Family-Based Immigration
U.S. citizens and permanent residents can reunite their families through sponsorship — if the right category is chosen, the visa timeline is understood, and the case is documented to be approved the first time.
Do You Qualify for Family Sponsorship?
Who you can sponsor — and how fast — depends on your status and the relationship.
Spouses, unmarried children under 21, and parents (of adult citizens) — with no visa waiting line and the fastest path in family immigration.
Adult and married children of citizens, siblings of citizens, and the spouses and children of green card holders — each in a numbered category (F1, F2A, F2B, F3, F4) governed by the Visa Bulletin.
The K-1 visa brings a fiancé(e) to the U.S. for a marriage within 90 days, followed by adjustment of status — a distinct path with its own strategy trade-offs against marrying first.
Every case requires an I-864 Affidavit of Support at 125% of the poverty guidelines — with joint sponsors available when income falls short.
What Every Strong Family Case Contains
Family cases are won on relationship proof and clean records.
How Our Firm Builds a Family Immigration Case
Since 1999, our family practice has run alongside our business practice — with the same systems, checklists and quality control.
Category and timing strategy
We select the strongest available category, track the Visa Bulletin, and use tools like the citizen-sponsor upgrade and CSPA age-out protection to shorten the road.
Venue chosen deliberately
Adjustment of status or consular processing is a strategic decision driven by the beneficiary’s entry, history and location — not a default.
Civil documents done right
Foreign birth, marriage and police documents are where consular cases stall. We review every document against the reciprocity requirements before the government does.
Common Family Immigration Problems We See
Understanding where cases go wrong is the first step in preparing one that doesn’t.
Preference-category backlogs
Some categories wait years; others move. Filing in the wrong category — or failing to file early and lock the priority date — costs exactly the thing families can’t recover: time.
Children aging out
A child who turns 21 mid-process can fall out of the case. The Child Status Protection Act can save the child’s place — but only when the math and the filings are handled correctly.
Prior entries and overstays
Entries without inspection, overstays and old removal orders reshape the strategy and may require waivers. Diagnosis comes before filing, always.
Document rejections at NVC
The National Visa Center rejects nonstandard civil documents constantly — birth certificates, marriage records, police certificates. We fix them before submission, not in a refusal-response cycle.
Family Immigration Process & Timeline
Whether by adjustment or through a consulate, the case follows a defined arc.
Relationships, statuses and histories across the family are mapped; categories and sequence are chosen.
The relationship petition is filed and the priority date is locked.
For preference cases, we track the Visa Bulletin; documents are gathered and perfected in the meantime.
The I-485 package inside the U.S., or the NVC civil-document and DS-260 stage for consular cases.
Beneficiaries are prepared for the USCIS or consular interview; we attend USCIS interviews where appropriate.
Approval completes this case — and often starts the plan for the next relative, the I-751 or naturalization.
Family Immigration Frequently Asked Questions
Who can a green card holder sponsor?
A permanent resident can sponsor a spouse and unmarried children (F2A and F2B). Sponsoring parents, married children or siblings requires U.S. citizenship — one more reason naturalization is often the family’s key that unlocks everything else.
How long do family cases take?
Immediate-relative cases move without visa quotas; preference categories depend on the Visa Bulletin, and some — like siblings — wait many years. We give real, current timelines by category and country at consultation.
K-1 fiancé(e) visa or marry first — which is better?
It depends on where you’ll marry, how fast you need to be together, and the beneficiary’s history. Each path has real advantages; we compare both against your facts before filing.
My child might turn 21 during the process. What happens?
The Child Status Protection Act can freeze or subtract time from a child’s age — but it rewards early filing and punishes delay. If a child is anywhere near 21, the CSPA analysis should happen immediately.
My relative is in the U.S. after overstaying. Can they still get a green card?
Spouses, parents and minor children of citizens who entered lawfully generally can adjust despite an overstay. Other categories and entry histories vary widely — this is a diagnosis, not a guess.
What is the Affidavit of Support and what if I don’t earn enough?
The I-864 is a binding contract to support the immigrant at 125% of the poverty line. Household size, assets and joint sponsors can all bridge an income gap — we structure it correctly the first time.
Immigration Experience Since 1999
Family cases are why this firm exists — the same care we bring to corporate audits goes into every family’s file.
The Law Offices of Keshab Raj Seadie, P.C. has practiced U.S. immigration law exclusively since 1999.
More than 25 years of family petitions across every category — spouses, parents, children, siblings and fiancé(e)s — by adjustment and through consulates worldwide.
Extensive experience responding to RFEs, NOIDs, denials, audits and government challenges in this category.
We consider how today’s filing affects your future extensions, employment changes and permanent residence.
Check Your Family Immigration Eligibility
Tell us about your situation. Our team can review the information you provide and identify whether Family Immigration — or an alternative strategy — may warrant further evaluation.