Affidavit of Support
Everyone who immigrates to the United States under a Family Visa Petition must have a financial sponsor. A financial sponsor must be a U.S. Citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident and he/she must complete an Affidavit of Support. The Affidavit of Support is a contract through which the sponsor agrees to provide basic support to the immigrant so that he/she will not need to rely on…
Green Cards through Marriage
Immigrant visas are always immediately available for the spouses of U.S. citizens. There are two ways in which your immigrant spouse can obtain his/her green card—either through (1) Adjustment of Status in the United States, or (2) Consular Processing at a foreign consulate. Each of these processes achieves the same result, but they are very different procedurally. The adjustment of status application is filed in the…
Other Relatives: Parents, Children, and Brothers and Sisters
U.S. Citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents are able to petition certain relatives for Lawful Permanent Residence (i.e. to obtain a green card). The relatives that may be petitioned are called “qualifying relatives.” There are six categories of qualifying relatives: Spouses and minor children of U.S. Citizens; Unmarried, adult sons and daughters of U.S. Citizens; Spouses and minor children of Lawful Permanent Residents; Unmarried, adult sons…
The Fiancé Visa
The fiancé visa is a visa that allows a foreign national to enter the U.S. for the purpose of marrying his/her U.S. citizen fiancé. The visa petition is filed in the United States and the foreign fiancé is interviewed abroad at the consulate. If the visa is approved, the foreign national will be permitted to enter the U.S. to marry his/her fiancé. However, once a person enters…