The United States immigration authorities have clarified that some H‑1B visa holders may not have to leave the country to apply for a green card in specific circumstances, Newsweek reported on Sunday.A green card, officially known as a Permanent Resident Card, allows an individual to stay and work permanently in the US.Zach Kahler, the spokesperson for the US Citizenship and Immigration Services, told the magazine that “people who present applications that provide an economic benefit or otherwise are in the national interest will likely be able to continue on their current path”.The others “may be asked to apply abroad depending on individualised circumstances”, Kahler was quoted as having added.The clarification came two days after the Donald Trump administration announced on Friday that persons seeking a green card to remain in the US permanently must apply for it from their home countries “except in extraordinary circumstances”.The authorities had at the time not explained what the exceptions to the rule may be, but stated that the new policy “allows our immigration system to function as the law intended instead of incentivising loopholes”.“When aliens apply from their home country, it reduces the need to find and remove those who decide to slip into the shadows and remain in the US illegally after being denied residency,” it added.The US Citizenship and Immigration Services stated that non-immigrants such as students, temporary workers or persons on tourist visas come to the country for a short time and for a specific purpose. “Our system is designed for them to leave when their visit is over,” it said, adding that their visit “should not function as the first step in the green card process”.Green cardsThe US granted about 14 lakh green cards in 2024, The New York Times reported, citing data by the Department of Homeland Security.Of these, more than 8.2 lakh approved applications were of persons residing in the US. They had been granted the card through a process called “adjustment of status”, which allows persons on a non-immigrant visa to apply for permanent residency.Over the past two decades, more than five lakh persons have received green cards through adjustment of status each year, except during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.The changes announced on Friday could adversely impact a large number of Indian workers with H-1B worker visa and their families, who are seeking green cards.Over the past few years, Indians have constituted the majority of H-1B visa holders. Indians comprised 72.3% of all H-1B visas issued by the US in the financial year 2022-’23.Since taking office in his second term in January 2025, Trump has announced several measures as part of his immigration crackdown. In August, his administration said that it was reviewing more than 55 million persons who had valid visas for any violations that could lead to them being deported.Other directives include the deportation of undocumented migrants using military aircraft, imposing additional security measures on foreign students applying to American educational institutions, and proposed new rules to limit the duration of visas for students and journalists.Edited by Neerad Pandharipande.