IF YOU DON’T HAVE 5 MILLION DOLLARS TO BUY A GOLD CARD, WHERE IS THE WAY TO BECOME A US CITIZEN?
As expected of a leader with a business style, President Donald Trump – the greatest salesman in the world today – has just announced that he will launch a new immigration program on September 1, 2019. Last February 25.
Accordingly, Washington will launch an unprecedented type of immigrant visa, with a selling price of 5 million US dollars, called the “gold card.” Simply put, if you have 5 million US dollars, you can “buy” a US permanent resident green card, with the benefit of becoming a US citizen after 5 years like other green card holders.
According to President Trump, this new visa will also replace the current EB-5 program from the beginning of March 2025. In the EB-5 program, you need to invest from a minimum of $800,000 to $1 million in a US company, then you will receive a US permanent resident green card. But with the advent of the “golden card”, you need 5 million dollars to get a powerful green card. This is an amount of money that many people do not even dare to think about in their dreams!
So if you are not in the “super rich” group to be able to spend 5 million dollars for a green card, but you still want to become an American citizen, what can you do?
1. Marry a US citizen/permanent resident
This is one of the most popular, “economical” and fastest ways to become an American citizen.
Foreigners married to US citizens can apply for a green card (permanent resident) through spousal sponsorship (CR1/IR1). After becoming a permanent resident, you can apply for naturalization after 3 years if you still maintain your marriage.
However, this path is gradually being distorted and is being exploited by some fraudsters to circumvent the law to get a green card. Therefore, couples who get married through this route are often closely examined and are easily rejected if suspected of a fake marriage.
2. Family sponsor
American citizens or permanent residents can sponsor relatives (parents, children, siblings) to receive a green card, then the sponsored person can apply for citizenship after 5 years of continuous residence.
This type of visa has the advantage of being able to sponsor many relatives, does not require large skills or finances, and the legal process is also clear. clear and low risk of fraud.
However, depending on the annual visa quota and the applicant’s nationality, the waiting time can be very long.
For example, if you are a parent of an American citizen (IR5) and you want to sponsor your children, it only takes 1-2 years for your children to get a green card. But for the same green card, if you want to sponsor your sibling, that person may have to wait 12-15 years to get it.
3. EB-3 (Immigrant Worker Visa) Employment-Based Third Category
In addition to the above two visa lines, EB-3 is one of the most popular paths that Vietnamese people often follow to obtain US citizenship.
This is a visa program for skilled workers, professional workers, and unskilled workers sponsored by a US company to work full-time.
This program has been approved by the US government since 1990. The purpose is to provide foreign unskilled workers to work in areas in the US where there are not enough natives to meet the demand.
So, although the category “professional and skilled workers” is included, most visas are issued for the category of unskilled workers – working in factories, livestock and poultry slaughterhouses, food packaging, electronics assembly, etc. I know quite a few families of Vietnamese doctors who have chosen to follow this path and go to the US to work with a salary of only 30-40k USD a year.
Because it requires a guarantee from a company in the US, you will have to depend on working for that company. Within 5 years, the US Immigration Service has the right to investigate cases of early resignation and will revoke green cards if it believes there is fraud.
After receiving a green card, workers can apply for citizenship after 5 years of residence, and can freely work at other companies.
Time to complete the application can range from 3-4 years or more, depending on the number of applicants and processing time.
It will also depend on many other factors that you cannot control such as: the influence of immigration policy (if there is a change of government after the election), the labor certification process, the sponsoring company, etc.
Service costs for this road are not cheap either – can be up to $75,000 for 1 family. The risk rate is also quite high – at all stages of the application – from paperwork to interview. And of course, service costs will not be refunded.
Each year the EB – 3 program is limited to 40,000 visas/year, and according to data from Visa Bulletin, Vietnam only receives 1171 EB-3 visas for 2024, down nearly 35% compared to 2023 (~1800 applications).
The waiting time for approval is also longer when the visa bulletin stands still for several consecutive months, proving that the current EB3 applications submitted are many and have a significant backlog.
4. Medical residency and becoming a doctor in the US
This is a dedicated path for medical students/doctors in Vietnam who want to settle in the US and develop a professional career and be paid as a primary doctor regulations when working in the US.
With this program, you will need 3-4 years to prepare your application for a US medical residency. Documents include – 3 USMLE exams – step 1, step 2 CK, and step 3; Participate in scientific research, volunteering, clinical internship in the US, personal essay, and interview.
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After being accepted into an American Medical residency program, you will receive a J1 visa. After completing 3-7 years of training (depending on the specialty you choose), you will apply to get an H1-B visa (visa line for highly skilled workers). After that, green card and citizenship are only a matter of time for you.
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It is worth mentioning that even during your US Medical residency training, you will be paid a salary and receive other benefits of workers in the US (health insurance, vacation days, retirement funds, etc.) – Starting salary for year 1 is $65,000/year, and increases each year. After becoming an official doctor, your minimum salary is $250,000/year (the actual number is much higher depending on your specialty, abilities, and efforts).
style=”font-weight: 400;”>You will have a job according to your passion and aspirations, along with being paid a salary enough for your family to live a high-class life and have a solid social position anywhere in the United States.
Thus, at the time Currently, there will be 5 main paths as above if you want to become an American citizen, from the powerful ‘Golden Card’ program, marrying a US citizen/permanent resident, to family sponsorship paths, EB-3 labor, or specifically the medical residency path for our doctors.
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Each path has different requirements, costs and waiting times, requiring careful consideration. Therefore, there is no common framework for everyone. Depending on your financial situation, skills, and personal relationships, you can choose the most suitable path for you and your family to realize the dream you have always cherished.
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Hopefully these shares will be somewhat useful to you.
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Please comment “yes” if you like the article.
Dr. Christina Nguyen
Phoenix Medical Academy
