Petitions by stepparents are faster
Recently, a woman came to my office, wanting to petition her minor, unmarried child. She is a green card holder, and her child is in the
In discussing her case, she mentioned that she is married to a
I then suggested, “Why don’t you have your husband petition your daughter?” She looked at me with shock and surprise. “But my husband never adopted my child, so how could he petition her?” I then explained to her that a stepparent is able to petition a stepchild, without having to adopt the child.
In this case, the woman’s American citizen husband could have petitioned her daughter (his stepchild) years ago. There was no need for her to either wait to become a
The basic requirements or eligibility for an immediate relative petition by a
1. The step-relationship must have been created before the child was 18 years old.
2. The child is still single, and under 21 years of age.
In other words, if a person marries a
As shown above, this could have very important consequences in family petitions. For example, if the natural mother or father is a green card holder, but the stepparent is a
So, if you are a green card holder, and married to a US citizen, the US citizen stepparent could petition the child as an immediate relative, so long as you married the citizen before your child was 18 years old, the child is still single and under 21 years of age. (Also, make sure you are legally married to your citizen spouse, by terminating all prior marriages before you marry the citizen).
You should seek the advice of a reputable attorney, who can analyze your situation and determine whether you can bypass the long waiting time involved in a petition by a green card holder, and, instead, take advantage of a petition by a
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