Since no advance assurances can be given that a visa will be issued, applicants are advised not to make any final travel arrangements, not to dispose of their property, and not to give up their jobs until visas have been issued to them. An immigrant visa is valid for 6 months from date of issuance.

The immigration laws of the United States, in order to protect the health, welfare, and security of the United States, prohibit the issuance of a visa to certain applicants. Examples of applicants who must be refused visas are those who: have a communicable disease such as tuberculosis, have a dangerous physical or mental disorder, or are drug addicts; have committed serious criminal acts; are terrorists, subversives, members of a totalitarian party, or former Nazi war criminals; have used illegal means to enter the United States; or are ineligible for citizenship. Some former exchange visitors must live abroad for two years. Physicians who intend to practice medicine must pass a qualifying exam before receiving immigrant visas. If found to be ineligible, the consular officer will then advise the applicant if the law provides for some form of waiver.

Classes of aliens ineligible to receive visas

If you receive an approval for a family based preference petition in one category, but later get approved in a "better" category, you can still keep your old priority date. Once a priority date is established in one family based preference classification, it can be recovered if the same beneficiary gets approved in another family based preference classification.

If you are approved in one category and if your and/or your sponsor's status changes, you are automatically converted from one category into another and it is not necessary to file a new petition. For example, if a lawful permanent resident files an F2A petition for his spouse, and then later becomes a U.S. citizen, the F2A approval is automatically converted into an immediate relative petition. This is one reason why an F2A petition should always be filed, even when the petitioner expects to naturalize shortly.

Therefore, if you are eligible for US citizenship, you should apply as soon as possible.

Even though not required, as soon as you become a US citizen, notify NVC and send them a copy of your naturalization certificate and your I-130 approval notice. The National Visas Center (NVC) will upgrade your status to immediate relative. NVC will send the beneficiary any additional forms and information that may be required.

Sample letter

While immigrating parent's children (unmarried, below 21) can immigrate along with the parent, if the parent's petition was filed by their permanent resident spouse. However, US citizen must file separate petition for spouse and for each child.

In other words, children were eligible to immigrant as derivative beneficiaries when petitioning spouse was a permanent resident, but once petitioning spouse becomes US citizen, they lost their derivative beneficiary status.

Therefore, if not already done so, as a US citizen petitioner, you must file separate petitions for each child as long as the child is still unmarried, under age 21, and are your natural children or legal stepchildren (that is, the marriage took place before they turned 18), they qualify as immediate relatives just like the spouse.

Marriage:
If any child gets married and the petitioner becomes US citizen, as long as the petitioner is child's natural parent or legal stepparent, it is possible to file a petition in F3 category.

Step Children:
If the petitioner is neither a natural parent nor a legal stepparent (marriage did not take place before the child turned 18), the child can not immigrate with the alien parent. In such situations, once the alien parent becomes a permanent resident, a new visa petition in F3 category must be filed.

21+ Children:
If the child has turned 21 and no separate visa petition was filed for him/her, you (US citizen petitioner) need to file a new, separate visa petition if you are the child's natural parent or legal stepparent. The child will be put in F1 category that is subject to annual quota and waiting list. While filing this new petition, it may be worthwhile to request USCIS to allow you to "recapture" priority date. In other words, request them to assign an old priority date, the same priority date when the original I-130 visa petition was filed for the spouse. If USCIS assigns a new priority date, continue writing them letters.

Sample letter

While separate petition must be filed for children of US citizen, it is more involved for children of lawful permanent residents.

When filing I-130 petition for spouse, children can be named in that petition or separate I-130 can be filed for each child.

It is advisable to file a separate Form I130 for children who are likely to turn 21 in the next 5 years if you might apply for US citizenship.

Children who turn 21 before their priority date becomes current will automatically drop into F2B category. However, under the Child Status Protection Act (CSPA), the child can subtract from his/her age the amount of time it took USCIS to approve the initial visa petition. You have to wait until 2 events have occurred; your family's visa petition has been approved, and the child's Priority Date has become current. At that time, you add up the number of days that the visa petition was pending with USCIS, and subtract it from the child's actual age. If that number is less than 21, the child may continue with his/her green card application under F2A. The child has 1 year after becoming eligible to submit the green card application.

If the child drops into F2B category, and CSPA does not help, it is known as "age out" problem and he/she will face a wait of several more years. However, it is a different case when the child turns 21 after the petitioner has become US citizen.

Children who get married will drop out of the process altogether. When the parent becomes US citizen, he/she can file a new petition.

If you get divorced before you apply for an immigrant visa or adjustment of status, your visa petition is cancelled and you and your derivatives beneficiaries lose your green card eligibility.

Exception:
If you are a victim of emotional or physical abuse by your petitioner spouse, you can file a special self-petition called Form I-360, Petition for Amerasian, Widow(er) or Special Immigrant, any time until the divorce becomes final or for 2 years afterward, as long as you can prove that the divorce was related to the domestic violence.

If the petitioner dies, it cancels the visa petition. If the petitioner dies before the petition is approved, there is no way to continue the petition.

However, if the petitioner dies after the petition is approved, according to the Family Sponsor Immigration Act that went into effect on March 13, 2002, following relatives of the original petitioner can reinstate the reinstate the petition by filing an alternative affidavit of support.

spouse, parent, mother-in-law, father-in-law, sibling, child (if at least 18 years of age), son, daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, sister-in-law, brother-in-law, grandparent, or grandchild, or a legal guardian of the sponsored alien.

In order to reinstate the petition, the substitute sponsor must send the I-864 form meeting all the income guidelines that the original petitioner would have to met, along with the proof that the substitute sponsor is related to the original petitioner by one of the relationships described above. As there are no specific forms for this, the substitute sponsor should write a cover letter regarding reinstating the petition.

Exceptions:

• Spouse and children (unmarried, under 21) of US citizens can still apply for green card after the petitioner's death.
  It is also helpful in the cases where the permanent resident is already eligible for citizenship and has an unrecoverable illness. It may be possible to expedite the citizenship process by requesting USCIS in such cases.
  
  
• For humanitarian reasons, in rare cases, even after the death of the petitioner, USCIS allows to continue the green card process for bereaved spouses of permanent residents or others who aren't eligible as widows and children of a US citizen.
  
  

If your permanent resident spouse has filed your petition under F2A category and if you die, your children will not be eligible for green card as your derivative beneficiaries, unless your spouse has filed or can file a separate petition for them in F2A category.

If you as a permanent resident spouse has not filed separate petition in F2A category for children, and if your spouse dies, while filing new petitions, you should request the USCIS to "recapture" the deceased parent's priority date.

If you as a permanent resident have filed petitions for your family and if you loose your green card status, your family looses the eligibility for green card as well.

Tips to retain green card