based permanent residency represents another major pathway, though it’s considerably more challenging than family-based applications. About 200,000 people received green cards through employment in 2022, but this path requires serious planning, significant qualifications, and often a substantial amount of luck. The employment-based system has its own priority categories. The first preference goes to individuals with extraordinary ability in sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics, outstanding professors and researchers, and certain multinational executives and managers. About 35,000 people made it through this category in 2022.
The bar is incredibly high—you need to demonstrate sustained national or international acclaim—but if you meet the requirements, the process moves relatively smoothly. The second preference covers professionals with advanced degrees or individuals with exceptional ability in sciences, arts, or business. This category distributed over 100,000 green cards in 2022, though most went to people already in the U.S. on temporary work visas. The key requirement is demonstrating that your skills are valuable enough that an American employer needs to sponsor you permanently, or that your work would substantially benefit the United States.
The third preference includes skilled workers with at least two years of training, professionals with bachelor’s degrees, and certain unskilled workers. It’s highly competitive, with only about 30,000 spots available in 2022. Wait times can be extremely long, particularly for applicants from countries with high demand like India and China. What many people don’t realize about employment-based green cards is that simply having a job offer isn’t sufficient. In most cases, your employer must prove they couldn’t find a qualified American worker to fill the position. This involves a labor certification process through the Department of Labor that can take months or years before you can even submit your green card application.
The employer must conduct recruitment efforts, document their search for American workers, and demonstrate that hiring you won’t negatively impact U.S. workers’ wages and working conditions. The diversity visa program offers another path to permanent residency, though it’s essentially a lottery system. About 55,000 green cards are available annually through this program for people from countries with historically low immigration rates to the United States. You need at least a high school education or two years of work experience in a skilled occupation to qualify.
In 2022, the diversity visa program was still recovering from COVID-related disruptions. The Trump administration had effectively suspended the program, causing thousands of lottery winners to lose their opportunity entirely. While the program has resumed, processing remains slower than in previous years. The odds of winning are extremely low—millions of people enter each year for those 55,000 spots—but it’s free to apply, and for eligible countries, it represents one of the fastest paths to permanent residency if selected.
Other pathways
Other pathways to permanent residency include asylum and refugee status for those fleeing persecution, special immigrant categories for certain religious workers and employees of international organizations, and various humanitarian programs. Each has specific requirements and procedures that can be quite complex.
Maintaining Permanent Residency: Your Responsibilities and Rights
Once you receive your green card, maintaining permanent resident status requires understanding both your rights and obligations. Permanent residents can live and work anywhere in the United States, travel abroad and return (with some limitations), sponsor certain family members for immigration, and eventually apply for citizenship. However, permanent residency comes with important responsibilities.
- You must file income tax returns and report your worldwide income to the Internal Revenue Service, just like U.S. citizens.
- You’re required to carry your green card with you at all times as proof of your legal status.
- Men between ages 18 and 25 must register with the Selective Service System.
- One of the most critical aspects of maintaining permanent residency involves travel restrictions. While you can travel abroad, extended absences can jeopardize your status. Generally, trips longer than six months raise questions about whether you’ve abandoned your permanent residency. Absences longer than one year can result in automatic loss of your green card unless you obtained a reentry permit before departing.
If you need to travel abroad for extended periods, you can apply for a reentry permit, which allows absences of up to two years. However, even with a reentry permit, you must demonstrate that you haven’t abandoned your intention to live permanently in the United States. Factors immigration officers consider include whether you maintained a U.S. residence, filed U.S. tax returns, maintained U.S. bank accounts and other ties, and the reason for your extended absence.
Permanent residents can lose their status through criminal convictions, fraud in the immigration process, or by formally abandoning their residency. Certain criminal convictions can make you removable from the United States, even if you’ve been a permanent resident for many years. This is why it’s crucial to understand the immigration consequences of any legal issues and consult with both criminal and immigration attorneys if you face criminal charges.
The Path to U.S. Citizenship
After maintaining permanent residency for the required period, you can apply for U.S. citizenship through naturalization. This represents the final step in the immigration journey and provides the highest level of security and benefits available under U.S. law. The basic residency requirement for naturalization is five years as a permanent resident, though this reduces to three years if you’re married to a U.S. citizen and meet certain other criteria.
You must also demonstrate continuous residence in the United States and physical presence for at least half of the required period. Specifically, you need to be physically present in the U.S. for at least 30 months during the five years before applying, or 18 months during the three years if you’re married to a citizen. The continuous residence requirement means you cannot leave the United States for extended periods. Absences of six months to one year can break the continuity of your residence unless you can prove you didn’t abandon your residence. Trips longer than one year automatically break continuous residence unless you obtained permission to preserve it before departing.
