USC FUTURE FILING FOR ADOPTED CHILD I-130

[kjaor 1]

Hi VJ Members!! I have been on here for a while searching and reading other post. Hoping to get more informed. I haven't seen much info for an adopted child planning to migrate to the states. So I decided to give it a try. This is my first post hoping someone out there can help me out.

My story is kind of long please bear with me:

I'm a US citizen currently living in the Philippines with my daughter. Whom I got when she was just a day old in Febuary 2009. I haven't been back to the US since then due to me not wanting to leave her behind. I have a great family that allows me to do this till we are able get to move back to the US. My first petition of adoption was back in April 2011 but had to be dismissed cause we couldn't find the biological parents to fill out necessary paper work and to testify in court . So, I approached DSWD sometime in May/June 2011 to do the appropriate steps to acquire necessary documents. After a year and half we finally got the Certification of a Child Legally Ready for Adoption, which we acquired on January 27, 2013. Next we filed a new (2nd) petition for adoption in court and currently in our final stages waiting for the final decision from the Judge, which should be soon.

The next steps will be amend her birth certificate, get her passport then apply for the I-130 to hopefully get the IR2 visa for her.

I have several concern and questions:

My main concern is trying to prove the "2 year legal custody". I didn't request legal custody before filling the petition for adoption. I know I should have and now kicking myself for not doing it.. I have read on some blogs and adoption forums that people have used the filed petition as evidence but I'm not sure if that is possible.

So my question is-

---- Am I able to use the first filed petition from 2011 as proof legal custody even though it was dismissed ? (this would fulfill the 2 years)

---- or do I use this current filing thats open in court now.? (filed in May 2013-- i have little over a year more to fulfill the 2 year requirement)

---- When would I start to count the time? from the time it was first filed in court? or once the adoption was finalized.

--- anyone out there in the same situation? I would love to hear your story for guidance and strength.

thanks

kjb

[aaron2020 11,652]

You should consult with an immigration attorney.

There is not a lot of experience with adoption and immigration on this forum. Most inquiries about adoption and immigration usually ends when people find out that they cannot adopt a niece or nephew to bring to the US when the child has two living biological parents.

[OKflyboy 36]

You have to have legal custody granted 2 years prior to filing I-130. If it was dismissed, legal custody was not granted. Did you have any legal documents as the guardian at all?

The 2 year period starts from the date legal custody is granted, not from the date you filed for it. So that would be the date of final adoption, if you didn't have legal custody before as a guardian/foster parent.

See above.

Yes, I have been in a similar situation three times, but prior to adoptions I had fostered the children for a while, so legal custody started long before adoptions were finalized and there were no issues.

[Harpa Timsah 13,263]

How do you get a 1-day-old baby and not know the parents?

[OKflyboy 36]

How do you get a 1-day-old baby and not know the parents?

The baby could be found without papers. The bio parents could have had the baby and taken off without signing anything. Options are plenty.

[kjaor 1]

Thanks for all of your quick responses. I forgot to mention that my daughter and I have no blood relationship.

@ aaron2020 - Thanks for the advice. We will definitely inquire with an immigration lawyer.

@OKflyboy - Thanks for sharing your experience and for your advice.. I do have a paper from DSWd saying that I am the guardian but nothing from court. Do you think that would be enough for me to file the I-130 sooner then later?

@Harpa Timsah - I did meet the biological parents the day my daughter was born. They couldn't afford to take care of another child as they had 5 all under the age 8 and 2 were in the hospital with pneumonia and 1 child had special needs. We kept in contact with them for about 2 years. Then the next time I tried to contact them to do the paper work they had moved out of their house with no forwarding address. Their cell phones were disconnected.

[OKflyboy 36]

@OKflyboy - Thanks for sharing your experience and for your advice.. I do have a paper from DSWd saying that I am the guardian but nothing from court. Do you think that would be enough for me to file the I-130 sooner then later?

Yes, that should be enough. Read the instructions for form I-130. It says that legal custody can be granted prior to adoption and not necessarily by court. It can be any official body that has the right to grant custody. In my case it was the mayor of my town with the recommendation from the CPS. You can count the legal custody from the date you became the guardian.

Yours is a very simple and standard case, I do not see why you would need a lawyer. As long as you have fulfilled the 2 year physical and legal custody requirements, you're good to go.