Bringing Step-Daughter to US

[Tracy67 1]

I've read a lot of posts on a lot of different sites, and I'm still not entirely sure which category we fall into.....

My husband and I married in 2011 and he immigrated to the US and now has his 10 yr card. At that time, his daughter was 16 and still in school in the UK - so she wanted to stay and finish. Here we are 5 years later and she will be finishing school soon and is now thinking about coming to live with us here.

I know we need to file the I-130 for her - but which one of us should file, and what category?

Any help will be greatly appreciated

[aaron2020 11,651]

Hi,

Is she 21 years old yet?

[Tracy67 1]

She is now 21 and unmarried

[Boiler 43,422]

You would file but her precise age matters.

[aaron2020 11,651]

If you file for her, it's an F1 family category case where the current wait is 8 years for an immigration visa.

If LPR dad files for her, it's an F2b case where the current wait is 7 years for an immigration visa.

[teeak 224]

As an unmarried son/daughter of a USC she'll be in the F1 category which has a priority date of Nov 1 2007.

If your husband files, she'll be in the F2B category, unmarried son/daughter of an LPR which has a priority date of Nov 15 2008.

[teeak 224]

It probably would've been best if her dad filed for her 2 years ago. Then, she would've been in the under 21 category and her case would've become current right about now since the wait is 2 years. Now that she is over 21, the wait will be much longer.

[Tracy67 1]

We married January 20, 2011 - her birthday is June 18, 1994.

Edited August 19, 2015 by Tracy67

[teeak 224]

Oh ok, so she is 23? Then, you can disregard my last post. I thought she was 21 now.

[Tracy67 1]

Sorry - I edited her birthday..... she was born in 94 not 92 -- she would kill me if she knew I added two years to her age! LOL

[aaron2020 11,651]

It doesn't matter if she is 21 or 23. The categories would be the same.

Here is the rub, if you had file for her before her 21st birthday, her age would have locked in and her case would have been as an Immediate Relative of a USC where it's 6-12 months for a visa. Unfortunately, this is no longer possible since she is 21.

[Tracy67 1]

Wish she would have let us know a few months sooner..... She never really talked about it until school was almost over.

[IcezMan_IcezLady 582]

Sorry you guys missed a good opportunity. Same thing almost happened to me but when the embassy realized my 21st birthday was coming up, they approved my visa two months before my birthday but restricted the visa validation up to my 21st birthday.

You, your husband and your step-daughter should look at the options suggested above and see if any of those seem favorable.

Good luck!