If you are looking to immigrating to the US through family visas then you are at the right place. For immigration, you need to have perfect knowledge so you can apply directly for the visa that fits perfectly with your needs. This might help your application to get accepted so let’s learn more about how to obtain a family visa for the United States.
Immediate Family Visas
If you have close family relatives or members living permanently in the US then you can apply for the immediate relative visa. Your unmarried children (under 21), parents and spouse can be considered within this category. The type of visas that fall under this category include:
CR-1 or IR-1 Visa
This visa is provided to the United States citizen’s spouse. The spouse is someone who is a legally married wife or husband of a US citizen. Living together couples do not qualify for this visa. However, common law spouses can apply for this immigration and it grants a conditional permanent residency to the spouse that has been married for less than two years. You can also work on this visa without a work permit.
IR-2 Visa
The only criteria of this visa type is that the children need to be unmarried and under the age of 21. Stepchildren are also included in this visa if their parents got married before the kids turned 18.
IR-3 Visa
This visa is for adopted children that were in a foreign country of the US citizen within the last two years.
IR-4 Visa
This visa is for foreign national children who are already in the United States so they can finish their international adoption process.
IR-5 Visa
This visa is for the foreign national parents of the US citizen who is at least at the age of 21 years old.
Family Preference Visas
The family preference visas in the United States are granted to the Canadian citizens that are in specific and distant family relationships with the US citizens or the ones with certain specific relations with any lawful permanent resident in the US. There is a specific amount of visas set that is allowed every year. The types include:
F1 Visa
First family preference visa is for unmarried children of the United States citizens and their kids under the age of 21 years. There are around 23,400 F1 visas granted every year.
F2A Visa
There are around 114,000 visas granted every year. Spouses and children can apply under this category. It is categorized as the second preference.
F2B Visa
This is also a second family preference visa but for unmarried children that are above the age of 21 years of the US legal permanent residents. This visa is difficult to secure as around thirty percent of visas are allocated every year.
F3 Visa
This is for married children of the US citizen and also their spouses and children under 21 year age. This third family preference visa usually has an annual cap of 23,400.
F4 Visa
This fourth family preference is for the US citizen’s siblings that are above 21 years of age and also for their minor children, and spouses. This visa type is usually granted to 65,000 applicants every year.
Remember, acquiring the family based immigration is a bit more difficult than the non-immigration visas. The application processes are longer and require a lot of documents, etc.
Family Based Non-Immigrant Visas
This visa is for Canadian citizens that have relatives in the US and have the option to enter the US temporarily through the non-immigration visa. Such visa holders can visit the United States for different purposes such as business, education, medical or employment. This is the fastest route for people who want to relocate to the United States without too many issues. The types are as follows:
K1 Visa
This is a visa for a fiancé of a US citizen. It is valid for ninety days and you are expected to get married to your fiancé during the ninety days after which you can start filing your CR-1 spouse visa.
K2 Visa
This is for the children of the fiancé of the K1 visa holders. Again, the children must be unmarried and under 21.
K3 Visa
This is for the spouse of a green card holder. This visa type was created to reduce the processing time and waiting time of the partners while their relative petition is being processed. This allows Canadian spouses to live in the US while the process is being done.
K4 Visa
This visa is for the children of the K3 visa holders. All the unmarried daughters and sons of the K3 visa holders that are below the age of 21 years can apply for this visa.
The K4 and K2 visas are only valid till K1 and K3 visas are valid. As soon as there are any issues with the K3 or K1 visa holders, the same will be applicable to the K2 and K4 visa holders. In the event of a divorce, K3 visas would have to leave the US within 30 days.
Conclusion
We hope this article has helped you understand how to obtain a family visa in the US. It is recommended to get in touch with experienced immigration lawyers to ensure a positive application outcome.
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