Green card seekers in US must return to home countries to apply, says Trump administration

The Donald Trump-led administration announced on Friday that those seeking a green card to remain in the United States permanently must apply for it from their home countries “except in extraordinary circumstances”.

A green card, officially known as a Permanent Resident Card, allows an individual to stay and work permanently in the US.

Without explaining what the exceptions to the rule may be, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services stated that the new policy “allows our immigration system to function as the law intended instead of incentivising loopholes”.

“When aliens apply from their home country, it reduces the need to find and remove those who decide to slip into the shadows and remain in the US illegally after being denied residency,” it added.

The US had granted about 14 lakh green cards in 2024, The New York Times reported, citing data by the Department of Homeland Security. Of the total, more than 8.2 lakh approved applications were of persons residing in the US. They had been granted the card through a process called “adjustment of status”, which allows persons on a non-immigrant visa to apply for permanent residency.

Over the past two decades, more than five lakh persons have received green cards through adjustment of status each year, except during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.

The changes announced...

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