Important Notice
Immigrant Visas
Family Based Immigration
The Immigration and Nationality Act allows for the immigration of foreigners to the United States based on relationship to a US citizen or legal permanent resident. The purpose of this is to re-unite family members in the United States. If the United States citizen does not plan to live in the United States, he/she cannot request a visa for other family members
Family-based immigration falls under two basic categories: unlimited (immediate relatives of US citizens) and limited (other relatives).
Unlimited Family-Based
Spouse, widow(er), unmarried children under 21 and parents of a US citizen who is 21 or older.
Men or women traveling to marry a US citizen
Limited Family-Based
- Unmarried sons and daughters of US citizens and their minor children
- Spouses, minor children and unmarried sons and daughters (over age 21) of lawful permanent residents.
- Married sons and daughters of US citizens and their spouses and minor children.
- Brothers and sisters of United States citizens and their spouses and minor children provided the US citizen is at least 21 years of age.
First Step: Filing the Immigrant Visa Petition
The US citizen or permanent resident relative of intending immigrants, who plan to base their immigrant visa application on family relationship, must submit a Petition for Alien Relative (Form I-130) to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) office nearest their place of residence.
Once USCIS approves the petition, they will send the petitioner a notice of approval ( Form I-797). USCIS will also forward the approved petition to the National Visa Center which will contact the intending immigrant with further information.
Important Notice: US law limits the number of immigrant visas that are available each year. This means that even if the USCIS approves an immigrant visa petition for you, you may not get an immigrant visa petition immediately. In some cases, several years could pass between the time your immigrant visa petition is approved and the time your immigrant visa is issued. Immigrant visas are issued in the chronological order in which the petition was filed until the numerical limit for the category is reached. The filing date of the petition becomes the applicant's priority date.
Immigrant visas cannot be issued until the applicant's priority is reached. Check the Visa Bulletin for the latest priority dates. The USCIS will send the approved immigrant visa petition to the National Visa Center where it will remain until the priority date is available. You do NOT need to contact the National Visa Center. The National Visa Center will contact you with the Instruction package for immigrant visa applicants.
Second Step: Gathering Documents and Preparing for the Immigrant Visa Interview
Once you have received the "Instruction Package for Immigrant Visa Applicants," the intending immigrant (your relative) must follow the instructions regarding visa fees and documentation. Do not send any payments to the Portsmouth, NH address, as they will be returned to you. Send the payment and fee bill(s) to the St. Louis, MO address provided by the National Visa Center.
When the Center has received your immigrant visa fee, you will be sent the immigrant visa application (Form DS-230, part I) along with further instructions.
The Third Step: The Immigrant Visa Interview
When the US Embassy in Buenos Aires has received your immigrant visa case from the National Visa Center, the IV unit will send you a packet of information including a checklist of required documents. Once you have returned the checklist indicating that you have all the required documents, the IV unit will schedule the final visa interview. You will need to have a medical exam. The fee for the medical exam is in addition to fees paid directly to the US government. You pay this fee, in pesos, to the clinic directly. Appointments are necessary for immigrant visa interviews, but the petitioner is not required to attend.
If all the required documentation is in order and the interviewing officer is satisfied that the beneficiary qualifies for the immigrant visa, the visa will be authorized and you will receive your visa within one week. If not, you will be instructed how to proceed with your case.
The Final Step: After the Visa is Approved and Issued
Once you have received your immigrant visa, you must enter the United States within 6 months of visa issuance to obtain an alien registration receipt or "green" card (Form I-151 or I-551) that will allow you to live and work in the United States.
At the port of entry Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials will take the immigrant visa and assign you an " alien number." They will stamp your passport with this number and make a notation that you are registered for an alien registration card. It normally takes several months for the USCIS to process and send the alien registration card to you.
In the interim, the passport stamp permits employment and travel until the card arrives. You may depart and return to the US before you receive the alien registration receipt card, as long as the stamp in you passport has not expired. Should you wish to leave the US and your stamp has expired and you have not yet received your alien card, you should contact the USCIS in the US before departure to ensure permission to return to the US.
If, in the future, you plan to live outside the US for more than 12 months, you must apply for a re-entry permit in the US BEFORE departure. The maximum validity of this document is two years. If the relocation is permanent, you should formally abandon your permanent resident status by returning you "green card" to the local US Embassy or Consulate.
Without a re-entry permit, any absence from the US of 12 months or longer, or any residence established outside the US is considered grounds for loss of permanent resident status.
IMPORTANT NOTICE FOR NEWLYWEDS: If at the time of admission to the United States you will have not celebrated the second anniversary of your marriage, which is the basis of your immigrant status, you are subject to the provisions of section 216 of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Under these provisions, you will be granted conditional permanent residence by an officer of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) at the time of your admission to the United States. You and your spouse will be required to file a joint petition (form I-751) with the USCIS to have the conditional basis of your status removed.
This petition must be filed within the 90-day period immediately preceding the second anniversary of the date you were granted conditional permanent resident status. If a petition to remove the conditional basis of your status is not filed within this period, your conditional permanent status will be terminated automatically, and you will be subject to deportation from the United States. You will be provided with written information about this status when your visa is approved and issued, which you should retain and use as a reference.
E-mail Us