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Marriages & Family
Based Preferences : |
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Marriages within the U.S.
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Marriages outside the U.S.
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In many circumstances an alien within the U.S. may adjust their status to that of lawful permanent resident through marriage and without leaving the U.S.
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There are two primary ways to sponsor your alien spouse if he/she is currently out of the country or you were maried overseas. |
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Family Based Preferences
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In order to sponsor a relative it is imperative to make certain that a
qualifiying family relationship exists between the sponsor and alien beneficiairy.
Family based preferences are distinguished into two categories, "Immediate
Relatives" and other close family relationships as defined in Preference categories
1 through 4 below. These categories are important because they determine what
groups receive priority to receive a limited number of immigration allotements per year.
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Immediate Relatives
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Include Spouses, Children (unmarried and unders 21), and Parents of U.S. Citizens. Immediate relatives are exempt from numerical limitations and have first priorityon family preference visas. |
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1st Preference
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Include
Unmarried Sons and Daughters of U.S.
Citizens. 1st Preference relatives are
limited to 23,400 visa allotments per
year, plus any unused visas from the
4th Preference category. |
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2nd Preference
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Include Spouses and Unmarried Sons and Daughters of Lawful Permanet Residents. 2nd Preference relatives receive an allotment of 114,200 per year plus any unused
visa from the 1st preference category.
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3rd
Preference : |
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Include Married Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens.
3rd Preference relatives are limited to 23,400 visa allotments per year, plus any unused visas from the 1st and 2nd preference categories.
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4th
Preference : |
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Include Brothers and Sisters of U.S. Citizens. 4th Preference relatives are limited to 65,000 visa allotments per year, plus any unused visas from the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd preference categories.
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