Family Petitions

What You Should Know About 3 Types of Family Petitions

As a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident (LPR), you may want to establish certain immigration statuses for your eligible relatives. Depending on your circumstances, you may want to seek a family-based immigration status through an immediate relative or family preference.

Immediate relative visas are based on a U.S. citizen’s close family relationship with a family member. More specifically, U.S. citizens can file an immigrant visa petition for their spouse, child, parent, or sibling. The number of immigrants in this visa category is not limited annually.

Family preference visas are for “specific, more distant, family relationships with a U.S. citizen and some specified relationships with a Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR).” A lawful permanent resident can only file an immigrant visa petition for their spouse or unmarried child. The number of immigrants in this visa category is limited annually.

Within these two broad categories, you may seek a:

• Green Card
• Fiancé(e) visa; or
• K-3/K-4 visa based on your and your relative’s relationship. 

A lawful permanent resident can only file an immigrant visa petition for their spouse or unmarried child.

In this article, we will explore these three types of family immigration petitions, helping you determine which option best fits your circumstances.

1. When Can I Seek a Green Card for a Family Member?

As a U.S. citizen, you may help an eligible family member obtain a Green Card (or become a lawful permanent resident). To do this, you’ll need to sponsor your relative. Additionally, you’ll need to prove that you have enough assets or income to support your relative when they move to the U.S.

To begin this process, you’ll need to take the following steps:

• File a Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, with a fee of $535
• Once the Form I-130 is approved by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), then your relative may apply for a Green Card.
• If your relative is already in the U.S., they may file a Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status.
• If your relative is outside the U.S., filing a Form I-130 does not permit your eligible relative to live or work in the United States. The Form I-130 only establishes your relationship with your relative.

Who may I petition for?

If you are a U.S. citizen, you may petition for a Green Card for:

• Your spouse
• Your children (married or unmarried)
• Your parents (if you, as a sponsor, are 21 years of age or older)
• Your siblings (if you, as a sponsor, are 21 years of age or older)

When you sponsor your eligible family member, you must provide evidence of your relationship to your sponsored family member.

What happens after I file the petition?

After you file your Form I-130 petition, the USCIS will mail you a receipt confirming receipt of your application. The USCIS may request additional information, if needed, which may delay the processing of your petition.

The USCIS will also notify you when they approve or deny your petition. If your petition is approved, your application will be sent to the U.S. Department of State’s National Visa Center (NVC). The NVC will then notify you when your relative(s) can apply for their immigrant visas.

When can my relative(s) immigrate to the U.S.?

U.S. immigration laws give special consideration to immediate relatives of U.S. citizens, such as a U.S. citizen’s spouse, parents, or unmarried children under 21 years of age.

For these relatives, there is no waiting list to immigrate to the United States. Instead, these family members can apply for an immigrant visa as soon as the USCIS approves your Form I-130. If your relatives currently live in the United States, they may be able to adjust their permanent resident status with the USCIS.

For relatives that are not a U.S. citizen’s spouse, parents, or unmarried children under 21 years of age, the wait can be long. If this is your situation, the U.S. Department of State will contact your relative(s) when they reach the front of the line. You may consult the Department of State’s website for current visa wait times.

2. When Can I Seek a Fiancé(e) Visa?

As a U.S. citizen, if you are engaged to a non-U.S. citizen, you may sponsor your fiancé(e) under a K-1 visa to become a lawful permanent citizen.  To apply for the K-1 visa, you must engage in a five-step process that involves the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the U.S. Department of State (DOS), and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

Here are the steps you need to follow:

• Ask the USCIS to Recognize Your U.S. Citizen Fiancé(e)
• Understand When Your Fiancé Applies for the K-1 Visa
• Seek Admission to the U.S. Port of Entry
• File a Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status
• Remove Any Conditions on Your Residency

What is a fiancé(e)?

Under U.S. federal immigration law, a foreign-citizen fiancé(e) of a U.S. citizen fiancé(e) is “the recipient of an approved Petition for Alien Fiancé(e), Form I-129F, who has been issued a nonimmigrant K-1 visa for travel to the United States in order to marry his or her U.S. citizen fiancé(e).”

