Will I be placed in the F1 category?

[Grees1 0]

Hi everyone,

I was wondering if anyone could help clarify what category I will placed in, as the USCIS website doesn't appear to be completely clear to me.

My step-mum is a USC who married my dad before I was 18 years old. I am a unmarried 22 year old applying for a greencard. I was wondering if the fact I was now over 21 years old meant that my stepmum wouldn't be able to sponsor me as she is not my biological mother.

I hope you can help, thank you!

P.S - Assuming I am placed in the F1 category how long will that process take? I have seen huge variations in average waiting times, I assume this is because some nationalities have to wait longer. I am a British national.

[Grees1 0]

I have done some additional reading and it seems that the F2A/B categories are faster at the moment. Is this the case? My dad is a permanent resident so I could apply through him

[karachiite 4]

I have done some additional reading and it seems that the F2A/B categories are faster at the moment. Is this the case? My dad is a permanent resident so I could apply through him

if your dad is LPR (permanent resident) , and you are over 21 and unmarried, your father can petition I-130 for you, and you will fall into the category of F2B.It might take 7 or more yrs for priorty date to become current.

when your dad becomes US citizen , your category will change from F2B to F1 (if still unmarried).

Edited February 25, 2016 by karachiite

[lost_at_sea 995]

Looking at the current visa bulletin, the F2B as an unmarried child of an LPR does seem to be slightly faster. http://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/law-and-policy/bulletin/2016/visa-bulletin-for-february-2016.html

Either way - the bulletin is how you know the length of time for F categories.

Edited February 25, 2016 by lost_at_sea

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

Because your Dad and step-mum were married before you were 18, then she is your "parent" for immigration purposes. She can file a petition on your behalf. If the marriage was after 18, only your Dad could petition for you.

Because you are older than 21, you are called her "son" for immigration purposes. To qualify as her "child" you would have to be younger now at the time of petition.

And as long as you are unmarried, you are in the category of "unmarried son of a US citizen" which is F1. If you get married, then you move to F3 category.

If she submits a petition this month, then your official place in line would be Feb ??, 2016. Because they issue a limited number of visas each year for some categories, you have to remain in line until you make it to the front of the queue before you can do the visa processing part. You can look at the visa bulletin https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/law-and-policy/bulletin/2016/visa-bulletin-for-february-2016.html each month to see what date has made it to the front of the line and can get a visa. If you scroll down and look at the chart, you will see that people in your category got in line before July 8, 2008 so you will have some wait before a visa becomes available.

Visa Journey has a page showing the dates from previous months and the prediction for the coming month so you can see how fast the line has been moving over a nine month span. It's here http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/visa-bulletin-predictions-family-sponsored.php

The sooner she files a petition, the sooner you get your place in the queue.

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

Concerning which one is currently fastest...if you go back to 2008 when the current eligible F1s got in line, the F1 category was beating the F2Bs by four years. So it's hard to predict that the F2B will remain faster. But I suppose your Dad could petition and remain an LPR as long as the F2B category is faster. And if the F1 takes a leap forward, he could get his US citizenship and thus move you to F1.

The immigration game is always hard to predict. Everybody wants a fast path, but the path is pretty crowded so it is never going to be as easy as you wish.

[newacct 688]

Concerning which one is currently fastest...if you go back to 2008 when the current eligible F1s got in line, the F1 category was beating the F2Bs by four years. So it's hard to predict that the F2B will remain faster. But I suppose your Dad could petition and remain an LPR as long as the F2B category is faster. And if the F1 takes a leap forward, he could get his US citizenship and thus move you to F1.

The immigration game is always hard to predict. Everybody wants a fast path, but the path is pretty crowded so it is never going to be as easy as you wish.

Dad could become a citizen and they can still "opt-out" of F1 and go with F2B if it's faster.

[HollywoodNorth 22]

Couldn't you file for both [F1[mom] F2 [father]] and see which one crosses the finish line first. It would mean double the fees, etc. Should be an option?