Gainesville Family Immigration Lawyer
Reuniting with a family member who has been living overseas for years is a joyous occasion. Many naturalized United States citizens dream of helping their family members in their country of origin immigrate to the U.S. The law provides a path for naturalized U.S. citizens to obtain permanent resident status for certain members of their families. Foreign nationals who are working or studying in the United States on nonimmigrant visas can also bring their spouses and minor children to live in the U.S. with them for the duration of their visas. The Gainesville family immigration lawyers at Shirazi Immigration Law, Inc. can help you share your American dream with your close relatives.
How Can U.S. Citizens Apply for Permanent Residency Status for Their Families?
The minute you become a United States citizen, you are eligible to apply for permanent residency status for your spouse, your parents, and any children of yours who are below the age of 21 and unmarried. The first step is to file form I-130, the Petition for Alien Relative, which establishes your relationship to the family member. When you do this, you must present supporting documentation, such as marriage certificates and birth certificates, showing the relative’s relationship to you. If the documents were issued in a language other than English, you must also provide translations of them. As soon as USCIS approves the I-130, you may file form I-485, Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status.
For other relatives, such as your siblings or your children who are age 21 or older, the process still begins with filing form I-130, but the wait times are much longer. The U.S. can only grant a certain number of permanent resident cards each year to people from each country and in each immigration category (such as “sibling of a U.S. citizen”). For example, if you immigrated from India and became a naturalized U.S. citizen, and you file a form I-130 for your brother, USCIS will add his name to the waiting list of Indian citizens who are applying for green cards as siblings of U.S. citizens. You cannot petition for green cards for your brother’s wife and children. He will have to petition for visas for them after he gets his green card.
How Do You Sponsor Your Stepchildren’s Immigration?
If you married your spouse in another country, and now you want to move the family to the United States, K-3 and K-4 visas make the process faster. You can apply for a K-3 visa for your spouse, a foreign national, to enter the U.S., and you can apply for K-4 visas for your spouse’s children. Once your spouse and stepchildren are in the United States, you can petition for adjustment of status for them, so they can get green cards. If your stepchildren are adults, they cannot get K-4 visas. You must wait until your spouse gets U.S. citizenship, and then your spouse can file a form I-130 for them.
Family Immigration Lawyers in Gainesville, Georgia
Contact Shirazi Immigration Law, Inc. at our offices in Atlanta, Georgia to help your family members immigrate to the United States.
