Something that you ought to know about green card is that the processing could take a long time and hence you should also have abundant patience in addition to being “eligible”. You could either enter the green card lottery or get a family member who is already a US citizen to endorse your green card application. Since the processing is on a first-come-first-serve basis, you would be doing just the right thing by applying as soon as you can; this could at least ensure that your application would be processed if it has reached them soon enough.

You can check the green card status by checking out the USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services) website. You will need to know at least an approximate duration that is required for the green card application to be approved. The website would not only tell you the status of your application but also the application that the Department is currently working on. However, you would have no idea of the number of applications that were received before yours and hence you can’t calculate how much more time is required for your application to be even considered. Invariably as the number of people who are in the race for the green card is big, it would be very tough to know exactly for how long you would have to wait.

Whether the USCIS rejects or accepts your application, you would be told accordingly. In case they need more details, you would be informed. The applications are processed based on their order of receipt. This, according to the Department would ensure that everyone has a fair chance of being given the green card.

Alternatively, to check the green card status you can call the customer service number. This could be more helpful as the customer support would give you a better timeframe if you provide the required information. You could call regularly to know how many visas have been processed since your last call. Processing time isn’t the same for all the visas, however. The receipt number that you’re given is the key to checking green card status either online or at the customer support desk.

Remember that your visa is taking sometime since someone else’s application is being processed and this would require you to be patient for a while. Also, only basic information would be provided when you wish to know about your green card status; don’t expect to be told every minute detail about the processing. The “A” number that you could have received is only a number that corresponds to your account number; this won’t help in case you wish to know about your green card status.

Accelerated Processing

By filling out form I-129, your green card could be processed quicker than in the conventional way. Sometimes, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services can take a green card application out of the original lot and consider it ahead of others, if there is an emergency such as a life-and-death situation. This is generally not done as this could affect the chances of someone else’s green card status. But if accelerating the processing would help the person in a real emergency, the USCIS could do so. This opportunity is very rare and is offered to someone who is in grave danger. The authorities believe that no person should be given an unfair advantage; there are after all thousands of applications that would have to be considered in the order in which they were received.