Beyond the residency requirements, you must demonstrate good moral character during the statutory period before applying. This involves a thorough background check examining your criminal history, tax compliance, and general conduct. Certain criminal convictions can permanently bar you from citizenship, while others may only delay your eligibility. Tax compliance is particularly important—failure to file required tax returns or pay taxes owed can demonstrate lack of good moral character.
The naturalization process includes English and civics testing requirements. The English test evaluates your ability to speak, read, and write basic English. The speaking portion occurs during your naturalization interview, while reading and writing are formal test components. You’ll be asked to read sentences aloud and write sentences that the interviewing officer dictates. The civics test covers U.S. history and government knowledge. You’ll be asked up to 10 questions from a list of 100 possible questions, and you must answer 6 correctly to pass. The questions cover topics like American history, the Constitution, the rule of law, and the system of government. Study materials are freely available from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Certain applicants may qualify for exemptions from the English and civics requirements based on age and length of permanent residency. If you’re 65 or older and have been a permanent resident for 20 years, or 50 or older with 20 years of permanent residency, you may take the civics test in your native language. Additional exemptions exist for older applicants with longer periods of permanent residency.
The naturalization application process involves filing Form N-400, paying the required fees (currently over $700), attending a biometrics appointment, and participating in a naturalization interview. During the interview, an immigration officer will review your application, test your English and civics knowledge, and make a decision on your case. If approved, you’ll receive a notice to attend a naturalization ceremony where you’ll take the Oath of Allegiance. These ceremonies are often moving events held at federal courthouses, historic sites, or other significant locations. You’ll receive your Certificate of Naturalization, which serves as proof of your U.S. citizenship.
Dual Citizenship Considerations
The naturalization oath includes language about renouncing allegiance to foreign states, which concerns many prospective citizens about losing their original citizenship. However, the United States generally recognizes that other countries’ laws may not permit their citizens to renounce citizenship, and U.S. law doesn’t require you to take specific steps to renounce foreign citizenship. Many countries allow their citizens to maintain citizenship even after naturalizing elsewhere. This creates situations where individuals hold dual or multiple citizenships.
While the United States permits dual citizenship, you cannot use foreign citizenship to avoid U.S. obligations like taxes, military service (if reinstated), or jury duty. If you maintain dual citizenship, you should understand the obligations that come with citizenship in both countries. Some countries require military service, have different tax obligations, or restrict certain activities for dual citizens. It’s advisable to research your home country’s laws and consider consulting with attorneys familiar with both countries’ legal systems.
Current Challenges and Considerations
The immigration landscape in 2025 presents particular challenges for those seeking permanent residency and citizenship. With the Trump administration back in office, there’s increased anxiety throughout immigrant communities, affecting not just undocumented immigrants but also permanent residents and even naturalized citizens.
Processing times for immigration applications have generally increased in recent years. What once took months now often takes years, creating uncertainty and frustration for applicants. The COVID-19 pandemic created backlogs that continue to affect processing times, and policy changes can further delay cases. Legal permanent residents should be particularly cautious about travel and ensure they maintain strong ties to the United States.
The current administration has emphasized strict enforcement of immigration laws, and even minor violations that might have been overlooked previously could now result in serious consequences. For those considering naturalization, current conditions make citizenship more valuable than ever. Unlike permanent residency, citizenship cannot be revoked except in cases of fraud in the naturalization process. Citizens have voting rights, can travel freely with a U.S. passport, and can sponsor a broader range of family members for immigration.
Planning Your Path Forward
Successfully navigating the path from temporary status to permanent residency to citizenship requires careful planning and often professional guidance. Immigration law is complex and changes frequently, making it difficult for individuals to stay current with all requirements and options. Start by honestly assessing your situation and identifying the most realistic pathway to permanent residency.
If you have family connections to U.S. citizens or permanent residents, that’s typically your strongest option. If you have valuable skills or education, employment-based options might be viable, though they require employer cooperation and often lengthy processes. Consider consulting with qualified immigration attorneys, especially for complex cases or if you have any issues in your background that might affect your applications. While legal representation isn’t required, the stakes are high enough that professional guidance often proves valuable.
Keep meticulous records of everything related to your immigration status. Save all correspondence with government agencies, keep copies of all forms and supporting documents, and maintain evidence of your residence, travel, tax compliance, and other relevant factors. These records become crucial during the naturalization process and if any questions arise about your status.
The journey from temporary visitor to U.S. citizen is challenging but achievable for those who understand the system and follow the requirements carefully. While the process can take many years and requires significant patience, millions of people successfully complete this journey and build permanent lives in America. With proper planning, legal guidance when needed, and careful attention to requirements, permanent residency and citizenship remain attainable goals for determined immigrants.