Family Petition
A lawful permanent resident is a foreign national who has been granted the privilege of permanently living and working in the United States. To become a lawful permanent resident based on a familial relationship, one must go through a multi-step process. The immigration attorneys in our Michigan office can help you with a family based immigration petition.
First, the USCIS (formerly INS) must approve an immigrant visa petition (I-130 Petition for Alien Relative). This petition is filed by a relative (sponsor) who is either a U.S. Permanent Resident or a U.S. Citizen, which must be accompanied by proof of the relationship.
Second, the Department of State must determine if an immigrant visa number is immediately available for the foreign national, even if he or she is already in the United States. The status of a visa number can be checked in the State Department's Visa Bulletin.
Third, if the beneficiary is already in the United States, he or she may apply for Adjustment of Status to that of a lawful permanent resident (green card holder) after a visa number becomes available (if the application qualifications are met). If the beneficiary does not have nonimmigrant status in the U.S. when an immigrant visa number becomes available, then he or she must go to the U.S. consulate servicing the area in which he or she resides to complete processing.
To be eligible for lawful permanent residence based on a family relationship, the following criteria must be met:
- The applicant must have a relative who is a United States citizen or a lawful permanent resident of the United States who can provide documentation proving their status and is willing to be a sponsor by filing the I-130, Petition for Alien Relative.
- In most cases, a relative must prove they can support the beneficiary by providing documentation that their income is 125% above the mandated poverty line for their family, including the beneficiary and all other sponsored family members. Otherwise, the relative may have others become joint-sponsors, and/or the beneficiary's own assets may have to be also taken into account.
- If the sponsoring relative is a U.S. Citizen and they can legally prove one of the following relationships to the beneficiary, the alien may be eligible for lawful permanent residency:
- Husband or wife;
- 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
- Parents if you are at least 21 years old.
- If the sponsoring relative is a lawful permanent resident and they can legally prove one of the following relationships, the alien may be eligible for lawful permanent residence, (please see below for preference category information):
- Husband or wife; or
- Unmarried son or daughter of any age
Please note that the definitions of each relationship are highly regulated under immigration law, and in some cases do not carry their common, everyday meaning. Furthermore, processing times are extensive for some groups, as there are limited numbers of visas permitted in each category in a given year.
The immediate relatives of U.S. citizens, which includes parents, spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21 are considered immediate relatives and do not have to wait for an immigrant visa number to become available once the visa petition filed for them is approved by the USCIS. An immigrant visa number will be immediately available for immediate relatives of U.S. citizens. The relatives in the remaining categories must wait for a visa number to become available according to the following preferences:
- Unmarried, adult sons and daughters of U.S. citizens. Adult means 21 years or age or older
- Spouses of Lawful Permanent Residents, their unmarried children (under 21 years of age), and the unmarried sons and daughters of Lawful Permanent Residents
- Married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens
- Brothers and sisters of adult U.S. citizens
Once the visa petition is approved, the 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. At that time, the individual will have a choice of Consular Processing or Adjustment of Status.
