Family reunification through "following to join"
Ellen, a registered nurse, came to the US under a petition from her employer under the third category for employment based preference petition (EB3). In order for her to better adjust to her new life in the US, she opted to leave her husband and two children in the Philippines. Eventually, she passed the NCLEX, got her own apartment, and felt like she was all ready to have her family join her. Should she file a new relative petition for her own family?
Fortunately for Ellen, she can avail of a remedy which is faster and does not require her to file a separate relative petition for her husband and children. This is called "following to join." Following to join is another means of family reunification wherein the spouse and children of a principal applicant are entitled to join the latter in the US at a later date without filing a separate relative petition.
In order for a "following to join" to apply, there are requisites that must be met:
1.) The spouse or children were acquired before the principal applicant's admission into the United States;
2.) The principal applicant gained lawful permanent resident status or was issued an immigrant visa under the family-preference (F) or employment-based (E) visa categories or was issued a non-immigrant K or V visa.
3.) The principal applicant has not naturalized.
In Ellen's case, she already had her husband and children before she migrated to the US, she acquired her greencard through an employment-based immigrant visa petition and that she was still a greencard holder when she availed of the following to join benefit.
So what would Ellen have to present in order for her family to be given an immigrant visa through following to join?
First: Ellen should take note that there is a visa available for the same visa category where she obtained her lawful permanent resident status. If there is no visa available, her family cannot avail of the following to join route. They must wait until their priority date becomes current.
Second: If there is a visa number available, Ellen must provide documentary proof of her relationship with her family such as marriage certificate for her husband and birth certificate for her children. She must also provide a copy of her greencard which shows her status as a lawful permanent resident.
In my practice, I have seen cases in which lawful permanent residents who without the benefit of professional legal advice, filed on their own, separate relative petitions for their family members. This just further delayed the process as it would cause undue burden of prolonged waiting time and needless costs. A determination of their eligibility for following to join benefits would have been the most efficient and cost effective way to achieve family reunification.
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