Registry granted a potential pathway to citizenship

by
green card visa

Green card through registry

Person thought she was a U.S. Citizen for over 30 years and voted only to find out she was here illegally and had no status.
We applied for Registry and now she is a Lawful Permanent Resident.

Registry green card INA 249.

Registry — a historic pathway to a green card (what it is and who still qualifies)

Registry is a provision of U.S. immigration law (INA §249 / 8 U.S.C. §1259) that permits the government, in its discretion, to create a record of lawful admission for certain long-term residents who entered before a statutory cutoff date. 

Who may qualify (the core eligibility rules)

  • Entry date (registry date): the applicant must have entered the United States on or before January 1, 1972. 
  • Continuous residence: the applicant must have maintained continuous residence in the U.S. since that entry. 
  • Good moral character & inadmissibility: the applicant must be of good moral character and not barred by certain criminal or national-security inadmissibility grounds. 

Because the registry date was last advanced to Jan. 1, 1972 (IRCA, 1986), only a small number of long-term residents remain eligible under current law. 

How to apply

  1. File Form I-485 (Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status) following USCIS filing instructions and include a registry eligibility cover letter and exhibits. 
  2. Assemble evidence of entry before the registry date, continuous residence, and good moral character (affidavits, records, police/court documents). 
  3. Understand discretion — even when statutory elements are satisfied, the agency exercises discretion under INA §249 and 8 CFR part 249.

Quick checklist

  • Proof of entry on/before 1/1/1972 (affidavits, contemporaneous records).
  • Continuous-residence documents covering the full period since entry.
  • Good moral character evidence; court dispositions as needed.
  • Form I-485 package with cover letter and exhibit index.

How we help

We audit your file for registry eligibility, prepare the I-485 exhibit packet and affidavits, screen for inadmissibility, and present persuasive discretion arguments to the adjudicator.

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