Visa options for legal step child of US Citizen

[Sherry/Robert 4]

We are trying to decipher how to file for a visa for my step child.  I am the U S citizen, my husband has his green card and his daughter is under 21 and was 15 when we married.  We would like to bring her here from Australia.  If I am reading correctly, since she is under 21 and I am her legal step parent,  I can apply for an immediate visa for her as a US citizen?  Has anyone gone through this that could give us some advise on the best way to go? 

[Loren Y 2,732]

I am almost at the end of the same process. I am the US citizen, and my wifes son ( My stepson) wants to come here and live now. My wife has her green card also, and it is her son. I'm pretty sure the same way will apply to you. My wife filed  ( I helped of course) an I-130 for her son ( My stepson) and we have gotten all the way to DQ at NVC, and are waiting for him to get his interview scheduled. He is 17 right now, was 14 or 15 when we married, and since he is an unmarried child of a LPR ( my wife) he will be coming over under the F2A category. This category is current with the visas, so there is no additional wait time right now for a visa to be ready. It will still take about a year to get the petition completed and visa in hand. I will probably be going back to pick him up in April or May to bring him to the US.

So, in your case your Husband would file an I-130 for his daughter to join him here in the US. Another thing is to make sure you have permission from his daughters mother for her to come to the US to live with you and your husband. We had to get a notarized letter, and my wife had to get full custody of her son with permission of his father ( Her ex- husband) to make sure there were no issues, and got it all registered with the local government that she has full custody, Depends on the country and parental laws. As long as your husbands daughter remains unmarried, and you have permission from her mom, it should be pretty straight forward. You can file and pay for everything online, and you upload all the documents you need online also. It was a fairly easy process overall, and even though it isn't the most user friendly system, it is functional, and so far has been working very well. I'm sure others more experienced in this will post also, but I'm pretty sure this is how you will proceed.

Edited March 27, 2022 by Loren Y

[Sherry/Robert 4]

Thanks for the quick reply , do you think we would have to get permission from my daughters mother if she is now 20yrs old ?

[Loren Y 2,732]

1 hour ago, Sherry/Robert said:

Thanks for the quick reply , do you think we would have to get permission from my daughters mother if she is now 20yrs old ?

Have to check. Most countries once you turn 18 you are considered an adult, and no longer under control of your parents, but take Thailand for example, by law you are not considered an adult until you turn 20 years old. That is why we had to get permission from his father. Initially I wasn't going to worry as he will be 18 in May, so I figured that is about the time the visa will be ready, so no issues, but after checking her son isn't an adult until 1) reaches 20 years old or 2) gets married. Obviously if he used option 2 it would mess up any chance of him getting a visa, so we got everything legalized and she has full custody of her son now, so no issues. That's something you have to check. When they are considered an adult. Most are 18, some are 20, some countries are 21 before you are considered an adult in the eyes of the government. Not an issue here(United States), as you are an adult over 18, but check Australia law to be sure. Another note, you should be fine if it's 21 even, because by the time the visa is processed and ready she will be over 21 anyway.

Edited March 27, 2022 by Loren Y

[Family 3,480]

2 hours ago, Sherry/Robert said:

can apply for an immediate visa for her as a US citizen

1. Yes you can and should, cause it will preserve her as IR / child even though by the time case processes she will probably be 22…hope things move fast for you.

2. You do not/ will not need her biological moms permission 

[Chancy 6,233]

*** Moved from Bringing Family of LPR to Bringing Family of USC forum ***

 

On 3/27/2022 at 3:56 PM, Sherry/Robert said:

since she is under 21 and I am her legal step parent,  I can apply for an immediate visa for her as a US citizen?

 

Yes.  File an I-130 petition for her ASAP before she turns 21, so her case will be IR2 category.  Check the evidence required for establishing stepparent/stepchild relationship, listed in the form instructions here -- https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/forms/i-130instr.pdf