Hey everyone, sorry I haven't posted in a long time. I got so caught up with work and home life that I had to put this to the side for a while, but I am here now so hopefully this will help those that need it. This will be my first post about Family-Based Immigration. Family-Based Immigration is just one of the ways that people can come to the United States legally and probably the most widely-known and most-used. With that said, those that have gone through the process it is not easy and never a guarantee.Overview - Family-Based Immigrant Visas
Two groups of family based immigrant visa categories, including immediate relatives and family preference categories, are provided under the provisions of United States immigration law, specifically the Immigration and Nationality Act.
Immediate Relative Immigrant Visas (Unlimited): These visa types are based on a close family relationship with a United States citizen described as an Immediate Relative (IR). The number of immigrants in these categories is not limited. Immediate relative visa types include:
- IR-1: Spouse of a U.S. Citizen
- IR-2: Unmarried Child Under 21 Years of Age of a U.S. Citizen
- IR-3: Orphan adopted abroad by a U.S. Citizen
- IR-4: Orphan to be adopted in the U.S. by a U.S. citizen
- IR-5: Parent of a U.S. Citizen who is at least 21 years old
Family Preference Immigrant Visas (Limited): These visa types are for specific, more distant, family relationships with a U.S. citizen and some specified relationships with a Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR). There are fiscal year numerical limitations on family preference immigrants, shown at the end of each category. The family preference categories are:
- Family First Preference: Unmarried sons and daughters of U.S. citizens, and their minor children, if any. (23,400)
- Family Second Preference: Spouses, minor children, and unmarried sons and daughters (age 21 and over) of LPRs. At least seventy-seven percent of all visas available for this category will go to the spouses and children; the remainder is allocated to unmarried sons and daughters. (114,200)
- Family Third Preference: Married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens, and their spouses and minor children. (23,400)
- Family Fourth Preference: Brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens, and their spouses and minor children, provided the U.S. citizens are at least 21 years of age. (65,000)
Note: Grandparents, aunts, uncles, in-laws, and cousins cannot sponsor a relative for immigration.
Numerical Limitations for Limited Family-Based Preference Categories
Whenever the number of qualified applicants for a category exceeds the available immigrant visas, there will be an immigration wait. In this situation, the available immigrant visas will be issued in the chronological order in which the petitions were filed using their priority date. The filing date of a petition becomes what is called the applicant's priority. Immigrant visas cannot be issued until an applicant's priority date is reached. In certain categories with many approved petitions compared to available visas, there may be a waiting period of several years, or more, before a priority date is reached. You can check the Visa Bulletin for the latest priority dates.
This is just a quick overview of Family-Based Immigration. My goal is go more in depth and answer some of your questions. I hope this was all beneficial for you. Once again, if you have any more questions, please ask. I am more than willing to help.
