FAMILY-BASED IMMIGRATION

Family-Based Immigration

White Plains Family Immigration Attorney

If you are thinking about filing an immigration petition for someone in your family, you have probably tried to make sense of the procedure and information found on the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services’ (USCIS) website.

What You Don’t Know Can Hurt You

The USCIS provides some details of the process by which you can petition for, or “sponsor,” your relative. However, it is the information that is not on the website that dooms many applications and creates heartache and anxiety for families. Immigration law is littered with hidden traps, exceptions and surprise consequences for seemingly innocent behavior.

It is especially important to consult with an immigration attorney before filing any application with USCIS if you have ever been arrested or charged with a crime, had an illegal entry, overstayed the time you were allowed to be in the U.S., or you left the U.S. and are waiting in another country for your relative to file for you.

At the Law Office of Craig Relles, we work diligently to help you accomplish your immigration goals.
You may be able to bring certain family members to live permanently in the U.S. if you are a citizen or a permanent resident. The most commonly filed family immigration applications are for:

  • A fiancé or fiancée who is currently living in another country: We can help prepare, document and file the appropriate application with USCIS and prepare your fiancé or fiancée for the interview at the U.S. consulate abroad. After a successful interview, the fiancé visa will be issued by the U.S. consulate. Your fiancé can then enter the U.S. and the marriage must be performed within 90 days.
  • A spouse and children or stepchildren who are currently in the U.S. or are residing abroad: It is important to thoroughly document the relationship between you and your relative. He or she will not be eligible for a “green card” if the USCIS does not believe that your relationship is valid. For example, USCIS requires substantial proof that a marriage is valid — that you did not marry someone just to get a green card. Having a child together, along with shared bank accounts, a mortgage, a joint lease, that you are beneficiaries on each other’s life and health insurance are among other things that can validate your relationship.
  • Adult children, parents or siblings of U.S. citizens: Siblings of U.S. citizens will have the longest time to wait to enter the U.S. Congress decides which relationships have the highest priority and who can come to the U.S. to join their families first.
  • LGBT married couples wishing to petition for their spouses, since they are no longer barred by federal law from doing so: Immigration applications and petitions filed by an LGBT spouse on behalf of his or her spouse or child are subject to the same adjudication standards and level of proof required on all family cases. One caveat is that the USCIS will require that your marriage be valid in the state or country in which the marriage occurred.

Contact White Plains Family Immigration Lawyer Craig Relles

Call 914-919-9030 or send an email through this website to schedule a consultation regarding your family immigration questions. We answer calls within 24 hours. We represent clients in Westchester, New York, and throughout the state.


Se habla español.

Share by: