US Citizen wants to Immigrate Parents to US

[Iml3g3nd 3]

I have become US citizen earlier this year. My parents have earlier tried twice to visit me and my wife here but they were denied tourist visa both times. Now as I am citizen so only way I see for them to visit us is after they get Green Card and immigrate. So I wanted to file papers for this. But I would like to know how this works out.

1. From what I understand is I would file I-130 but what happens after that?
   
2. I need to see some sort of flow chart or if someone can describe the steps that we need to go through to make it possible.
   
3. What are required income guidelines to sponsor my both parents?
   
4. I am between jobs, my new job is about to start in first week of December. So I was wondering at what point during this process, we need to submit a affidavit of support showing my income?
   
5. How can I make sure they both are through this whole process together? I want them to go to embassy together and then travel together.
   

Edited November 29, 2014 by Iml3g3nd

[SimonBelgium 49]

http://www.visajourney.com/content/immigration-parents-overview

It will take a few years though. So file ASAP.

[Iml3g3nd 3]

http://www.visajourney.com/content/immigration-parents-overview

It will take a few years though. So file ASAP.

Thank link has very small amount of info. Does not answer any questions I have. Thank you though.

[SimonBelgium 49]

There is a link in the text that gives you all the details, did you click that?

[Iml3g3nd 3]

There is a link in the text that gives you all the details, did you click that?

Do you mean this link http://www.visajourney.com/content/immigration-parents?

[MacUK 983]

Do your parents want to live in the US?

[SimonBelgium 49]

That's the one.

1. What are required income guidelines to sponsor my both parents?
2. I am between jobs, my new job is about to start in first week of December. So I was wondering at what point during this process, we need to submit a affidavit of support showing my income?
3. How can I make sure they both are through this whole process together? I want them to go to embassy together and then travel together.

1. Calculate your total family size, you then need to make 125% of the federal povery guideline limit for that family size

2. Once your visa bulletin becomes current, it will be processed by USCIS first, which takes about 6-odd months. After that, it's NVC time where you submit your AoS documents

3. File everything the same time. Sometimes there are a few weeks in between approvals if one of the documents for a person is not there or unclear, but you can play a bit with departure date, and ask for the interview to be postponed, explaining that you need them to travel together.

[Iml3g3nd 3]

Do your parents want to live in the US?

Not really. Maybe sometime in future but for now they just want to visit us. Thats why we tried tourist visas for them twice before but idiots at embassy rejected them both the times. So that was quite disappointing and disheartening as we had bought our first home here and I wanted them to come and see it and then live with us for a month or so, wanted to show them USA.

Finally after becoming citizen I decided, I wont take chances with tourist visa roulette and instead will go with immigration visa.

That's the one.

1. What are required income guidelines to sponsor my both parents?
2. I am between jobs, my new job is about to start in first week of December. So I was wondering at what point during this process, we need to submit a affidavit of support showing my income?
3. How can I make sure they both are through this whole process together? I want them to go to embassy together and then travel together.

1. Calculate your total family size, you then need to make 125% of the federal povery guideline limit for that family size

2. Once your visa bulletin becomes current, it will be processed by USCIS first, which takes about 6-odd months. After that, it's NVC time where you submit your AoS documents

3. File everything the same time. Sometimes there are a few weeks in between approvals if one of the documents for a person is not there or unclear, but you can play a bit with departure date, and ask for the interview to be postponed, explaining that you need them to travel together.

Its me and my wife, no children, so our family size becomes 2, right? So I would submit affidavit of support somewhere around 6 months down the line after applying? And income we should be concerned about is for next 6 months or so? or would it take into affect, what we made this year also?

Edited November 29, 2014 by Iml3g3nd

[MacUK 983]

Not really. Maybe sometime in future but for now they just want to visit us. Thats why we tried tourist visas for them twice before but idiots at embassy rejected them both the times. So that was quite disappointing and disheartening as we had bought our first home here and I wanted them to come and see it and then live with us for a month or so, wanted to show them USA.