Additionally, both the U.S. citizen and the foreign citizen must be legally able to marry when they file their Form I-129F petition and remain so from then on. In other words, there should be no legal reason that you both cannot marry in the United States. Your U.S. marriage must comply with all laws in the U.S. state where you marry.

Next, you must show that you intend to marry within 90 days of your admission to the United States under a K-1 visa.

Further, you and your fiancé(e) must have met within the last two years. However, the USCIS may grant you an exception to this two-year requirement if you and/or your fiancé(e):

• Are facing severe hardship; or
• Your culture prohibits you from meeting your fiancé(e) before marriage.

What happens after I’m married?

Once you’re married, you should file a Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status with the USCIS as soon as possible. When processing your Form I-485, the USCIS conducts background checks on both spouses and may interview both spouses as well.

When you file your Form I-485, you can streamline the process by also submitting any required evidence. Do not submit any original documents unless specifically asked to do so.

Here are some examples of the evidence you may need to submit:

• Two passport-style photographs;
• A copy of your government-issued identity document with photograph;
• A copy of your birth certificate. If it is unavailable or does not exist, submit other acceptable evidence of birth such as church, school, or medical records, and proof of unavailability or nonexistence;
• Inspection and admission, or inspection and parole documentation (unless applying for adjustment under INA 245(i)). For more information and examples, please see the form instructions;
• Documentation of immigrant category, such as a copy of Form I-797, Approval or Receipt Notice, for the Form I-130 filed on your behalf (unless you are filing your Form I-485 with the Form I-130 filed on your behalf);
• Form I-864, Affidavit of Support (if required);
• Certified police and court records of all criminal charges, arrests, or convictions regardless of final disposition (if applicable);
• Form I-601, Application for Waiver of Grounds of Inadmissibility (if applicable);
• Form I-212, Application for Permission to Reapply for Admission into the United States After Deportation or Removal (if applicable);
• Documentation regarding J-1 and J-2 exchange visitor status (Form I-612, if applicable);
• Form I-508, Waiver of Diplomatic Rights, Privileges, Exemptions, and Immunities (if applicable);
• Form I-566, Interagency Record of Request – A, G, or NATO Dependent Employment Authorization or Change/Adjustment to/from A, G, or NATO Status (only if you have A, G, or NATO nonimmigrant status); and
• Form I-485 Supplement A, Adjustment of Status Under Section 245(i) (Supplement A) (if applicable).

If your lawful permanent residence is granted before your marriage’s second anniversary, as the foreign spouse, you will be given a 2-year conditional permanent resident status and a Green Card that’s valid for two years. However, if your lawful permanent residence is granted after your second wedding anniversary, then you will be given lawful permanent resident status and a Green Card, without any conditions. In this case, your Green Card will be valid for ten years.

If you have children, they will need to file a separate application for status adjustment. In other words, they cannot be included on your application for adjustment of status. If you are pursuing a change of status for your family, consulting with an experienced immigration attorney will help ease this process.

Finally, if your lawful permanent resident status is conditional, you’ll need to remove any conditions within 90 days before the end of your conditional status. If your conditions aren’t removed, you may lose your lawful permanent resident status and be required to leave the United States.

To remove your conditions, you must file a Form I-751, Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence, jointly with your U.S. citizen spouse. During its review of your petition, the USCIS determines if you have a bona fide marriage and may conduct background checks, fingerprinting, and interview, once again, on both spouses.

3. When Can I Seek a K-3 or K-4 Visa?

Depending on your relationship with family members, you may also seek a K-3 or K-4 visa. Let’s look at each option:

What is a K-3 visa?

A K-3 visa is a nonimmigrant visa for the foreign-spouse of a U.S. citizen (not a fiancé(e)). The purpose of the K-3 visa is to shorten the time that two spouses spend away from one another.

In these circumstances, the U.S. citizen spouse must sponsor the petition on part of their spouse. Under U.S. immigration law, the K-3 visa must be applied for in the country where the marriage occurred. Additionally, this visa type is valid for two years, and you generally cannot change your immigration status to another category.