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Comment by tomohelix | Hacker News Reader

Why would this be flagged? They made a pretty good case.

I personally know someone who has been in the US for more than 10 years, highly educated (with a PhD in engineering), employed in healthcare research, pay more taxes than most American, never break a law, etc. Basically the ideal citizen. Except he isn't a US citizen and according to him, unless he marry a citizen, it isn't likely for him to be one anytime soon.

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What kind of visa is he on that allows him to work in the USA for more than 10 years without getting a green card (which directly leads to citizenship)? Definitely not an H1B, unless he is eligible for a green card but from India, or maybe china, and is waiting for quota?

The USA doesn’t r have many ways to let people stay that long legally without getting a green card. Which, but the way, if you mary a us citizen, that’s also all you can get (citizenship comes later after holding a green card for N years, where I think N is 3?).

H1b has country specific caps. So Indians for example cannot get Green cards for 30 years something.

The usa is weird in that most working visas terminate in permanent residency, with only the quota system in place affecting India, Mexico, maybe China and the Philippines. But, in some countries like China, your hope of getting permanent residency is slim, no matter how many times you renew your Z visa, and even marriage doesn’t do much.

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