820,000 Chinese have immigrated to the United States — why do they hold only green cards instead of becoming citizens? 82萬中國人移民美國，為什么都只拿綠卡，不入籍?

They take the U.S. green card, but reject U.S. citizenship. Among the 820,000 Chinese immigrants in the U.S., more than half clearly meet the requirements for naturalization, yet they would rather keep holding that green card and are in no hurry to “upgrade.”

For many Chinese in America, the biggest appeal of the green card is precisely its “middle-ground” status.

The reason these 820,000 Chinese cling to their green cards isn’t some sort of “patriotic sentiment,” but a careful and pragmatic calculation about how to survive.

In their eyes, U.S. citizenship may look glamorous, but in reality it can be a “hot potato.”

Once they naturalize, their Chinese citizenship is automatically invalidated. Even going back to China to visit family becomes inconvenient — they must apply for visas and wait for approval like any foreigner, and spending more time with aging parents becomes difficult.

The financial side doesn’t look good either. U.S. inflation may stay around 3%, but rents can rise nearly 20%. Meanwhile, green-card holders who earn in dollars and spend in RMB are making a “killing.”

With stable prices in China’s top-tier cities, a green-card holder becomes a “dual-habitat animal”: earning a high salary as a Silicon Valley engineer, yet enjoying a high-quality life at low cost when they return to China.

Even more important is tax avoidance. U.S. citizens are taxed on worldwide income — if you collect rent in Shanghai or sell a property, Uncle Sam wants a cut.

Green cards, by contrast, only tax U.S.-source income, and overseas assets can save a big chunk of money. This is the true “have the best of both worlds” strategy.

Families with children calculate even more carefully. Green-card holders and citizens enjoy almost the same benefits when studying in the U.S., but the costs differ dramatically. International students at UCLA pay over 300,000 RMB per year in tuition, while green-card holders pay only around 90,000 — enough to “save a luxury car” over four years.

Admission chances are also vastly different. Green-card holders are admitted to Princeton at 2.3 times the rate of international students; at Cornell, 4.5 times the rate. Majors tied to “national security,” such as aerospace or AI, often only admit those with legal U.S. status.

Not wanting their children to become “second-class students” in the U.S., nor wanting to become “foreigners” on Chinese soil themselves, green cards naturally become the ideal solution.

Retirement is the final factor. Bringing elderly parents to the U.S. is difficult — language barriers, no social circle — leaving them stuck at home like they’re “serving immigration jail.”

Returning to China to retire is also tricky. With foreign citizenship, you must choose between being treated as a foreigner or having local household registration. Without Chinese nationality, medical insurance, social benefits, and other rights become complicated.

A lost green card can be reissued; citizenship can be reacquired. But once Chinese citizenship is given up, getting it back is extremely difficult. These 820,000 people understand this well — leaving themselves an exit strategy is simply wise.

And don’t assume these “masters of survival” who get green cards are all wealthy. The threshold isn’t as high as it seems.

Besides the US$800,000 EB-5 investment route, many rely on talent: STEM workers switch from H-1B to green card; industry elites apply through EB-1A Extraordinary Ability — meeting just three out of ten criteria is enough.

English teachers rely on publications and peer review; software engineers on patents and high salaries; embroidery artists on exhibitions and commercial value — all can qualify.

As long as you have a skill and present your achievements, you can join these 820,000 people who “benefit from both sides.” Keeping their roots in China while steadily taking advantage of opportunities across the ocean — this isn’t sentimentality, but survival wisdom taken to its fullest.

Source: Sohu.com — “Why do many U.S. green-card holders choose immigration without relocation?”

美國綠卡，他們拿了；美國國籍，他們卻拒了，82萬在美中國人里，超過一半明明符合入籍條件，卻寧愿繼續拿著那張綠卡，遲遲不肯“轉正”。對很多在美華人來說，綠卡最大的吸引力，恰恰是它的“中間地帶”。

82萬在美華人死守綠卡不肯入籍，可不是什么“愛國情懷”作祟，而是算了一筆精明的生存賬。

在他們眼里，美國國籍看著光鮮，實則可能是個“燙手山芋”。

一旦拿了，中國國籍自動失效，回國連自由探親都成問題，得像外國人一樣辦簽證、等審批，想多陪父母幾天門兒都沒有。

錢袋子更經不起細算，美國通脹雖穩在3%，但房租能漲近20%，可綠卡黨賺美元花人民幣，那叫一個“血賺”。

國內一線物價穩定，拿著綠卡能當“雙棲動物”，硅谷工程師的高薪照拿，回國還能享受低成本的高品質生活。

更關鍵的是避稅，美國公民全球征稅，你在上海收個房租、賣套房，美帝都要來分一杯羹。

綠卡只管美國境內收入，海外資產能省大筆稅錢，這才是真正的“兩頭通吃”。

有孩子的家庭更算得明白，綠卡和國籍在美讀書功能幾乎一樣，但成本天差地別，國際生讀UCLA一年學費30多萬，綠卡生只要9萬多，四年省出一輛豪車。

錄取率方面更是差距懸殊。普林斯頓綠卡生錄取率達國際生的2.3倍，康奈爾更是高達4.5倍，而且航空航天、AI這類“國家安全”專業，也僅向有身份者敞開大門。

既不愿孩子淪為“二等公民”，又不想自身成為中國土地上的“外國人”，那么綠卡無疑是當下最為理想的解決之道。

養老更是壓軸題，接父母來美國，語言不通、沒社交圈，老人只能“坐移民監”。

自己回國養老，外籍和本地戶口二選一，沒了中國籍，醫保難辦、社保權益處理全是坎兒。

綠卡遺失可補辦，國籍也可申請，然而中國國籍一朝失去，恢復難如登天，這82萬人他們明白，給自己預留一條后路，方為明智之舉。

那這群“生存大師”拿到綠卡別以為都是富豪，門檻沒那么高。

除了砸80萬美元的EB-5投資移民，更多人拼的是才華，理工科走H-1B轉綠卡，行業精英走EB-1A杰出人才通道，10條標準中3條就行。

英語老師靠論文、評審，程序員靠專利、高薪，刺繡達人靠辦展、商業價值，都能成。

只要你有一技之長，把成績擺上臺面，就能加入這82萬“兩邊占便宜”的行列，既不斷故土根，又穩接大洋彼岸紅利，這哪是情懷，分明是把“生存智慧”玩到極致的現實選擇。

信息來源：搜狐網——為什么很多美國綠卡申請人，選擇移民不移居？