HELP! How to Bring My Dead Sibling's Child to the USA

[bloy 0]

My sister just died, survived by her child. She was a single parent. Child is currently with our other sibling's family. Most of us are in the USA now. No other families there.

 

Before she died, they were living with our other sibling's household. She mentioned through calls and chats instances of abuse from the other sibling's family (physically hurting the kid, locking him in a dark room, and emotionally abusive as well). She wasn't able to do anything as she was already sick and dependent on the other family. This is our case for urgency.

 

Here are our profiles who are willing to take in the kid:

- my daughter 1, single, student, approved F2B and awaiting GC, out of country but based in the Philippines (left same household because of threats to hurt her)

- me, GC holder, working in the US, not financially strong

- my daughter 2, married with kids, not working currently, financially okay

 

We are trying to see what our best options are. We don't know if we should adopt (how long) or apply for guardianship (how long). Will the US allow the kid to be flown in the US for "humanitarian reasons?"

 

We want the child out of their custody and at the same time have rights to bring the child with us here in the USA.

 

If you know of any people we should and could speak with to help with this, we'd appreciate it.

[Crazy Cat 41,906]

Your options are possibly limited. A competent immigration and adoption attorney would be your best bet.  Adoption does not guarantee immigration.  There are very strict laws designed to prevent human trafficking which will require legal help.  This is not a do-it-yourself case in any form. It is well outside the scope of this website imo.

Edited October 11, 2017 by missileman

[Unlockable 7,314]

OK. Sorry to hear of your loss.

 

Cases involving children are tough. We have seen it before. What you need to understand first and foremost is nothing is going to happen immediately. In order to help you further there are a few things we need to know.

 

How old is the child?

Where is the father of the child?

When are you able to become a US citizen?

Are you willing to live in the country of the child for 2 years?

 

These are very important questions as they will determine if you can adopt the child for immigration purposes.  The child must be adopted before the age of 16. The child must not have living parents (even the father) or at least show that the living parent is unfit to care for the child. You may also be required to live with the child in their country for up to 2 years to show you are committed to the adoption process. I am not sure if you have to be a US citizen to adopt a child for immigration so hopefully someone with better knowledge can chime in.

 

But for now, there is no immediate path for the child to come here. It is going to take a lot of time and effort IF you qualify.

 

Good luck to you.

Edited October 11, 2017 by NuestraUnion

[geowrian 22,337]

I'm so sorry to hear about your loss. And the struggles for her child.

 

None of the people you mentioned can petition for the child to live in the US. Depending on the age of the child and the status of the other parent, adoption may be possible to enable any of them to petition for the child, but this will take at least a few to several years for the adoption + waiting for an immigrant visa number to become available. Adoption alone doesn't guarantee eligibility for immigration benefits. As stated above, this is very not DIY and adoption laws are country-specific.

 

Humanitarian parole is possible, but usually only granted in extreme circumstances. As bad as the situation sounds, I don't think this is a probable scenario.

 

Edited October 11, 2017 by geowrian

[bloy 0]

1 minute ago, NuestraUnion said:

OK. Sorry to hear of your loss.

 

Cases involving children are tough. We have seen it before. What you need to understand first and foremost is nothing is going to happen immediately. In order to help you further there are a few things we need to know.

 

How old is the child?

Where is the father of the child?

When are able to become a US citizen?

Are you willing to live in the country of the child for 2 years?

 

These are very important questions as they will determine if you can adopt the child for immigration purposes.  The child must be adopted before the age of 16. the child must not have living parents (even the father) or show that the living parent is unfit to care for the child. You may also be required to live with the child in their country for up to 2 years to show you are committed to the adoption process. I am not sure if you have to be a US citizen to adopt a child for immigration so hopefully someone with better knowledge can chime in.

 

But for now, there is no immediate path for the child to come here. It is going to take a lot of time and effort IF you qualify.

 

Good luck to you.

 

Thank you for all your responses.

 

The child is 5 years old. Father is unknown. Child was adopted by my late sister who was single.

 

I'd be able to be a US citizen by maybe 3 years more. I also forgot to mention that my Daughter #2 is a US Citizen.

 

My daughter #1 is familiar and close to the kid. It might be easier for her to stay with the child while she waits for her F2B Visa/Green Card. However, she is a student. Not sure if we can somehow "co-sponsor" the kid financially (the means to support the kid). My late sister did have some finances left too, some assets with co-ownership with Daughter #1.

 

I am not sure if an F2B visa would be affected if she ends up applying as the child's guardian or adopting the child once she is financially able to. I know it mentions about being unmarried but unsure about having a child.

 

By what we know about guardianship hierarchy (like who is qualified first to take in the kid), first choice is surviving grandparent, who is our Mom. Mom is currently staying with me and Daughter #2 and of course, approaching the age of 80 too. She is also in the US as a GC holder. She might be able to apply for US Citizenship by next year. Her issue however is her age and that she is dependent on us.

 

Yeah, we did hear that the adoption process can take a long time.

 

Thanks for the sympathies, everyone. It is indeed a difficult time for all of us.