How long does a green card take? Every step, in order

There is no single answer to how long a green card takes. It depends on your category, your priority date and the office handling your case. What every case shares is the order of the steps. Here they are, with where the time usually goes.

1. Priority date and visa bulletin

If your category has a waiting line, nothing moves until your priority date is current in the visa bulletin. For some people this is the longest part, years rather than months. Immediate relatives of U.S. citizens (spouses, unmarried children under 21, and parents of a citizen who is 21 or older) skip this step. Visas for them are always available.

2. Filing and the receipt notice

After you file Form I-⁠485, USCIS sends a receipt notice. From then on you can follow the case online with the receipt number.

3. Biometrics

After you file, USCIS schedules an appointment for fingerprints, a photo and a signature. The appointment notice gives the date, time and place. The visit itself is short. If you can't go, you can ask to reschedule, at least 12 hours before the appointment.

4. Work permit and travel document

If you filed for them, the work permit and the travel document are decided on their own timelines, often well before the green card itself.

5. Review, and maybe a Request for Evidence

This is usually the longest wait inside USCIS. An officer reviews the file and may ask for more documents. A Request for Evidence adds the time you take to answer plus the time to review it again.

6. Interview

Many family cases, and some employment cases, have an interview. Others are approved without one.

7. Approval and the card

After approval, the card is produced and mailed. Your case status shows when it is sent.

How to see your own timeline

USCIS publishes processing times for each form and office. Compare your filing date with those times to see whether your case is moving normally. ImmigraMate shows the times for your form and office next to your case, and Case Insights shows what usually happens next to cases like yours.

Which step is your case on right now? Tell us in the comments.