Finally after becoming citizen I decided, I wont take chances with tourist visa roulette and instead will go with immigration visa.

It's a stupid messed up system which stops some family members of US Cits from getting tourist visas but it wasn't the fault of any 'idiots' at the embassy, they just do their job following the rules they have to follow.

But a green card isn't for visiting, your parents will probably lose it unless they spend the majority of their time in the States.

[SimonBelgium 49]

Not really. Maybe sometime in future but for now they just want to visit us. Thats why we tried tourist visas for them twice before but idiots at embassy rejected them both the times. So that was quite disappointing and disheartening as we had bought our first home here and I wanted them to come and see it and then live with us for a month or so, wanted to show them USA.

Finally after becoming citizen I decided, I wont take chances with tourist visa roulette and instead will go with immigration visa.

Its me and my wife, no children, so our family size becomes 2, right? So I would submit affidavit of support somewhere around 6 months down the line after applying? And income we should be concerned about is for next 6 months or so? or would it take into affect, what we made this year also?

No, it is a good 6 months after your case number gets current. That can take a few years.

So you send in all the info, and you get a case number. Then you watch the visa bulletins for the next few years, and as soon as it becomes current, they process it and the timer starts.

But as you said, if they do not want to live in the US, don't bother with the immigrant visa. They will lose their greencard if they don't spend enough time in the US.

[Iml3g3nd 3]

It's a stupid messed up system which stops some family members of US Cits from getting tourist visas but it wasn't the fault of any 'idiots' at the embassy, they just do their job following the rules they have to follow.

But a green card isn't for visiting, your parents will probably lose it unless they spend the majority of their time in the States.

They might be following rules, but tourist visas are still at their discretion and I did not understand why would they deny that to my parents. They did not give any proper reason for denial. Also if you think about it, denying tourist visa to them meant that we now have to get them here on a GC and then see what to do so they can keep on visiting us when needed and not to be dependent upon mercy of a bureaucrat. This is only solution that makes any sense to me. On subject of keeping their GC valid, will cross that bridge when it comes to it. But I just want a way to have my parents visit us when they want to. And only way is this.

[Iml3g3nd 3]

No, it is a good 6 months after your case number gets current. That can take a few years.

So you send in all the info, and you get a case number. Then you watch the visa bulletins for the next few years, and as soon as it becomes current, they process it and the timer starts.

But as you said, if they do not want to live in the US, don't bother with the immigrant visa. They will lose their greencard if they don't spend enough time in the US.

Since when parents immigration takes years? It does not. It would take around a year as I know. Where you get the info that for parents, it would take few years, maybe you are confusing it with sibling immigration?

They would eventually live in US in future,if not now.

[msbau764 245]

It's a stupid messed up system which stops some family members of US Cits from getting tourist visas but it wasn't the fault of any 'idiots' at the embassy, they just do their job following the rules they have to follow.

But a green card isn't for visiting, your parents will probably lose it unless they spend the majority of their time in the States.

The officers at the embassy are idiots. Decisions are arbitrary at best.

Edited November 29, 2014 by msbau764

[msbau764 245]

It's a stupid messed up system which stops some family members of US Cits from getting tourist visas but it wasn't the fault of any 'idiots' at the embassy, they just do their job following the rules they have to follow.

But a green card isn't for visiting, your parents will probably lose it unless they spend the majority of their time in the States.

Very EASY for you to say. Your parents or your spouse's parents can buy a ticket and be in the US. The system leaves her no choice.

[msbau764 245]

No, it is a good 6 months after your case number gets current. That can take a few years.

So you send in all the info, and you get a case number. Then you watch the visa bulletins for the next few years, and as soon as it becomes current, they process it and the timer starts.

But as you said, if they do not want to live in the US, don't bother with the immigrant visa. They will lose their greencard if they don't spend enough time in the US.

As I mentioned earlier, it is so easy for a european to tell someone else not to bother bringing their parents to the US on a greencard. Your families can come and go as they please. It is very painful when one's parents are treated like animals and not allowed to enter the US.