Do you need a lawyer to apply for green card?

Question

Hi,
 I am living and legally working at US with a non-immigrant visa right now and my employer decided to apply for a green card for me. Already the labor certification part of my application is complete. However my employer is not paying for the attorney fees for the rest of application which amount to several thousand dollars. I understand that the forms I-140 and I-485 and may be a few other things need to be filed by the employer. Those do not seem so challenging to fill in and I have access to a lawyer for consultation, but I am not quite sure about what else needs to be done. My question is, do I really need a lawyer to complete my application or is it something that I can manage with consultation. If you think I definitely need a lawyer, can you please explain at what stage the professional help is essential. Thanks.

bobert · Accepted Answer

The I-140 examines the employer's ability to pay you while the I-485 looks at your eligibility. I'd be careful if you're going to proceed with out an attorney, but if you do choose to hire one, check out the american immigration lawyer's association, http://www.aila.org

Everyone&#39;s Helper · Answer

You don't really need a lawyer if you can fill both of the forms yourself but I would suggest getting a good immigration lawyer because they know everything about this process which can get complicated once the INS starts requesting for more evidence and verifying the documents provided. Especially now a days when they do a lot of background check and stuff ...

Anonymous · Answer

You should be able to handle it normally unless you are here on a TN-1 or TN-2 Visa. Then you need a lawyer.

Anonymous · Answer

If once you see the forms and can understand how to complete them properly, you do not need a lawyer.

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Do you need a lawyer to apply for green card?

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