Bringing In-laws to US, confused by immigration guides

[pras_padmini 1]

Hi,

I was looking for a guide that would show me how to bring "parents of permanent residents" to America. I am a US citizen, and my wife is a greencard holder. I would like to bring her parents to the US. Would anyone be able to point me to such a guide?

I see that there are these options in the "Guides" section of Visajourney.com (http://www.visajourney.com/content/guides)

Immigration Guides for Other Family Members:

Siblings (brothers/sisters) of US Citizens:

Children of US Citizens or Permanent Residents:

Parents of US Citizens:

Note that there is an option for "Parents of US Citizens" and "Children of...permanent residents".

But I do not see an option for parents of permanent residents. Please help both in correcting the website

as well as providing me with any information regarding the visa process.

[pras_padmini 1]

Is this true?

Lawful permanent residents may not petition to bring their parents to live permanently in the U.S.

There must be some way for a greencard holder (my wife is a conditional green card holder) to sponsor their parents

to live permanently in the US.

Or could they come on a visitor visa, then return to their country, and after some specified time, be able to

come to the US again on a visitor visa?

[flyhighrtr 0]

Is this true?

Lawful permanent residents may not petition to bring their parents to live permanently in the U.S.

There must be some way for a greencard holder (my wife is a conditional green card holder) to sponsor their parents

to live permanently in the US.

Or could they come on a visitor visa, then return to their country, and after some specified time, be able to

come to the US again on a visitor visa?

Yes this is true..just wait until your wife got her US citizenship .. by then she can petition her parents immediately. and Yes they could apply for visitors visa.

Edited December 11, 2011 by flyhighrtr

[merkin&regine 18]

Hi,

I was looking for a guide that would show me how to bring "parents of permanent residents" to America. I am a US citizen, and my wife is a greencard holder. I would like to bring her parents to the US. Would anyone be able to point me to such a guide?

I see that there are these options in the "Guides" section of Visajourney.com (http://www.visajourney.com/content/guides)

Immigration Guides for Other Family Members:

Siblings (brothers/sisters) of US Citizens:

Children of US Citizens or Permanent Residents:

Parents of US Citizens:

Note that there is an option for "Parents of US Citizens" and "Children of...permanent residents".

But I do not see an option for parents of permanent residents. Please help both in correcting the website

as well as providing me with any information regarding the visa process.

You can not.. You need to wait till you become a US citizen

[Penguin_ie 5,996]

Greencard holders cannot petition for parents. Once your wife becomes a citizen in 3 years, she can petition. Until then, her parents could try for a tourist visa, which allows them to visit for up to 6 months at a time, then they need to return home for at least that amount of time (ie spend more time outside the USA than inside).

[RICARDO4EVA2 194]

All are correct.

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

A Green Card holder is a foreigner in the U.S.

Can you imagine what it would mean if a foreigner could petition the U.S. government to let more foreigners immigrate to the United States or if a U.S. citizen could petition the U.S. government to let foreigners to immigrate to the United States that are not relatives of him?

Probably millions of more immigrants every year.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

A Green Card holder is a foreigner in the U.S.

Can you imagine what it would mean if a foreigner could petition the U.S. government to let more foreigners immigrate to the United States or if a U.S. citizen could petition the U.S. government to let foreigners to immigrate to the United States that are not relatives of him?

Probably millions of more immigrants every year.

Parents are relatives, so it's not really the same thing, but I get what you're saying.

Anyway, Congress decided that green card holders can petition for spouses and unmarried children only, while US citizens could additionally petition for parents, married children, and siblings. Personally, I think that's fair. If someone wants to bring their whole family over here then let them learn the language, take the civics test, and swear the oath. In return for letting them bring their parents, we'll get another name to add to the jury pool.

[Boiler 46,130]

Could she not travel to visit them?

There are many ways of immigrating to the US that do not involve a family connection.

[pras_padmini 1]

I've been a bit busy over the holidays, so I haven't had a chance to reply.

I see your point about how only citizens can petition their parents, not green card holders.

My wife's parents are not interested in immigrating to the US. They just want to come here

for a visit, for a few months.

What kind of visa would that be? Is it "B" visa? They're not really coming as "tourists" or

on "business" or "medical treatment" but to spend time with their daughter. Is that considered "tourism"?

I looked at the fee structure and it is a bit confusing

http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/types/types_1263.html

Do the border crossing fees and border security act fees apply? Or is it just the $140 or $150.

A visitor visa appears to be "non-petition based", but I'm "petitioning" my in-laws to visit the US right?

There's a bit of technical jargon here, so I'm hoping someone can clarify.

Thanks

Also, are there specific visitor visa rules for different countries? My in-laws are in India.

I don't even know if it is a visitor visa...it seems like that's the only one that seems

to fit in this alphabet soup of visa categories.

[Boiler 46,130]

They would apply for a B2 Visitor Visa, nothing to do with you.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

I've been a bit busy over the holidays, so I haven't had a chance to reply.

I see your point about how only citizens can petition their parents, not green card holders.

My wife's parents are not interested in immigrating to the US. They just want to come here

for a visit, for a few months.

What kind of visa would that be? Is it "B" visa? They're not really coming as "tourists" or

on "business" or "medical treatment" but to spend time with their daughter. Is that considered "tourism"?

I looked at the fee structure and it is a bit confusing

http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/types/types_1263.html

Do the border crossing fees and border security act fees apply? Or is it just the $140 or $150.

A visitor visa appears to be "non-petition based", but I'm "petitioning" my in-laws to visit the US right?

There's a bit of technical jargon here, so I'm hoping someone can clarify.

Thanks

Also, are there specific visitor visa rules for different countries? My in-laws are in India.

I don't even know if it is a visitor visa...it seems like that's the only one that seems

to fit in this alphabet soup of visa categories.

B2 - visitor's visa. It's for anyone who has a casual reason for visiting the US, which includes tourism and visiting family members.

The fee is $140, paid to the US consulate. None of the other fees would apply to a B2 visa applicant.

Petition-based visas require someone (the "petitioner") to submit a petition to USCIS. Once approved, the petition is forwarded to the US consulate in the beneficiary's country. Then, and ONLY then, can the beneficiary apply for a visa.

No petition is required or accepted for a B2 visa. The foreigner does not have to wait for a petition to be approved and forwarded to the US consulate. They can apply directly to the consulate any time they wish. It sometimes helps if they have a letter of invitation from the family member they're coming to visit, and an affidavit of support (I-134) that asserts that their expenses will be paid while they're in the US. However, the consulate isn't required to accept or even consider either of these. The alien is expected to have significant strong ties to their home country that will compel them to return after visiting the US, and also have sufficient funds to support themselves. If the consulate isn't convinced that their ties are strong enough to overcome the suspicion that they might try to stay in the US then the visa will be denied.

The presumption that an alien intends to immigrate rather than simply visit the US seems to rise in direct proportion to the relative poverty level of their home country since people from poor countries usually have a much higher rate of overstaying. As a result, it is usually substantially more difficult to get a visitors visa in a poor country.

What I'm saying is that they can try to get a visa, but visitors visa are frequently denied in India.