Emigrating to the USA as a US Citizen Relative

If you are thinking about emigrating to the U.S. there are complex procedures to follow and you must think carefully before you make your decision. Here we explain how you can be eligible for a U.S. Visa, which is if you are sponsored by a U.S. citizen relative(s).

Family Emigration

If you want to become a lawful permanent resident based on the fact that you have a relative who is a U.S. citizen or is a lawful permanent resident (after immigration to the country themselves), your relative in the U.S. will need to sponsor you and prove he/she has enough income and/or assets to support you, when in the United States. You and your relative sponsor must successfully complete certain steps in the immigration process in order to go to the U.S.

First, the United States Citizen and Immigration Service (USCIS) must approve the ‘I-130 Petition for Alien Relative’ filed by your sponsoring relative on your behalf. Next, your sponsor will need to demonstrate adequate income or assets to support you, and accept legal responsibility for financially supporting you by completing and signing a document called an ‘Affidavit of Support’. Once this is complete, then you can apply for the immigrant visa. As your sponsor is legally responsible for supporting you the decision must not be taken lightly.

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Definition of Relatives(s)

In the U.S. for immigration purposes, immediate relatives include; spouse/fiancée of a U.S. citizen; unmarried child under 21 years of age of a U.S. citizen; orphan adopted abroad by a U.S. citizen; orphan to be adopted in the United States by a U.S. citizen and parent of a U.S. Citizen who is at least 21 years old. It is important to note that grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and in-laws cannot sponsor you for immigration.

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Marriage to a U.S. Citizen

If you are married to an American citizen, there are two ways to move to the U.S. permanently to live. One way is through the immigrant Petition for Alien Relative, Form I-130 as above. The other way is through the Non immigrant visa for spouse (K-3). It is important to note that an application for the non immigrant visa spouse who married a U.S. citizen must be filed and the visa must be issued in the country where the marriage took place.

After the visa process has been completed, and the visa is issued, the spouse can travel to the U.S. to wait for the processing of the immigrant visa. In these circumstances, two petitions are required. The first one being the Petition for Alien Relative, Form 1-130; and the Petition for Alien Fiancé (e), Form I-129F. If you are the fiancé (e) of an American citizen, you may go to the U.S. to marry and live there. If you intend to travel to the U.S. for marriage, then you must file the Nonimmigrant visa for fiancé (e) (K-1). A I-129F fiancé (e) petition is also required.

Adopting a Child

You may adopt a child and bring them to the U.S. if he/she is to be adopted by you and your American Citizen Spouse. You must be habitually resident in the U.S., with the intent of creating a legal parent-child relationship and the USCIS must find you suitable and eligible to adopt. At this stage the child must not have been adopted yet, unless that adoption has been voided by the country of origin.

This is a very basic overview of the detail and complex methods of obtaining a visa and the applicable rules and regulations under ‘family relative’. For more information, please visit the USCIS website.

The Next Step

Now that you have read through the advice above, you might want to put it into practice. Our Moving Abroad Checklist Builder lets you build a personalised checklist for emigrating. Covers visas, finances, healthcare and more. Try it now →