American Samoa Permanent Residence in 2026

American Samoa has its own territorial permanent-resident status under Title 41. It is not the same as U.S. lawful permanent residence under federal immigration law, and it should not be described casually as a U.S. “green card.”

The territorial statute provides several eligibility bases. The best-known is at least 20 years of continuous physical and legal presence in American Samoa with good moral character, but there are also separate family-related and adoption provisions.

20 years of continuous legal presence

A.S.C.A. § 41.0403 provides that a person may apply for permanent resident status after 20 years of continuous physical and legal presence in American Samoa if the person also demonstrates good moral character.

For this provision, the statute defines continuous residence in a way that can tolerate absences, but an absence generally may not exceed three consecutive months if the person wants to preserve continuity under that rule.

This is a long-term eligibility provision, not an automatic grant on the twentieth anniversary. The applicant must apply and satisfy the statutory review process.

Marriage-based 10-year route

The statute separately provides eligibility for a person who:

  • is legally married to an American Samoan or U.S. citizen; and
  • has resided in American Samoa for at least 10 years.

This is different from the initial P-12 family residence process. Marriage does not create immediate permanent residence, and the 10-year territorial residence condition remains material.

Other family and adoption categories

A.S.C.A. § 41.0403 also addresses qualifying adopted persons and specified family-preference residents who have resided in American Samoa for the required period.

Because these categories depend on precise statutory family relationships and immigration history, applicants should identify the exact subsection rather than assuming every relative of an American Samoan qualifies after ten years.

Annual numerical cap

For the ordinary 20-year category, the statute caps permanent-resident grants at 50 per fiscal year.

The statute excludes specified adoption, marriage and family-related categories from that particular 50-person cap. That means the cap does not operate identically across every permanent-residence basis.

Application procedure

A.S.C.A. § 41.0404 places the application with the Attorney General. The statutory process allows review of the application and supporting record and provides for hearings or additional inquiry where required.

Applicants should expect to prove lawful residence history, continuity, the claimed family relationship where applicable, identity, good moral character and compliance with registration/immigration requirements.

The current public Legal Affairs website does not publish one universal permanent-residence processing-time guarantee. Do not invent a fixed decision period.

Unregistered persons face a major problem

The permanent-residence statute generally does not allow a person who is not properly registered to use the permanent-residence process, except where the Attorney General authorizes the application under the statutory rules.

Long-term residents should therefore preserve immigration cards, approvals, sponsor/status records, travel history and other evidence of continuous lawful presence rather than waiting until the permanent-residence application to reconstruct decades of status.

Registration-card validity after permanent residence

A.S.C.A. § 41.0309 distinguishes permanent residents from most other registered aliens. Most alien registration cards are issued for a period not exceeding 12 months, while permanent residents and certain children of U.S. nationals can receive cards valid for up to three years.

The three-year card validity is an administrative document rule; it does not mean permanent-resident status itself becomes temporary every three years.

Employment-based years can matter if lawful and continuous

A person lawfully living in American Samoa through employment-based residence may eventually accumulate time relevant to the 20-year route if the residence remains physical, legal and continuous within the statutory rules.

But a short P-45 approval, or a series of approvals with status gaps, is not automatically equivalent to satisfying 20 years of continuous legal presence. The full record matters.

Guest-worker years do not count

The special guest-worker chapter contains an explicit exception. A.S.C.A. § 41.0912 states that time spent in guest-worker status does not count toward permanent-residence residence time if the person later changes to another lawful status.

This is one of the most important route-specific exclusions in long-term planning.

Foreign-investor permit does not lead directly to permanent residence

The foreign-investor permit also has a special restriction. The investor statute says the permit itself does not confer permanent residence, and A.S.C.A. § 41.0805 restricts a current investor-permit holder from applying for another preference or permanent residence while holding that permit.

Do not market the investor permit as a golden-visa path to permanent status.

Losing the status that supported residence

American Samoa's system is sensitive to the legal basis for stay. A.S.C.A. § 41.0407 says that when a person ceases to hold the professional, business, employment, matrimonial or other status that entitled the person to remain, the person is treated as seeking entry from that date and must notify the Attorney General within 15 days.

A status interruption can therefore affect not only immediate legality but also a future claim of continuous legal presence.

Territorial permanent residence is not U.S. citizenship

American Samoa permanent residence is a territorial immigration status. It does not itself grant U.S. citizenship, U.S. nationality, a federal green card or unrestricted immigration rights elsewhere in the United States.

People planning movement between American Samoa and the United States should treat the territorial and federal systems as distinct legal frameworks.

No purchase-property shortcut

The current territorial permanent-residence statute does not publish a general “buy property and receive permanent residence” route. Land and alien ownership rules in American Samoa are highly specific and should not be conflated with immigration status.

Similarly, the foreign-investor entry permit expressly does not confer land-ownership rights or permanent residence.

Common mistakes

  • calling territorial permanent residence a U.S. green card;
  • assuming 20 years of presence automatically creates status without an application;
  • counting unlawful or undocumented periods as clearly qualifying legal residence;
  • overlooking the continuity rule for absences;
  • assuming every family relationship uses the same 10-year provision;
  • counting guest-worker years toward the permanent-residence period;
  • treating the investor permit as an automatic settlement path; and
  • failing to preserve decades of registration and travel evidence.

Frequently asked questions

How many years are required for American Samoa permanent residence?

The ordinary long-residence route requires at least 20 years of continuous physical and legal presence plus good moral character. Separate statutory family/adoption routes can have different conditions.

Is there a 10-year marriage route?

Yes. One statutory basis covers a person legally married to an American Samoan or U.S. citizen who has also resided in American Samoa for at least 10 years.

Is there an annual cap?

The ordinary 20-year category is capped at 50 grants per fiscal year. Specified family/adoption categories are excluded from that particular cap.

Do guest-worker years count?

No. The guest-worker chapter says years in that status do not count toward permanent-residence residence time if the person later changes status.

Is American Samoa permanent residence a U.S. green card?

No. It is a territorial status under American Samoa law, not federal U.S. lawful permanent residence.

Related American Samoa routes

See the American Samoa immigration hub, employment residence, family residence, foreign investor permit, and guest worker permit. Explore the Oceania hub and /visa-types directory for wider comparisons.

Verified against current American Samoa Government immigration material and Title 41 on 15 September 2026. This page has not been legally reviewed.

Official and supporting sources

Related routes in American Samoa