The
Immigration and Nationality Act allows U.S.
Citizens or Lawful Permanent Residents
(green card holders)
to sponsor the immigration of foreigners
to the United States based
upon family relationships.
USCIS will issue a visa after they approve
a petition filed
by a family member.
After the petition is approved the visa may
be issued in as little
as 90 days or as
long as 25 years depending upon which of
the below categories apply
and depending upon
the immigrant’s
home country the
immigrant applicant
is from. However, not all family relationships
serve
as a basis to apply
for Lawful Permanent Resident
status.
A U.S.
Citizen may
file a petition on
behalf of his/her:
- Husband,
wife, or child under the
age
of 21 (immediate relative);
- A parent
if the U.S.
citizen is at least 21 years
of
age (immediate relative);
- An unmarried
child
over the age of 21 and their children
(first
preference);
- Married child of
any age and their children (third
preference);
- Brother or sister
if the U.S. citizen is
at least 21 years old and
their
spouses and children (forth preference)
A Lawful
Permanent Resident can file the petition on behalf
of his/her:
- Husband or wife,
and children under
the age of 21 (second
preference A);
- Unmarried child over the
age of 21 (second
preference B).
The Immediate Relative
category, as noted above, has no limit
on the number of visas issued each year,
there is no wait other than the time it
takes the USCIS to process the Visa. Under
Section 245(i), a USC may petition for
an immediate relative and they may adjust
their status here in the U.S. even if that
relative has fallen out of status. However,
the immediate relative must have entered
the U.S. legally.
Aliens other than immediate relatives fall
into one of the four limited family based
preference categories, and a visa will not
be immediately available as there is a numerical
limit on the number of visas issued each
year. More aliens want visas than are currently
available. Therefore, there may be a long
waiting period for the visa to be issued.
When the application is received by the USCIS
they will note the filing date, this is called
the “priority date.” The applicant
must wait for the priority date to be current.
USCIS publishes a listing of current priority
dates in the Visa
Bulletin. If the
application was filed on or before the date
listed in
the Visa Bulletin
then the priority
date is current and the USCIS should contact
the
applicant. If USCIS
does not contact
the applicant within several months then
an inquiry should
be sent to the USCIS.
Note, the dates on
the Visa Bulletin are unpredictable. The
dates
may move forward
or backwards or they
may not move at all. However, a new Visa
Bulletin
is issued by the
State Department
on the first day of each month.
To check on
the
current USCIS
priority dates click here:
http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/bulletin/bulletin_3086.html
The most common visa issued is for a spouse
of either a USC, Lawful Permanent Resident,
or a married adult child or sibling of a
USC. Regardless of the relationship, the
marriage must be valid at its inception and
at the time of immigration, and not have
been entered into solely to obtain an immigration
benefit.
OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Affidavit of Support
All U.S. citizens
or legal permanent residents who petition
to have their family members admitted to
the U.S. as immediate relatives or through
the various family-based preferences must
act as sponsors and provide an Affidavit
of Support for the alien. The affidavit
is required to assure the USCIS that the
alien will not become a public charge.
To qualify as a sponsor the individual
must be 18 or older, a USC or LPR of the
U.S. and live or hold domicile in the U.S.
This document states that the petitioner
can support the alien at 125% of the federal
poverty income level. This amount varies
according to family size and location.
In the event that the primary sponsor does
not earn enough income, a co-sponsor may
be used. The co-sponsor must meet the above
requirements but does not need to be related
to the alien. In the event of the death
of the sponsor, a substitute Affidavit
of Support may be submitted from another
close relative only.
The affidavit is an enforceable contract
that remains in effect until the alien becomes
a citizen or has worked for more that 40
qualifying quarters as defined by the Social
Security Act. The sponsor and/or co-sponsor
can be required to reimburse any state or
federal agency for most public benefits that
the alien receives.
For more information click here.
Documents for a Visa Application
All applicants must
submit certain
personal documents such as passports, birth
certificates, police
certificates
and other civil documents, as well as evidence
that they will not
become public
charges in the U.S.
Medical Examinations
Before the issuance
of an immigrant
visa, every applicant,
regardless of age, must
undergo a
medical examination.
A doctor designated by the consular
officer will conduct
the examination. Costs for such
examinations
must be borne
by the applicant.
Interview
USCIS conducts
in
person
interviews
before issuing
a Visa. The
interviews are detailed question
and answer
sessions in which the USCIS
will attempt
to determine whether the marriage
is real and/or
the required
relationship exists.
USCIS is suspicious
of marriages
that occur
after removal
hearings
have been started, marriages
where the
spouses did not know each other
very long,
or do not live together.
Different
religious backgrounds and age differences
also raise
suspicion.
Miscellaneous
Since
no advance assurances can be given that
a visa
will be issued, applicants
are advised not to make any final travel
arrangements, not to dispose
of their property, and not to give up
their jobs
until visas have been issued to them.
An immigrant visa can be valid for four
months
from date of issuance.
FURTHER
INQUIRIES
For
further information please contact
us.
For
more information regarding
a green card for your spouse click
here.
For more information regarding a green card
for your parents
click here.
For more information regarding a green card
for your children
click here.
For more information regarding a green card
for your siblings
click here.
For more information regarding a green card
for your foreign
born orphan click
here.
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