The Office of Immigration Statistics at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), says that more than 990,000 foreign nationals received permanent resident status (green card status) in the U.S. in 2013.
Most of the new green card holders originated from Mexico, China and India. More than 13 percent of Mexicans, 7 percent of Chinese and 6 percent of Indians received their green cards in 2013. These countries were followed by the Philippines, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Vietnam, South Korea, Colombia, Haiti, Jamaica, El Salvador, Nigeria, Pakistan, Canada, Ethiopia, Nepal, the United Kingdom, Iran and Burma. California, New York, Florida, Texas and New Jersey are the top five U.S. states with the highest number of immigrants.
66 percent of those who received green cards in 2013 immigrated to the U.S. through family based immigration. More than half of them were immediate relatives of U.S. citizens. The other half were relatives of green card holders and some of them belonged to the other family preference categories. 16 percent of the new residents obtained their green cards through employment. Most of them belonged to employment based second and third preference categories. 12 percent of those who obtained their green cards in 2013 were refugees or asylees. 4.6 percent of them got their resident cards through the green card lottery program.
There are many foreigners who wish to settle in the U.S. and call the country their home. The U.S. gives a chance to such individuals to immigrate to the country and settle here. They can choose to immigrate through family or employment based immigration. Those who do not have family ties in the U.S. and who do not have job offers through which they can immigrate to the U.S., can take part in the green card lottery. This lottery program is open to citizens of countries that have low immigration rates to the U.S. There are also a few other ways to immigrate to the U.S. Eligible foreigners also can self-petition for permanent resident status.
