"I want to get a green card" can mean a dozen different cases. A woman calling about her husband, an engineer whose H-1B is running out and an HR manager trying to keep a key hire are all immigration leads. They need different questions, different attorneys and different follow-up.
Most small immigration firms lose time here. Intake grabs a name and "green card question," and the attorney has to rediscover the basics on the consult. A few targeted questions up front fix that.
Why the split matters
Family-based and employment-based cases differ in ways that affect intake directly:
| | Family-based | Employment-based | |---|---|---| | Who usually calls | The relative in the U.S., or the person hoping to immigrate | The employee, or someone at the employer | | Who decides to hire you | A family, often together | The employee, the employer, or both | | Who often pays | The family | Often the employer, sometimes the employee | | What drives urgency | Status problems, a pending deadline, a family situation | Visa expiration dates, job start dates, business timing | | Common follow-up | Calls and texts with family members | Email, calendars, sometimes HR or a company lawyer |
If your firm only handles one side, the first job of intake is to spot the other kind of call quickly and refer it out politely. If you handle both, the job is to route it to the right attorney with the right facts.
The sorting question
Don't ask "Is this family or employment?" Callers don't think in those categories. Ask what's driving the call:
"Who are you hoping to help immigrate or stay in the U.S., and what's your connection to them?"
"Is this through a family member, through a job, or something else?"
"Something else" matters. Asylum, removal defense, a U visa or a citizenship question may come up here, and those go on their own track. See our removal defense checklist and asylum intake posts.
Family-based questions
Family cases start with the relationship and the status of the person in the U.S. Under USCIS rules, immediate relatives of U.S. citizens (spouses, unmarried children under 21, and parents of citizens who are at least 21) are treated differently from other family categories. Intake staff don't need to know why. They need to capture the facts that let the attorney tell.
Ask:
- Who's the relative in the U.S.? Name and relationship to the person immigrating.
- What's that relative's status? U.S. citizen, green card holder, or something else.
- For a citizen parent sponsoring a parent: Is the citizen 21 or older?
- For a child: The child's age and whether they're married.
- Where's the person immigrating right now? In the U.S. or abroad.
- If they're in the U.S., how did they enter? Keep it factual. "How did you first come to the U.S., and when?"
- Has anyone ever filed anything for them before? Petitions, visa applications, anything.
- Any past immigration problems? Prior removal orders, visa denials, time in immigration court.
- Any arrests or criminal charges, anywhere? Just the facts.
- Any deadlines or notices? Anything with a date on it from USCIS, a consulate or the court.
Questions 6, 8 and 9 are where simple-sounding family cases turn complicated. Staff shouldn't judge the answers. Their job is to write them down plainly so the attorney sees them before the consult.
Who should be on the consult
Family cases often involve two people, and both may need to be there. Ask:
"Will both you and [relative] be able to join the consult? It usually helps to have both of you."
Note who's the decision maker and who's paying. If it's the U.S. citizen spouse calling about their partner, make sure the partner's contact info is captured too, if they're comfortable sharing it.
Employment-based questions
With employment cases, the first fork is who's calling, the worker or the employer.
If the worker is calling
- Current immigration status and its expiration date. This is often the real deadline.
- Employer name and their role.
- Does the employer know they're looking into this? Many employment-based cases start with a petition from the employer, and some need a labor certification from the Department of Labor first. If the employer isn't on board, the attorney needs to know.
- Has the employer already filed anything? Who's handling it if so.
- Education and field. Degree, profession, years of experience. Some categories let a person petition for themselves, and the attorney will want this to see what fits.
- Family members who'd be included. Spouse and children.
- Any past immigration issues or status gaps.
If the employer is calling
- Company name, size and industry.
- Caller's role and authority. Can they sign an engagement? If not, who can?
- The worker's name, role and current status.
- Timeline. Start date, visa expiration, anything time-bound.
- One hire or ongoing need? Repeat business changes how the firm will want to scope it.
- Who pays the fees. Some costs in employment cases have rules about who can pay them, so flag this for the attorney rather than answering it.
Get an email address and a backup contact. Employer leads often go quiet because the one person you talked to went on vacation.
Red flags that need an attorney now
Whichever side the lead falls on, escalate if the caller mentions:
- A status that expires soon, or has already expired.
- A Request for Evidence or other notice with a response date.
- A Notice to Appear or any immigration court date.
- A pending application that was denied.
These calls need faster handling than a standard consult slot. Our post on triaging deadline-driven calls covers it.
What staff shouldn't say
Both kinds of callers ask some version of "Do I qualify?" Intake staff should never answer it. That includes "That sounds easy" or "Marriage cases are quick." Processing times and eligibility depend on details only an attorney can weigh, and the rules change.
"That's what the attorney will look at with you. I want to make sure they have the full picture first, so let me ask a few more questions."
Follow up the way each lead buys
Family leads respond to texts and calls, and they often need time to talk it over at home. Employment leads, especially employers, often want an email summary and a calendar invite. Set up follow-up for each track instead of one sequence for everyone.
Where IntakeGenius fits
IntakeGenius answers every call and runs the intake interview built for your immigration practice, including the questions that sort family-based from employment-based callers, then books the consult. IntakeCRM tracks every lead to the signed retainer, and the built-in reminders and follow-ups keep both tracks moving. We set it all up with you. Learn more on our immigration page.
Curious how it would sort your calls? Book a 15-minute demo. No slides, just a conversation.