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The reunification of families through green card procedures is one of the most traditional bases for immigration to the United States. However, the respective procedures are subject to more or less major restrictions and differ in terms of widely varying waiting periods until the green card is obtained.
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Basic information about the Family-based Green Card

Immigration to the US by way of family reunification is, next to green cards for employment purposes, the second most common way to obtain permanent residence. In addition to relatives of US citizens and Green Card holders, spouses also have the opportunity to qualify for an immigration category through marriage.

Accordingly, family-based immigration distinguishes between relatives or spouses of

  • US citizens and
  • Green Card holders

In total, there are five categories of immigrants who can obtain a Green Card based on family ties.

Relatives of US citizens

US citizens may apply for immigration for their close relatives under certain conditions. An immigrant visa through the family can be obtained by immediate relatives and other close family members. Generally, US immigration law divides immigration based on family reunification into two groups:

  1. Immediate relatives
  2. Other close family members

1. Immediate relatives of US citizens (Immediate relatives)

Immediate relatives of US citizens have priority over all others and are not subject to an annual immigration quota or numerical limit. Immediate relatives of US citizens include:

1. Spouses of US citizens

The wife or husband of a US Citizen is eligible for immigration if the following requirements are met:

  • The marriage was legally valid at the time of the marriage ceremony and still is.
  • The marriage was not contracted so that immigration to the U.S. could occur (= sham marriage).

2. Children of US citizens

Children of US citizens may immigrate to the US as immediate relatives if they are not married and have not reached the age of 21.
Adopted children may also qualify for this category, provided that

  • the adoption was completed before the child reached the age of 16,
  • the parents have already had custody for two years and
  • the adopted child has been living with the parents for two years.

Stepchildren qualify provided that the marriage between the spouses was consummated before the stepchild's 18th birthday.

3. Parents of US citizens

The mother or father of a US citizen:in can immigrate to the US if the child, i.e. the US citizen, is already over 21 years of age.
Parents of adopted children and stepchildren may also qualify for a GreenCard under certain conditions (see unmarried children under 21).

NOTE: If a child is born in the United States, he or she automatically becomes an American citizen. However, there are no immediate benefits to the child's parents from this situation. An application for family reunification can only be filed by the child for the parents at the age of 21.

2. other close family members of US citizens

In addition to immediate kinship, other close degrees of kinship to US citizens may entitle the applicant to apply for family reunification.
In contrast to the immediate relatives, there is a numerical annual limit on US immigrant visas for the "other close relatives." In addition, there is a classification into preference categories (so-called "family-sponsored preferences"). The higher the preference category, the faster a green card can be issued. In any case, applicants must be patient, as there are unfortunately long waiting periods for each of the following categories:

  • First Preference F1: Unmarried sons and daughters (over age 21) of US citizens
  • Third Preference F3: Married sons and daughters (over age 21) of US citizens
  • Fourth Preference F4: Siblings of US citizens

Other close relatives of US citizens may qualify for a Green Card under certain conditions:

1. Unmarried children over 21 of US citizens (first preference)

Children of U.S. citizens who are over 21 years of age have a lower status with respect to immigration than their younger siblings. An unmarried child over 21 is placed in the F1 (First Preference) category.
Unmarried adopted children and stepchildren over the age of 21 may also fall into the First Preference category under certain circumstances.

2.Married children over 21 years of age of US citizens (third preference)

Children of US citizens who are over 21 and additionally already married are ranked even lower in the hierarchy of preference categories - F3 "Third Preference." The same applies under certain conditions to adopted children as well as stepchildren. In this case, the spouses of the children also receive a Green Card due to the "derivative status".

3. Siblings of US citizens (Fourth Preference)

Siblings of US citizens may also immigrate to the United States through a green card process. However, US citizens must have already reached the age of 21 to apply for family reunification for a brother or sister. Unfortunately, siblings are placed in the lowest preference category, F4 "Fourth Preference".

Relatives of Green Card holders

Not only US citizens but also Green Card holders (= permanent residents) have the possibility under US immigration law to apply for family reunification for certain relatives   albeit in a very limited form. Relatives of Green Card holders belong to the following group:

Second Preference F2: Spouses, unmarried sons and daughters under 21, and unmarried sons and daughters over 21

  • F2A: Spouses and unmarried children under 21 of permanent residents
  • F2B: Unmarried children over 21 of permanent residents

Thus, family members of green card holders are also eligible to immigrate to the United States. For the following persons, the US legislature allows the application for an immigrant visa to the US:

1. Spouses of Green Card holders

Individuals who marry a Green Card holder are eligible for immigration if the marriage is legal and is not a "marriage of convenience."
Spouses are placed in the Second Preference category and here again in the F2A subcategory. This results in an annual immigration quota and longer waiting times to receive a Green Card. The waiting times are currently around two years.

