Q & A April 20, 2003

Q & A 1 2


To Whom It May Concern:

I immigrated to the U.S. in 1977, petitioned for my son to be a permanent resident in February, and received a letter from INS in May, all during the same year. Since recently I became a citizen, I would like to change my son’s category from 2B to another.

Questions:

  1. What kinds of documents do we need to provide if we change the category from 2B (an adult unmarried child of a permanent resident) to the first preference (an adult unmarried child of a citizen)? What is the form to use?
  2. If my son gets married several months from now, can his category be changed from 2B to the F-3 preference (a married child of a citizen)? If so, what are the documents we need? What is the form to use?

Chou
New York

Dear reader:

  1. In looking over your question, it seems apparent that you could not have petitioned for your son in 1977 as the case would have been completed many years ago. I will answer your questions without reference to particular dates, and address the situation-- if your petition is still with 1.) the BCIS (Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services, the successor to of the INS as of March 1, 2003) or 2.) the National Visa Center.

    As your letter comes from New York, I assume that you filed your petition at the Vermont Service Center of the INS. That center does not have any special form to change preference category on I-130 petitions. If your petition is still with BCIS, the upgrading of category from F-2B to F-11 (unmarried son or daughter of U.S. citizen) can be done through letter requesting the change and enclosing a copy of the filing receipt and naturalization certificate. Because there is no special attention being given to this type of situation in Vermont, it has been our experience that such upgrade at the service center requires repeated letters requesting the change. If the petition was already approved by the INS and the priority date is not yet current, the approved petition is most likely in the National Visa Center (NVC). With the NVC, you can write a letter explaining the situation, and attach copies of your naturalization certificate, I-130 approval sheet from the INS and any correspondence which you may have since received from the NVC.
  2. If your son becomes married, his category can be changed from F-2B to F-3 (married son or daughter of U.S. citizen) since his marriage would have followed your becoming a U.S. citizen. Again, there is no special form for use at the Vermont Service Center to change the category. This would be done by letter form with the filing receipt, naturalization certificate, and proof of your son's marriage and wife's birthdate. ( I note that if your son will definitely be married, there is no point to changing the visa category to F-11 and then later changing to F-3. You can accomplish the same result by going directly from F-2B to F-3). In the event that the petition was already approved by the INS and is presently in the NVC, you can write a letter explaining your situation to the NVC with a copy of your naturalization certificate, I-130 approval sheet, any correspondence which you may already have received from the NVC, proof of marriage of your son and proof of birth of his wife.

Dear Mr. Lee:

My political asylum case was approved in March 2000, and the I-485 application was submitted in March 2001.

Questions:

  1. Can I apply for my parents to visit me before receiving the Green Card?
  2. What kinds of criteria do I need to have for the application?

Ms. Fan

Dear reader:

  1. You can apply for your parents to visit you before receiving your green card. However, the decision of whether to allow visas to your parents is up to the American consular officer. He/she would have to be convinced that your parents will have sufficient financial support without having to work and that they will return to the home country at the end of the period of visit.
  2. You can assist your parents by sending your parents an invitation letter outlining the period of time that they will stay, guaranteeing support, and that they will return to the home country at the end of the period of visit. You can also enclose an I-134 affidavit of support form with job letter, bank letter or banking statement and your latest tax return. In the event that your financial stature is not sufficient to support your parents' visit, you should have a co-sponsor execute the same documentation along with providing evidence of status in the United States. The closer the relationship of the co-sponsor with you or your parents, the more believable the affidavit of support will be to a consular officer.

 

Copyright © 2003 Alan Lee, Esq.
The information provided here is of a general nature and may not apply to any particular set of facts or circumstances. It should not be construed as legal advice and does not constitute an engagement of the Law Office of Alan Lee or establish an attorney-client relationship.