bringing stepdaughter to US

[ngant17 1]

I believe this is a more complicated part of immigration law, so I hope I can get some clear answers here.

I first submitted the K1 petition for my Cuban fiance (now wife), the I-129F was sent out way back in Oct., 2005. I listed her 2 daughters on the paperwork, because they were both under 18 when I began the K1 process and it was our intention to bring her 2 children to live here with us in the US ASAP once she got the K1 visa and we were married.

Unfortunately, the K1 process was an incredibly long journey in itself, as you can see in the timeline. The Cuban government delayed her exit visa for almost 5 years because of her profession (she worked as a biologist in Cuba). There were also numerous delays (i.e., "administrative reviews") on the US side. She finally arrived in Miami in April, 2010 and were married in May, 2010.

The 1st green card interview was in Jan. 2011. A very hostile office had our case. He must have tossed our case somewhere and lost track of it. I heard nothing from them after almost 9 months! After contacting local Senator, we suddenly got a 2nd (green card) interview almost immediately, which happened on Oct. 3, 2011 (we had a very nice young lady for the interview this time). But this was I repeat almost 9 months after the 1st interview. That in itself was an unusual event, as I understand green card are typically issued a few months after the first interview.

So now after all these bureaucratic delays, her 2 daughters have "aged out", which means that they became over 18 after our marriage last year. What is the best (quickest) way I can petition them to immigrate here as they are my stepdaughters and not my immediate relatives now? I originally included them on my K1 petition as minor dependent children of my K1 fiance. Does this fact give me any precedence for a new petition as the US citizen? Is this something an experienced immigration lawyer could facilitate to our advantage?

The whole thing was due to no fault of me or my wife, but solely due to sluggish governmental bureaucracies from both countries.

[NigeriaorBust 4,087]

You can't do anything now. The k2 to follow option was only good for a year after the K1 ( not the greeb card ) And they are adult children so their mother must file for them ( as long as they aren't married ) the wait for adult children of LPR's is long but when she becomes a citizen the petition can be upgraded

[ngant17 1]

Yes, my wife wants to sponsor them, but she said she can't do it while under a "conditional" green card status. So would it be quicker for me to try to sponsor them as I am the US citizen and they are my stepdaughters?

You can't do anything now. The k2 to follow option was only good for a year after the K1 ( not the greeb card ) And they are adult children so their mother must file for them ( as long as they aren't married ) the wait for adult children of LPR's is long but when she becomes a citizen the petition can be upgraded

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

Some specific dates and ages would be very helpful here.

If the kids were under 21 when their mother got her K1 visa then the kids were eligible for K2 visas. They could have applied for "follow to join" K2's up to a year after their mother got her K1. That window of opportunity has expired.

If you married their mother before they were 18 then they're your immediate relatives, and you can petition for them. If they're currently under 21 then they're eligible for CR2 visas - no waiting for their priority date to become current. Their age will be frozen for immigration purposes on the day USCIS receives an I-130 petition from you. You need to submit a petition for each step-child. Barring any problems with exit visas, they should be able to immigrate within a year.

If you married their mother before they were 18, but they're currently over 21, then you could still file an I-130 for them and they'd be eligible for family preference F1 visas.

If you married their mother after they were 21 then only your wife can submit a petition for them.

Your wife can submit a petition even though she's a conditional resident. She has the same privileges as an unconditional resident. The only "condition" on her permanent residence is that she remain married to her US citizen spouse, and jointly file to remove conditions with her US citizen spouse two years after she became a conditional permanent resident.

[ngant17 1]

Thanks, Jim.

So let me review this for clarity.

When I married my fiancee (May 2010), stepdaughter #1 was 22 yrs. old, and stepdaughter #2 was already 18 yrs. old. So for immigration purposes, they did not meet "immediate relative" definition.

It appears that stepdaughter #1 can only be petitioned by my wife as a unconditional resident (my wife is still waiting for green card).

Stepdaughter #2 had turned 18 when we were married. She has just turned 20 (Sept. 2011). We did not want to bring her on K2 when she was under 18, because she was in university as a student. However, as she will not be 21 until next year (2012), so can I currently petition for her based on my status as US citizen? Again, as of today, stepdaughter #2 is currently under 21. If so, does that make her eligible for CR2 visa?

Some specific dates and ages would be very helpful here.

If the kids were under 21 when their mother got her K1 visa then the kids were eligible for K2 visas. They could have applied for "follow to join" K2's up to a year after their mother got her K1. That window of opportunity has expired.

If you married their mother before they were 18 then they're your immediate relatives, and you can petition for them. If they're currently under 21 then they're eligible for CR2 visas - no waiting for their priority date to become current. Their age will be frozen for immigration purposes on the day USCIS receives an I-130 petition from you. You need to submit a petition for each step-child. Barring any problems with exit visas, they should be able to immigrate within a year.

If you married their mother before they were 18, but they're currently over 21, then you could still file an I-130 for them and they'd be eligible for family preference F1 visas.

If you married their mother after they were 21 then only your wife can submit a petition for them.

Your wife can submit a petition even though she's a conditional resident. She has the same privileges as an unconditional resident. The only "condition" on her permanent residence is that she remain married to her US citizen spouse, and jointly file to remove conditions with her US citizen spouse two years after she became a conditional permanent resident.

[ngant17 1]

Based on what I'm reading, stepdaughter #1 will qualify for Family Second Preference (F2B) visa (over 21 years of age).

Stepdaughter #2 will qualify for Family Second Preference (F2A) visa (under 21 years of age).

I wonder if there are long wait times for these visas?

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

Based on what I'm reading, stepdaughter #1 will qualify for Family Second Preference (F2B) visa (over 21 years of age).

Stepdaughter #2 will qualify for Family Second Preference (F2A) visa (under 21 years of age).

I wonder if there are long wait times for these visas?

Yes. Since both step-daughters were over 18 when you married their mother then you're not eligible to petition for either one of them.

Your wife can petition for them now. She doesn't need to wait until she's removed conditions from her permanent residence. A conditional permanent resident has the same rights and privileges as an unconditional permanent resident. The only "condition" is that they must jointly file an I-751 with their US citizen spouse two years after becoming a permanent resident.

Once your wife submits the petitions then she'll get an acceptance notice from USCIS. The date the petitions are accepted is the "priority date". This date will be printed on the notice. When the priority date is before the current cutoff date for the visa category then she can proceed with NVC processing, the petitions will be sent to the US consulate, and the beneficiary's can apply for a visa. Check the monthly visa bulletin for the current cutoff dates in each visa category:

http://travel.state.gov/visa/bulletin/bulletin_1360.html

The younger daughter may age out, and end up being in the F2B category. The CSPA allows her to deduct the time spent waiting for USCIS to approve the petition from her age, but it doesn't allow her to deduct time spent waiting for her priority date to become current.