What is an immigrant visa?

An immigrant visa is a document that is issued by a foreign government and allows someone to legally enter the United States and live there as a permanent resident. In California, to obtain an immigrant visa, individuals must first go through the entire immigration process. They must demonstrate that they qualify to become a lawful permanent resident and, if applicable, file for an immigrant visa. The types of immigrant visas that are available for permanent residence in California are family-based visas, employment-based visas, business investor visas, diversity immigrant visas, humanitarian visas, and refugee visas. Family-based visas are for those who either have an immediate family member who is a U.S. citizen or a legal resident, or who are the spouse, child, or parent of a U.S. citizen. Employment-based visas are for those who have a job offer in the U.S. or who have special skills that are needed in the U.S. Business investor visas are for those who have a substantial amount of money or resources to invest in the U.S. Diversity immigrant visas are randomly-awarded to those who are from countries that have low immigration rates to the U.S. Humanitarian visas are for those who are fleeing from persecution in their home countries. Refugee visas are for those who are seeking refugee protection in the U.S. The application process for an immigrant visa can be lengthy and require a great deal of paperwork. Individuals must provide a variety of documents in order to prove their identity, their family ties, their ability to financially support themselves, and their ties to the U.S. After the application is processed, the U.S. government will make a decision on the eligibility of the applicant and whether or not they can legally enter the U.S. and become a permanent resident.

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Una visa de inmigrante es un documento emitido por el gobierno de los Estados Unidos que permite a un extranjero residir de manera legal en el país. Estas visas se otorgan a aquellos extranjeros que pueden demostrar que tienen la intención de residir permanentemente en los Estados Unidos y que reunen todos los requisitos para ello. Estas visas están diseñadas para aquellos que buscan la ciudadanía estadounidense. Algunas de estas visas están destinadas a aquellos que realizan trabajos específicos, mientras que otras permiten que los extranjeros vivan con un miembro de la familia que tenga la ciudadanía estadounidense. Existen muchas clases de visas de inmigrante disponibles, cada una con sus propios requisitos. Si bien la inmigración ha sido regulada de manera estricta en California, aún está disponible una variedad de visas de inmigrante. Estos incluyen visas de trabajadores temporales, visas de empleo, visas de no inmigrantes, visas de petición familiar, visas de inversionista y visas de no inmigrantes. La solicitud de una visa de inmigrante debe ser aprobada antes de que un extranjero pueda residir de manera legal en los Estados Unidos.

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