USC Petitioning for Stepchild

[emmaface 12]

Hi VJ, it's been a while. I petitioned for my husband and he received his green card 5 years ago. At the time, my stepson's mom did not want him to come live with us. Now, she has suddenly changed her mind and urgently wants him to come live with us ASAP, if possible for him to start school here this fall. He is 12. 

 

From what I gather, the steps should be the same as when I filed for my husband. He needs a passport book first, I file the I-130, his mom writes a letter saying she wants this to happen, and the rest is pretty much the same. I checked the timelines, it's anywhere from 4-9 months depending on the center. It looks faster than when we did this in 2014-2015, so I'm happy about that. But the faster the better, for school purposes.

 

My biggest question is... what if we get him a visitor visa first and bring him here to adjust status? I know here in El Paso he can start school in the fall this way, our local schools will not deny entrance to any child without a SSN. (IF the current restriction on border travel is lifted in the near future - right now visitor visa holders are not allowed to enter the US at all due to coronavirus)

 

I have a feeling that getting a visitor visa for the express purpose and intent of filing the I-130 afterwards isn't exactly correct, but I know people do adjust status all the time when their circumstances change. I'm aware he wouldn't be able to visit Mexico until the process is complete. Is this inadvisable? Could his I-130 be denied if we approach it this way? I plan to consult with an immigration lawyer but just curious if anyone else has experience with this process, and making it as fast as possible. 

 

Thanks everyone! When his mom didn't let us bring him the first time around, I didn't think we'd go through this process again, but here we are!

[payxibka 10,045]

He cannot enter on a visitor Visa with a plan to circumvent the immigration process.

[SusieQQQ 11,586]

17 minutes ago, payxibka said:

He cannot enter on a visitor Visa with a plan to circumvent the immigration process.

Not only this, but under the circumstances he might very well be refused a visitor visa anyway - for precisely the right reasons, in this particular case.