Can my daughter file for my family?

Dear Mrs Walker-Huntington,

I am seeking information as it relates to myself and my daughter, who is a 21-year-old American citizen. I am married with two other children, ages 13 and 10. Can my daughter file for me, my husband and the kids, or just me and the kids alone? Just seeking some clarification on this.

Looking forward to your response. Thanks in advance.

CH

Dear CH

This is a situation that requires strategic planning for your family.

If your daughter was under 18 years of age when you married your husband, then she can file for him for US residency at the same time that she files your petition. You are considered an immediate relative of an American citizen, and her stepfather would be also (if the marriage was before she was 18). She would file two separate petitions, and they would be processed as soon as possible without being placed in a preference category to wait for a visa to become available.

However, if she was older than 18 then she does not qualify to file for her stepfather – at all.

Legally, she can file a petition for her siblings (F4 preference category) but it is currently taking more than 15 years for a visa to become available in the sibling category.

If she cannot file for her stepfather, and it is not practical for her to file for her siblings; she should file for you and when you become a permanent resident, you file a petition for your husband and children. As a green card holder filing for your spouse and minor children, they would be in the F2A preference category. It is currently taking a little over three years for a visa to become available in that category.

Whether you and your husband are filed for at the same time, or you alone are filed for, it is going to mean some family separation during this process. You will have to migrate and submit petitions for your family, and they will have to wait for visas to become available for them before they can legally join you in America. If the separation is too much, you can apply for a ReEntry Permit to request to remain in Jamaica while the petitions are pending. At the time of the visa processing with the National Visa Center, you must be domiciled in America or (if you are in Jamaica pursuant to a ReEntry Permit) demonstrate that upon the issuance of the visa the entire family will migrate.

Dahlia A. Walker-Huntington, Esq. is a Jamaican-American attorney who practises immigration law in the United States; and family, criminal and international law in Florida. She is a mediator and former special magistrate and hearing officer in Broward County, Florida. info@walkerhuntington.com