Stepdaughter

[pushbrk 12,883]

3 hours ago, seekingthetruth said:

That type of adoption is a nightmare over here.  Some try for years and just give up.

Her father may have to approve before age 18 but we doubt that he would object and she turns 18 in July 2022.

Adoption is not a requirement for a step child.  She's your wife's child, so she's your step child.  No worries.

 

Unless the father was married to the mother at the time the child was born, he has no parental rights, PERIOD.  No need for permission.

 

File the petitions when ready.  You can always delay at NVC if it becomes appropriate, but you can't speed things up.

 

 

 

[pushbrk 12,883]

3 hours ago, Mollie09 said:

Would her father approve of her leaving the country permanently?

I doubt this is an issue at all.  See my earlier post.

[pushbrk 12,883]

4 hours ago, mushroomspore said:

 

 

K-3 is obsolete. Never heard of K4. You can't do K1/K2 since you're already married. It's going to be IR1/IR2 for your wife and step-daughter respectively.

 

Did you ever officially adopt your step-daughter? I don't know what the laws are between US and Philippines about bringing step-children over but you will want to look into that to make sure everything's kosher and there is no legal red tape about bringing her over.

 

K4, when available, was for a step child, same as K2 for a child of fiance.

 

No need for adoption.  A step child is a step child as long as the marriage takes place before the child turns 18.  In the Philippines there is no divorce, so very likely the natural parents were not married when the child was born.  In the PI, if not married, fathers have no parental rights, so their approval is not needed for US immigration.

[aaron2020 11,651]

OP mentioned that wife got her prior marriage annulled.

It's very likely that the stepdaughter was born in wedlock and the father is on the birth certificate.   If this is the case, then she will need her father's written permission to immigrate if the visa interview takes place before her 18th birthday.

[pushbrk 12,883]

5 minutes ago, aaron2020 said:

OP mentioned that wife got her prior marriage annulled.

It's very likely that the stepdaughter was born in wedlock and the father is on the birth certificate.   If this is the case, then she will need her father's written permission to immigrate if the visa interview takes place before her 18th birthday.

I missed that detail in the original post.  Since immigration is intended after the 18th birthday, there is no issue of permission.

[aaron2020 11,651]

8 minutes ago, pushbrk said:

I missed that detail in the original post.  Since immigration is intended after the 18th birthday, there is no issue of permission.

Her 18th birthday is in July 2022.  OP wants his family to immigrate to the US in May/June 2022.  

 

This is why, I gave the advice to get the father's permission if he cooperates or wait til she turns 18 to interview when his permission is not needed.  

Edited October 5, 2020 by aaron2020

[pushbrk 12,883]

13 minutes ago, aaron2020 said:

Her 18th birthday is in July 2022.  OP wants his family to immigrate to the US in May/June 2022.  

 

This is why, I gave the advice to get the father's permission if he cooperates or wait til she turns 18 to interview when his permission is not needed.  

In that case, yes, father's permission in writing or court ordered full custody.

[payxibka 10,045]

1 hour ago, aaron2020 said:

OP mentioned that wife got her prior marriage annulled.

It's very likely that the stepdaughter was born in wedlock and the father is on the birth certificate.   If this is the case, then she will need her father's written permission to immigrate if the visa interview takes place before her 18th birthday.

What was the age of the child when the marriage was annulled?

[aaron2020 11,651]

15 minutes ago, payxibka said:

What was the age of the child when the marriage was annulled?

OP married his wife in 2015.  If she got annulled in 2015, then the stepdaughter was probably 12 or 13 years old.  Younger if the annulment happened before 2015.

[Cathi 5,748]

Also, make sure you've been paying U.S taxes and filing tax returns since you've been living abroad.

[payxibka 10,045]

28 minutes ago, aaron2020 said:

OP married his wife in 2015.  If she got annulled in 2015, then the stepdaughter was probably 12 or 13 years old.  Younger if the annulment happened before 2015.

He also says he has an eight year relationship with the child.   If the child was 7 when the annulment occurred,  mom likely has full custody

[pushbrk 12,883]

1 hour ago, payxibka said:

What was the age of the child when the marriage was annulled?

I'm curious to know why you think that's relevant.

[payxibka 10,045]

1 minute ago, pushbrk said:

I'm curious to know why you think that's relevant.

You can't have a legitimate child based ona marriage that never happened 

[pushbrk 12,883]

11 minutes ago, payxibka said:

You can't have a legitimate child based ona marriage that never happened 

I see your point.  So, in an annulment, the father loses parental rights?

[payxibka 10,045]

3 minutes ago, pushbrk said:

I see your point.  So, in an annulment, the father loses parental rights?

It's decided by the court.   From what i know,  It seems like age 7 is the magic number for Dad to be "recognized".