GentleCase
General estimate · not legal advice
Green Card Eligibility Checker
Answer a few plain questions about your work, family, and background. We’ll rank every category you could plausibly pursue — with an honest match score, a typical timeline, and a clear next step.
Takes 60 seconds·Free·No email required·Not legal advice
Or jump straight to a path:
Explore the paths
Not sure how to get a green card or which green card you can apply for? There are more ways than most people realize. Below is every major path — employment, investment, family, extraordinary ability, humanitarian, and the Diversity Visa lottery — with a plain-English explainer. Use the checker above for a ranked, personalized estimate, or read the full guide for any path.
Self-petition for people at the top of their field. No employer, no PERM. Needs sustained national or international acclaim.
Learn about EB-1A →Get a green card without a job offer if your work serves the U.S. national interest. Self-petition, no PERM required.
Learn about EB-2 NIW →The most common employment green cards. EB-2 needs an advanced degree; EB-3 covers skilled workers and professionals. Both need PERM.
Compare EB-2 vs EB-3 →Spouses, parents, children, and siblings of U.S. citizens and green-card holders. Marriage to a citizen is the fastest family path.
Family green card guide →Invest $800K in a targeted area (or $1.05M elsewhere) and create 10 U.S. jobs. No employer or degree required.
Green card paths explained →Protection for people who fear persecution at home. Apply for a green card one year after asylum is granted.
Read the asylum guide →Common questions
Most people qualify through employment, investment, family, extraordinary ability, humanitarian protection, or the Diversity Visa lottery. The checker above asks about your work, education, family, and country of birth, then ranks the categories you could pursue. It's general information, not legal advice.
Employment-based (EB-1A, EB-2, EB-2 NIW, EB-3), EB-5 investor, family-based, asylum- and refugee-based, and the Diversity Visa lottery.
Yes — the EB-2 NIW and EB-1A categories let you self-petition. EB-5 investment, most family categories, asylum, and the DV lottery also don't require a U.S. job offer.
It depends on your category and country of birth. Immediate relatives of U.S. citizens can finish in ~10–14 months; employment categories run from ~1.5–3 years to many years for applicants born in India or China. Timelines shift monthly with the visa bulletin.
Yes. The spouse of a U.S. citizen is an immediate relative — no annual cap, no priority-date wait. The spouse of a green-card holder uses the F2A category. See the marriage green card checklist.
No. It's a general, educational estimate based on your answers — not legal advice, and no attorney–client relationship is created. An immigration attorney can confirm what actually fits your situation.