Green card for children while pending AOS

[Gomast 65]

I would like to help my children obtain a green card. What would be the best path?

 

I arrived to the US with a K-1, got married and filed for AOS. I’m divorced, and my children (who are under 18 years old) live with their mom. We have a court approved parenting plan to share the time with the children. My children do not have any visa. Their mom is also married to a USC. I did not add them as dependents in my application for a k-1 visa. 
 

Can I now add them as dependents to my AOS in some way? Do I need to wait for my GC to be approved? Can my wife (their step-mom) apply for them?

 

Thank you

[geowrian 22,335]

So is it:

1) You entered on a K-1 and are divorced now, but AOS is still pending.

OR

2) You were previously married, got divorced, then entered on a K-1 and AOS is still pending.

 

These are very different circumstances, and it was not clear which one applies to you.

The former (#1) would be a Matter of Sesay case, which likely will need some professional assistance, and requires the original petitioner still being onboard and willing to commit to the I-864 support requirements. It's generally not DIY.

 

I'm assuming the children are abroad right now. Correct? If so, you cannot add them to your AOS. AOS is only for people already in the US. They would need a proper visa first.

 

Based upon the situation above (#1 or #2), the answer to the rest will vary.

Consent from the other parent, or a court order, will be required for the children to immigrate.

[Villanelle 4,121]

Their mom is married to a USC and they all live in Isreal correct? And you have a parenting plan from a court there saying what exactly? There is a process for you getting your children greencards but it involves the mom signing off that the kids are going to be living in the US permanently. Greencards mean you live permanently here and can not be used for living overseas just to make traveling easier. If the children get greencards they would need to spend more time inside the US then out of it. Im not sure how this fits into your shared parenting arrangement. If it does then people can advise you on how to move forward in getting them greencards. 

[Boiler 43,419]

Why does their mother not petition for them, or her husband.

[Gomast 65]

1 hour ago, geowrian said:

So is it:

1) You entered on a K-1 and are divorced now, but AOS is still pending.

OR

2) You were previously married, got divorced, then entered on a K-1 and AOS is still pending.

 

These are very different circumstances, and it was not clear which one applies to you.

The former (#1) would be a Matter of Sesay case, which likely will need some professional assistance, and requires the original petitioner still being onboard and willing to commit to the I-864 support requirements. It's generally not DIY.

 

I'm assuming the children are abroad right now. Correct? If so, you cannot add them to your AOS. AOS is only for people already in the US. They would need a proper visa first.

 

Based upon the situation above (#1 or #2), the answer to the rest will vary.

Consent from the other parent, or a court order, will be required for the children to immigrate.

Sorry, I now realize that I wasn't very clear.

I am married to the USC who petitioned for a k-1 on my behalf.

The children live in the US with my ex. The children entered to the US with my ex. She didn't apply for a visa on their behalf. The court order states that they will live in the US.

[Boiler 43,419]

She smuggled them in?

[Lil bear 3,831]

2 minutes ago, Gomast said:

Sorry, I now realize that I wasn't very clear.

I am married to the USC who petitioned for a k-1 on my behalf.

The children live in the US with my ex. The children entered to the US with my ex. She didn't apply for a visa on their behalf. The court order states that they will live in the US.

On what basis did the children enter the US ? 

[Gomast 65]

23 minutes ago, Boiler said:

Why does their mother not petition for them, or her husband.

Under the divorce order, their mother (my ex) was supposed to petition for them. I don't know why she did not do so. The order also states that if the mother is unsuccessful, then it is my responsibility.

[Gomast 65]

3 minutes ago, Boiler said:

She smuggled them in?

They came in legally with a dependent visa (H-4) , it expired and they overstayed.

[Boiler 43,419]

They would have needed to be inspected to be able to adjust.

Just now, Gomast said:

They came in legally with a dependent visa (H-4) , it expired and they overstayed.

Ahh so they did have a visa.

[Gomast 65]

6 minutes ago, Lil bear said:

On what basis did the children enter the US ? 

My ex wife and my children had h-4, which was based on my h1b visa at the time. We divorced and at some point of time their visas expired.

[Lil bear 3,831]

5 minutes ago, Gomast said:

My ex wife and my children had h-4, which was based on my h1b visa at the time. We divorced and at some point of time their visas expired.

So they entered legally but have now overstayed..but you left the USA then and reentered  on a K1??  Were they listed on your more recent K1 and DS160 ? 

[Gomast 65]

3 minutes ago, Boiler said:

They would have needed to be inspected to be able to adjust.

Ahh so they did have a visa.

Here is my approximate timeline:

- October 2017, my children enter the US with my ex wife, under H-4 visa. Their visa later expires.

- January 2018, my ex wife gets married to a USC. The ex wife and my children live in the US. My ex wife did not apply for a GC. They are all out of status.

- July 2019 I enter the US with a K-1.

- August 2019, I get married to my wife, who is a USC.

- September 2019 I apply for AOS.

[geowrian 22,335]

6 minutes ago, Gomast said:

Sorry, I now realize that I wasn't very clear.

I am married to the USC who petitioned for a k-1 on my behalf.

The children live in the US with my ex. The children entered to the US with my ex. She didn't apply for a visa on their behalf. The court order states that they will live in the US.

Okay. So you are married.  You were divorced.

 

1 minute ago, Gomast said:

They came in legally with a dependent visa (H-4) , it expired and they overstayed.

So they came in on an H-4 visa and subsequently overstayed.

 

Either your USC spouse can petition for them or their USC mother's spouse can petition for them. Either USC stepparent is fine.* The process starts by filing an I-130 + I-485 packet to petition and adjust status concurrently.

You cannot personally petition them until you have a green card, and overstay is not ignored for that immigration category (F2A) anyway.

They would not be part of your AOS process.

 

I'll defer to others on how permission for the children to immigrate works for this case. I would assume she still needs to sign off

 

*I'm assuming the children are under 18. If 18 or older, there are more restrictions that may apply depending on who petitions for them.

[Lil bear 3,831]

1 minute ago, Gomast said:

Here is my approximate timeline:

- October 2017, my children enter the US with my ex wife, under H-4 visa. Their visa later expires.

- January 2018, my ex wife gets married to a USC. The ex wife and my children live in the US. My ex wife did not apply for a GC. They are all out of status.

- July 2019 I enter the US with a K-1.

- August 2019, I get married to my wife, who is a USC.

- September 2019 I apply for AOS.

When did you enter the US using the H1b. Was she still married to you when she entered ? When was the divorce final ?  It’s really hard to give you any useful replies when we are filling in the information gaps  rather than knowing the facts