2. Minors, unmarried children of Green Card holders

In the context of the annual immigration quota, a crucial difference is made between unmarried children above and below 21 years of age. Minor children can generally immigrate more quickly because they fall under the F2A (second preference) category. Nevertheless, waiting times currently amount to about two years to receive a Green Card even among this group of immigrants. The same applies under certain conditions to adopted children or stepchildren.

3. Unmarried children over 21 of Green Card holders

Unfortunately, adult, unmarried children of Green Card holders have to wait many years before they can receive a Green Card. They are also classified in the preferential category F2, but in this case in a further subcategory: F2B. Currently, the waiting time is about six years. The same applies under certain conditions to adopted children or stepchildren.

How much does a visa for the USA cost?

How high the costs for US visas are depends on which visa is applied for. Generally speaking, the more application steps are required and the more US authorities are involved, the more expensive the visa application will be. The application fees for US visas can therefore vary greatly.

Anyone applying for a visa for the USA at a US consulate or embassy must pay the following fees:

  • Consular application fee
    General application fee that must be paid by all applicants. The amount varies depending on the visa category.
  • Additional consular fees, if applicable
    There are additional fees that only apply to some visa categories or are only relevant for certain applicants.
  • Costs for passport delivery, if applicable
    The postal delivery of passports is subject to a fee, passport collection is free of charge.
Bild von einer USA Kreditkarte für Visa-Gebühren

Additional costs are incurred for application procedures via the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), such as applications for US work visas.

  • USCIS standard fee
    General application fee that must be paid by all applicants. The amount varies depending on the visa category.
  • Additional USCIS fees, if applicable
    Accelerated application processing, for example, is subject to a fee.

You can find more information about the different visa fees, other possible costs and the current payment methods on our fees page.

Go to the cost overview

Application for family reunification

Regardless of the degree of relationship, US citizens or Green Card holders (lawful permanent residents, or LPRs) must first submit an application for their dependents: the USCIS form. I-130 (Petition for Alien Relative). Under the provisions of United States immigration law, two categories of family-based Green Cards are distinguished:

1. Green Card application for immediate relatives of US citizens

Spouses:inside, unmarried children under 21, and parents are in the first immigration category and have no numerical limit. These immigration applications are usually processed quite expeditiously.

2. Green Card application for other relatives (close family members)

For the second category of relatives, there are detailed rules about who you can "sponsor" to the US.

  1. Family of US citizens: unmarried and married sons and daughters age 21 and older and siblings.
  2. Family of Green Card holders:inside: Spouse, children, and unmarried sons and daughters

US citizens have many more options in this regard than Green Card holders (LPR) for family reunification.

Changes in the legal status of residence or marital status

Provided that the applicant status (for example, from Green Card holders to nationals) or the marital status of the "sponsored" relative (for example, from single to married) during the current application process, this also automatically leads to a change in the processing category.

Example 1: If the child of a US citizen marries during the process, the F1 processing category would change to F3.

Example 2: Green Card holders (LPR) assume US citizenship during the process. In this case, the unmarried child over 21 years of age who was previously in the F2 category would then be in the F1 category.

Example 3: The category would likewise change if the applicant, who previously held a Green Card, were naturalized and had a minor child under the age of 21. The child would then automatically fall from the category of "other dependents" (F1 to F4) to the category of "close relatives," which would significantly shorten the waiting period.

Conversely, there are also cases in which a change in marital status during the process makes the issuance of a permanent resident permit impossible. This would be the case, for example, if an unmarried son or daughter of an applicant marries before the applicant has become a US citizen. Since there is no processing category for married sons and daughters of Lawful Permanent Residents, the issuance of a Green Card would then be out of the question.

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Waiting times for family-based immigration

Exact wait times and immigration quotas can be found in the Visa Bulletin, which is updated monthly.

The available immigrant visas are issued in chronological order according to the date of their receipt. The date of receipt is therefore decisive for the duration of processing.

The waiting times for the USA immigrant visa are sometimes considerable and can be up to 13 years for certain countries. Applications from China, Mexico, India and the Philippines have even longer processing times. The reason for the long waiting times is that the number of applicants far exceeds the number of visas that can be issued.

  • Q1: Currently, the waiting time to receive a green card is about seven years. The annual immigration quota is 23,400 immigrant visas.
  • F2: For green card applications by other dependents, there is a numerical limit of 226,000 visas per year. Waiting times range from approximately two years (F2A) to six years (F2B).
  • F3: Due to the annual immigration quota within this preferential category (23,400 immigrant visas), long waiting times must be expected. Currently, these are around 12 years.
  • Q4: Applicants need a lot of patience here as well. The current waiting time to receive a green card is about 13 years. The annual immigration quota corresponds to 65,000 green cards.

Relatives who do not receive a family-based green card

For other relatives of US citizens, there is unfortunately no possibility of family sponsorship and thus of obtaining a green card. This means that grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins, etc. cannot apply for a family-based green card.

Also for other relatives of Green Card holders - for example married children, parents, siblings, grandparents, etc.. - there is unfortunately no possibility to obtain a family-based Green Card and thus immigrate to the USA.

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