FAMILY-BASED IMMIGRATION

If you want to become a lawful permanent resident based on the fact that you have a relative who is a citizen of the United States or a relative who is a lawful permanent resident, you must go through a multi-step process.

• First, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services must approve an immigrant visa petition for you. This petition is filed by your relative
   (sponsor) and must be accompanied by proof of your relationship to the requesting relative.

• Second, the Department of State must determine if an immigrant visa number is immediately available to you, the foreign national, even if you are
   already in the United States. When an immigrant visa number becomes immediately available to you, it means that you can apply to have one of
   the immigrant visa numbers assigned to you.

• Third, if you are already in the United States, you may apply to change your status to that of a lawful permanent resident after a visa number
   becomes available for you. This is one way you can apply to secure an immigrant visa number. If you are outside the United States when an
   immigrant visa number becomes available for you, you must then go to the U.S. consulate servicing the area in which you reside to complete your
   processing. This is the other way in which you can apply to secure an immigrant visa number.

    • Note: If you are a U.S. Citizen, once you file the immigrant visa petition for your spouse, he or she becomes eligible to apply for a nonimmigrant        K-3 Visa. This will entitle him or her to come to the United States to live and work while the immigrant visa petition is pending. It is not necessary
       for your spouse to obtain a K-3 visa in order to come to the U.S. to live and work. Your spouse may wait abroad for immigrant visa processing.
       However, seeking a K-3 visa can be a method for him or her to come to the U.S. more quickly.

    • Note: If your fiancé(e) is not a citizen of the United States and you plan to get married in the United States, then you must file a petition with
       U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services on behalf of your fiancé(e). After the petition i s approved, your fiancé(e) must obtain a K-1 Visa
       issued at a U.S. Embassy or consulate abroad. The marriage must take place within 90 days of your fiancé(e) entering the United States. If the
       marriage does not take place within 90 days or your fiancé(e) marries someone other than you, your fiancé(e) will be required to leave the
       United States. Until the marriage takes place, your fiancé(e) is considered a nonimmigrant. A nonimmigrant is a foreign national seeking to
       temporarily enter the United States for a specific purpose. A fiancé(e) may not obtain an extension of the 90-day original nonimmigrant
       admission. If your fiancé(e) intends to live and work permanently in the United States, your fiancé(e) should apply to become a permanent
       resident after your marriage.

Eligibility

To be eligible to sponsor a relative to immigrate to the United States you must meet the following criteria:

• You must be a citizen or a lawful permanent resident of the United States and be able to provide documentation proving your status.
• You must prove that you can support your relative at 125% above the mandated poverty line.
• If you are a U.S. Citizen you may petition for the following foreign national relatives to immigrate to the United States; however you must be able
   to provide proof of the relationships:
   • Husband or wife;
   • Unmarried child under 21 years old;
   • Unmarried son or daughter over 21;
   • Married son or daughter of any age;
   • Brother or sister, if you are at least 21 years old; or
   • Parent, if you are at least 21 years old.
• If you are a lawful permanent resident you may petition for the following foreign national relatives to immigrate to the United States; however
   you must be able to provide proof of the relationships:
   • Husband or wife; or
   • Unmarried son or daughter of any age.

Preference Categories

The relative you wish to sponsor for permanent residency must obtain an immigrant visa number that is based on the preference category in which they fall. People who want to become immigrants are classified into categories based on a preference system. The immediate relatives of U.S. citizens, which includes parents, spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21, do not have to wait for an immigrant visa number to become available once the immigrant visa petition filed for them is approved by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. An immigrant visa number will be immediately available for immediate relatives of U.S. citizens. The relatives in the remaining categories must wait for an immigrant visa number to become available according to the following preferences:

• First Preference:
   • Unmarried, adult sons and daughters of U.S. citizens. Adult means 21 years of age or older.
• Second Preference:
   • Spouses of lawful permanent residents and their unmarried children (under twenty-one)
   • The unmarried sons and daughters (over twenty-one) of lawful permanent residents.
• Third Preference:
   • Married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens.
• Fourth Preference:
   • Brothers and sisters of adult U.S. citizens.

Once U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) receives the immigrant visa petition, it will be approved or denied. USCIS will notify the person who filed the visa petition if the visa petition is approved. USCIS will then send the approved visa petition to the Department of State's National Visa Center, where it will remain until an immigrant visa number is available. The Center will notify the foreign national when the visa petition is received and again when an immigrant visa number is available.

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