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

While separate petitions must be filed for children of U.S. citizens, it is more involved for children of lawful permanent residents.

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

It is advisable to file a separate Form I-130 for children who are likely to turn 21 in the next 5 years if you might apply for U.S. 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 the "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 a U.S. citizen.

Children who get married will drop out of the process altogether. When the parent becomes a U.S. 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 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 have 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 U.S. citizens can still apply for a 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 the green card process to continue for bereaved spouses of permanent residents or others who aren't eligible as widows and children of a U.S. citizen.
  
  

If your permanent resident spouse has filed your petition under F2A category and if you die, your children will not be eligible for a 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 have not filed a 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