Advice on F3 and F4

[HanhThai 0]

Can adult US Citizen petition married sister? (if US Citizen and the sister are related through only biological mother) not both parent.

F3- processing time is around 10 years. So F4 is about the same time, it maybe a year or 2 longer right?

I'm still confuse about the F3 and F4 case if members of VJ have experience about these two different case. Please give me more information about it.

[aaron2020 11,651]

Can adult US Citizen petition married sister? (if US Citizen and the sister are related through only biological mother) not both parent.

F3- processing time is around 10 years. So F4 is about the same time, it maybe a year or 2 longer right?

I'm still confuse about the F3 and F4 case if members of VJ have experience about these two different case. Please give me more information about it.

Hi Hanh,

A US citizen can file for a sibling as long as they have at least one parent in common. See the Guides. http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...p;page=ussibpet

The process is very similar between F3 (USC petitioning for a married child) and F4 (USC petitioning for a sibling). File Form I-130 with proof of a family relationship. The petition would include the sibling, the sibling's spouse, and unmarried children under age 21.

Read the Guides. They are pretty good.

[HanhThai 0]

Can adult US Citizen petition married sister? (if US Citizen and the sister are related through only biological mother) not both parent.

F3- processing time is around 10 years. So F4 is about the same time, it maybe a year or 2 longer right?

I'm still confuse about the F3 and F4 case if members of VJ have experience about these two different case. Please give me more information about it.

Hi Hanh,

A US citizen can file for a sibling as long as they have at least one parent in common. See the Guides. http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...p;page=ussibpet

The process is very similar between F3 (USC petitioning for a married child) and F4 (USC petitioning for a sibling). File Form I-130 with proof of a family relationship. The petition would include the sibling, the sibling's spouse, and unmarried children under age 21.

Read the Guides. They are pretty good.

Thank you very much for your help Aaron.

You're very helpful. I feel much lighter now, I was worry so much. Because I'm not sure that I qualify for the F4. Now I know for sure that I have 2 options to do either I do F4 or let my mom does F3. But I think I will go with F3.

Edited December 4, 2009 by HanhThai

[Boiler 43,548]

Do both

[aaron2020 11,651]

Do both

I completely agree with Boiler. It only cost $355 to file an I-130. If you mom file and she dies before your sister immigrate to the US, the petition is automatically withdrawn and you will have to start over. Your sister can have two petitions filed for her; one by your mom and one by you. After she and her family get visas based on one of those petitions, you can cancel the other.

Another issue may be any unmarried children under age 21 that your sister may have. If they turn 21 years old before the Priority Date becomes current, they can age out. The petition by your mom could get approved in 1 year while the one you file may be approved in 8 years (or vice versa). The one with the longer approval time will be the better one if your sister has any kids that will be over 21 when they are eligible for visas.

Your sister and her family have a better chance and greater flexibility if you and your mom each file separate I-130s for her.

P.S. I am also Vietnamese. My father filed for my brother and his family. Two of the three children aged out and are not eligible for visas because the petition was approved in 10 months. From what has been posted, it takes longer for F4 cases to be approve. I wish I had filed a second petition when my father did because the other two children may not have aged out under that petition.

[HanhThai 0]

Do both

Another issue may be any unmarried children under age 21 that your sister may have. If they turn 21 years old before the Priority Date becomes current, they can age out. The petition by your mom could get approved in 1 year while the one you file may be approved in 8 years (or vice versa). The one with the longer approval time will be the better one if your sister has any kids that will be over 21 when they are eligible for visas.

This part I don't get it. It's so confuse. Why F4 petition better, because it has longer approval time than the F3?

So you mean if the F4 approval after my sister kid turn 21 years old. They will eligible to come with my sister?

[aaron2020 11,651]

Do both

Another issue may be any unmarried children under age 21 that your sister may have. If they turn 21 years old before the Priority Date becomes current, they can age out. The petition by your mom could get approved in 1 year while the one you file may be approved in 8 years (or vice versa). The one with the longer approval time will be the better one if your sister has any kids that will be over 21 when they are eligible for visas.

This part I don't get it. It's so confuse. Why F4 petition better, because it has longer approval time than the F3?

So you mean if the F4 approval after my sister kid turn 21 years old. They will eligible to come with my sister?

There is no simple explanation for CSPA. Search for my posts on CSPA.

Your sister's unmarried children under age 21 would be derivative beneficiaries on the petition. Under CSPA, it does not count the time it takes to approve the I-130 against the children. There is no way for you to control when the I-130 gets approve. It could be approved in one or eight years. Approval of the I-130 only establishes that the petitioner is eligible to petition a visa for the family beneficiary. Approval of the I-130 does not mean the beneficiary will get a visa. After approval of the I-130 by USCIS (Dept. of Homeland Security), it is transferred to the National Visa Center (NVC - Dept. of State) to wait for an available visa.

For example, it takes 10 years for the Priority Date for an F3 or F4 petition to become current.

A petition that was approved in 1 year has this application of CSPA. The approved petition will wait at the NVC for another 9 years. The child is age 21.9 at the time the PD becomes current at the end of the 10 years. That child's CSPA age would 20.9 (21.9 real age - 1 year for I-130 approval), thus the child is eligible for a visa. Children over the CSPA age of 21 are not eligible for visas.

A petition that was approved in 8 years has this application of CSPA. The approved petition will wait at the NVC for another 2 years. The child is age 28 at the time the PD becomes current at the end of the 10 years. That's child CSPA age would be 20 (28 real age - 8 years for I-130 approval), thus the child is eligible for a visa.

So two identical families with different approval time will have different application of CSPA. Yes, it doesn't make sense but that the way the law was written. That is why it is better to have a long approval time of the I-130. People are anxious and want a quick approval, but that will be detrimental to children who would age out during the wait.

File two petitions. That is my best advice to you.