USCIS Immigrant Fee for IR2?

[lajefe 0]

Hi Everyone,

My stepdaughter was recently appoved for an IR2 visa and recieved the visa packet. The instructions request payment of the USCIS Immigrant fee of $165 prior to entry to the US. Is this necessary since she will be covered under the Child Citizenship Act of 2000? Or do we need to pay it regardless?

If necessary, can it be paid after entry, or will entry be denied if not paid prior to travel?

[lajefe 0]

up

[jan22 3,064]

Does your step-daughter have a US citizen parent? Or, have you (assume you are a US citizen) adopted her? If neither of these is true, she will not qualify to become a US citizen upon entry to the US. The following requirements must be met:

A. General Requirements: Biological, Legitimated, or Adopted Child Automatically Acquiring Citizenship after Birth[1]

A child born outside of the United States automatically becomes a U.S. citizen when all of the following conditions have been met on or after February 27, 2001:[2]

The child has at least one parent, including an adoptive parent[3] who is a U.S. citizen by birth or through naturalization;

The child is under 18 years of age;

The child is an LPR; and

The child is residing in the United States in the legal and physical custody of the U.S. citizen parent.[4]

A stepchild who has not been adopted does not qualify for citizenship under this provision.

Edited August 20, 2014 by jan22

[lajefe 0]

Does your step-daughter have a US citizen parent? Or, have you (assume you are a US citizen) adopted her? If neither of these is true, she will not qualify to become a US citizen upon entry to the US. The following requirements must be met:

A. General Requirements: Biological, Legitimated, or Adopted Child Automatically Acquiring Citizenship after Birth[1]

A child born outside of the United States automatically becomes a U.S. citizen when all of the following conditions have been met on or after February 27, 2001:[2]

The child has at least one parent, including an adoptive parent[3] who is a U.S. citizen by birth or through naturalization;

The child is under 18 years of age;

The child is an LPR; and

The child is residing in the United States in the legal and physical custody of the U.S. citizen parent.[4]

A stepchild who has not been adopted does not qualify for citizenship under this provision.

Yes, her father is a US Citizen as am I. He is the petitioner in this case. She meets all of the qualifications to become a citizen.

[NikLR 13,232]

Then no you do not pay the Immigrant fee.

The fee is for thr production of the green card. The child should have had a I-864 correct?

[lajefe 0]

Then no you do not pay the Immigrant fee.

The fee is for thr production of the green card. The child should have had a I-864 correct?

Thanks for the reply. We were able to file the I-864W since she qualifies under CCA

[tikyaph 0]

Hi Everyone,

My stepdaughter was recently appoved for an IR2 visa and recieved the visa packet. The instructions request payment of the USCIS Immigrant fee of $165 prior to entry to the US. Is this necessary since she will be covered under the Child Citizenship Act of 2000? Or do we need to pay it regardless?

If necessary, can it be paid after entry, or will entry be denied if not paid prior to travel?

The $165 is for the processing of her greencard which can be paid before she leaves for the US or after she enters the US. Her greencard will not be processed until the $165 will be paid. I paid for my daughter before she came to the US thinking her greencard will be processed right away but i believe the immigrant should enter the US first before it is processed and it took her 3 months to get it in the mail.

[NikLR 13,232]

The $165 is for the processing of her greencard which can be paid before she leaves for the US or after she enters the US. Her greencard will not be processed until the $165 will be paid. I paid for my daughter before she came to the US thinking her greencard will be processed right away but i believe the immigrant should enter the US first before it is processed and it took her 3 months to get it in the mail.

It is unnecessary for the OP to pay the fee because the child will be a USC upon entry.

[tikyaph 0]

It is unnecessary for the OP to pay the fee because the child will be a USC upon entry.

Sorry, i missed that part.

[jan22 3,064]

Yes, her father is a US Citizen as am I. He is the petitioner in this case. She meets all of the qualifications to become a citizen.

Great! Sorry, I wasn't sure from your original posting. Ditto to what others have now already said about not paying the fee.

[Ian H. 207]

Yes, as mentioned I wouldn't pay the fee. Typically, the fee would be paid before entry, but since your child will be a USC upon entry, there is no point in paying it since she will not need a GC. What has to be done is the following:

As soon as the child enters the US, immediately apply for the passport. You can use the $165 you would have paid to apply for the US passport instead, (the actual cost would be less btw), they would require the relevant supporting docs. One of them would be proof of LPR status. That would be the stamp they put on her passport and visa, the actual GC is not needed.

http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/212239.pdf

Refer to page 2 in the above link for the docs needed.

[Eric-Pris 1,607]

We didn't pay the fee either for my stepson and stepdaughter before they left for the US (in June 2014). We aren't planning to pay it at all. Their SS cards came in the mail about 10 days after they arrived in the US, we never requested them. We applied for their US passports, using the SSN, the visa (entry-stamped by CBP), and foreign birth cartificate (with certified translation).

Make sure you send in the foreign passport with visa and entry stamp (not just a photocopy) when applying. The idiot worker at the post office who took our applications said that a photocopy will do, and we got an RFE, and it took 8 weeks to get my stepdaughter's passport (my stepson's is still processing).

We received a letter from Dept of State for each of my stepkids for the missing fee payment. Ignored.

Edited August 26, 2014 by Eric-Pris

[Ian H. 207]

I'm not surprised that USCIS doesn't specify that children who fall under CCA need not pay the fee. They obviously do this so that people who don't know would pay the fee. What I do wonder is if they keep sending notices regarding the fee or if it's just a one time reminder?

[Eric-Pris 1,607]

They arrived in June, we got the letter in July. None since. They both have US passports, so no need for greencards.

[Allnamesweretaken 0]

On 8/25/2014 at 8:56 PM, Eric-Pris said:

We didn't pay the fee either for my stepson and stepdaughter before they left for the US (in June 2014). We aren't planning to pay it at all. Their SS cards came in the mail about 10 days after they arrived in the US, we never requested them. We applied for their US passports, using the SSN, the visa (entry-stamped by CBP), and foreign birth cartificate (with certified translation).

Make sure you send in the foreign passport with visa and entry stamp (not just a photocopy) when applying. The idiot worker at the post office who took our applications said that a photocopy will do, and we got an RFE, and it took 8 weeks to get my stepdaughter's passport (my stepson's is still processing).

We received a letter from Dept of State for each of my stepkids for the missing fee payment. Ignored.

Hi! I just want to know the update on not paying the immigrant fee. Did your step children travel outside the US? Did they have any trouble coming back? I did the same thing I didnt pay for the immigrant fee, I am worried if they travel outside there will be a problem when they come back at the airport. Please help, I need some inputs. Thank you so much