Green card issuance by the government of United States of America involves the following steps:

The first step in the green card application process involves having a petition approved by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service. The petition needs to be filed by a qualifying relative or the immigrant's employer. A qualifying relative is an immediate relative, such as a spouse, a child under 21, or parents of a child under 21 who is either a U.S. citizen or an immigrant who already has a green card.

After approval of the petition, the second step is getting an immigrant visa number through the State Department. These numbers are released in limited quantity each year as are the number of immigrants from given countries that already have a high population. In the U.S. Approval of the petition does not guarantee the availability of an immigrant visa number. Most immigrants are put on a long waiting list. Immigrants with qualifying relatives do not have to wait for an immigration number for long.

After this, one has to apply with the USCIS to have the green card residency status changed from temporary to permanent resident. This can be done in the U.S. or at the nearest U.S. consulate if the applicant lives outside the United States.

Other legal way of obtaining Green Card is through Congressionally-approved government program, which is also known as Green Card Lottery or Diversity Lottery program. Each year, the Diversity Lottery (DV) Program makes 55,000 immigrant visas available through a lottery to people who come from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States. The State Department holds the lottery every year.

One can obtain Green Card through Employment where an employer sponsors someone for lawful permanent residency based on permanent employment in the United States.

One can obtain Green Card through investment. Permanent resident status eligibility is available to investors, either alone or coming with their spouse and unmarried children. Eligible aliens are those who have invested or are actively in the process of investing the required amount of capital into a new commercial enterprise that they have established. They must further demonstrate that this investment will benefit the United States economy and create the requisite number of full-time jobs for qualified persons within the United States.

The green card as issued by the U.S. government is subject to renewal once every 10 years.