How hard is it to get a visa/immigrate to the USA?

Depending on your education level and specific job skills it can be easy or not. Someone trained in the medical field or engineering would have a much easier time of it than someone with a general high school level diploma. If you have neither you probably won't be let in legally unless you're a successful actor, model or professional athlete. The fees aren't insignificant and they keep going up all the time. The test one has to pass isn't that difficult for someone able to study for it. When you talk about illegal aliens in the US you need to remember that the lion's share of them are unskilled or low skilled. Most don't have any kind of formal education and many can't read in any language (which makes it difficult to wade through the process of application). Most of them are dirt poor when they arrive and would frankly rather send all the money they make back home than to invest in becoming American citizens. A good number of them laugh at the rules because our government doesn't enforce them. Why spend the time and money to become a citizen when you can live here with all the perks of citizenship and not bother?

Cali pretty-well Answered your Question.

But I'd like to Add, that it Also depends on how Well the Country your Immigrating From gets Along with the United States.

For Example, if you live in Russia, you Basically have to be 'Sponsored' from someone in the US.

(Hence the term 'Mail-Order Bride')

If you live in the United Kingdom, you are pretty-well Free to get a Visa/Passport, and Move to the US Practicaly when Ever you Want. (Of course, that Costs allot of Money...)

Now, if you live in Mexico, the Borders of your Country are Right Next to US Territory.

And that's why there are SO many Illegals that have Immigrated from Mexico in the Past.

But getting in Legally is Simple too. That also costs Money, but not much since you don't have to Fly over on Plane to get into the US. The Plane Ticket(s) are what Cost so Much to Immigrate from Over seas.

And once you Immigrate into the US, you Legally have to become a Citizen. And all that takes is Cooperation from You as an Individual. Only the Real stupid & Criminals will come to Live in the US, and Not get there Citizenship. And of course, that is Illegal.

*The Reason that Illegals from Mexico neglect to get Citizenship, is because they are Criminals by Law, and cannot Get Citizenship until they 'Enter' the US Legally. (They would have to have a Social Security Number)

Reality is, that Most illegals from Mexico have moved Back to Mexico, due to loss of Jobs.

Most Mexicans I've seen in the last Year are Legally here, and have become Citizens if they Live in the US.

In the Indianapolis Area, Most Mexicans that are still Here are not only living here Legally, but Allot of them Own there own Business Legally, and have become Prosperous.

(The type's of Businesses I've seen them Start range from Mexican Grocery Stores, to Landscaping Businesses)

There are alot of People that have Migrated from other Countries other than Mexico in the Indianapolis area. I have found a Neighborhood with many Burmese people that have 'Escaped' Burma to Live in the United States.

I have also met many Muslims, Dominicans, Koreans, East-Indians, Jamaicans, Nigerians, and even some South-Africans (Who are actually white), just to name a few.

Its actually very difficult to get a green card/immigrant visa to the US, especially if you're poor like most illegal immigrants and especially if you are from Mexico. To get a green card you most likely need an employer to sponsor you, or a close relative like parent, sibling, or child who is a legal resident or citizen of the USA.

For employment based green card, you'd need to have special job skills that are in high demand and it has to be hard for the company to find US citizens to fill the position. Realistically most people who come here illegally have lower education and not many high level job skills so couldn't ever get a work visa.

If they did have legal relatives who could sponsor them it costs a few thousand dollars- which the relatives most likely would have to pay, because poor people in other countries can't generally afford that kind of money. The REAL problem with getting here legally from Mexico and other places is the wait time. It can take between 5-17 years (depending on who applied for them) for someone from Mexico to actually get the green card after they fill out all the forms w/immigration. Right now they are giving green cards to people whose relatives applied for them in 1992, 1994 and stuff like that. Thats pretty unrealistic wait imo. Plus if you don't have money, education or close relatives here then your chances of ever getting a visa are very slim unless you marry a US citizen.

Once you get the green card, its not that hard to get citizenship it just takes a while. You have to live here without legal trouble on green card for 5 years, then send the application, wait for appointments and take the citizenship test. The test is hardly stringent though lol, just learn english and its a basic civics exam- who is president, how many people are in house of representatives, what is the bill of rights, etc.

I'm an immigrant from Bulgaria, It wasn't too hard to move back in 1995 when I came, but since the illegal alien surge, it's been harder to snag a Visa for visitors, and even harder (if not impossible) to get a green card. On top of that, the bureaucracy garbage makes the process extremely slow, I have lived here (US) for nearly 14 years, I get my passport in one year. (Hooray, I'll be able to vote and stuff!). The process is painfully slow, and it is hard to even get a visa to visit family members. I hoped I helped, by the way, where are you from, it depends on that too?

Not hard enough. We take in more legal immigrants than the rest of the world combined. We are still importing millions of foreign workers a year when our unemployment rate keeps skyrocketing.

You would think it would be easier to get a visa than to pay coyotes thousands of dollars. It is probably the criminal and diseased who can't get them.

Why are all the answers so dull and short these days?

Yeah it might be correct