Legal Question in Immigration Law in California

If this is only an approval of the I-130 petition, it is NOT a grant of permanent residence. The I-130 approval is only US Citizenship & Immigration Services saying that you successfully proved that you are the son or daughter (over 21) of your petitioning parent. Now, you get on a waiting list because sons and daughters over 21 have to wait for visa numbers to become available before they can file additional papers to receive permanent residence.

For the F1 category, which are unmarried sons and daughters of US citizens, currently there are visa numbers only for those who have priority dates before Jan. 8, 2003. For the F3 category, married sons and daughters of US citizens, currently there are visa numbers only for those who have priority dates before Nov. 1, 2000. For Mexico and Philippines it's a lot worse, with a July or August 1991 priority date. Since you're now married, you're in the F3 category. Check your approval notice of the I-130 and see what the "Date received" was. That's the priority date. If it's after these dates, you have a long wait. Sorry, but that's the way the system is right now, it doesn't work very well.

If the approval notice was for your I-485 application, then you managed to get permanent residence without telling USCIS that you're married. But I doubt that.

Larry L. Doan

www.GuruImmigration.com

http://guruimmigration.wordpress.com (blog)

Were your parents permanent residents ro US citizens when they petitioned for you?

If they are US citizens now, when did they naturalize: before or after your marriage?

It could be that your visa category could be changed to a married child of a US citizen (if eligible). In this case, your priority date may be not current yet. Since you are married, you no longer qualify to emigrate under your old category.

In addition to an Approval notice, your Priority date must be current in order for you to be able to apply for a visa.

Please let me know if you would like to schedule a consultation. Attorney [@] law-visa-usa.com, Web: http://www.law-visa-usa.com

Assuming no other petition was filed for you other than the 2nd preference petition by a permanent resident parent on your behalf as a single adult child, your parent will need to become a U.S. citizen and file again for you (and your spouse). You might be able to use the old priority date since it's the same petitioner and beneficiary, but maybe not. Also, if you're in the U.S. the denied petition might affect eligibility for 245i relief if you need that. Timing might be important for you, but it's hard to know without more information.

I would be happy to help you out if you contact me offline. Check me out at http://www.yardum-hunter.com, phone at 818 609 1953 or email me at [email protected]. Until then, please don't rely on this as legal advice.

Alice M. Yardum-Hunter, Attorney at Law, Certified Specialist, Immigration & Nationality Law, State Bar of CA, Bd. of Legal Specialization

A ?Super Lawyer? 2004 ? 2009, Los Angeles Magazine

It sounds like you have an approved I-130 that was filed by permanent resident parents on your behalf as a single child. If either of your parents is now a US Citizen, then he or she may be able to file for you again, but this time as a married adult child; it may be possible to recapture the priority date of the I-130 that was initially filed, but we'd need to know more information to determine this. In any event, your category will become F3, and the waiting periods are long in this category, depending up on the country from which you come.

I would be happy to assist you and can be reached at 415-387-1364 or email [email protected].