Petitioning 18 year old son

[beekanna 0]

Hello All,

 

I wanted to seek advice on this forum. 

I have an 18 year old son who came to visit me from the Philippines for the holidays (he entered December 19 of 2021). We have had a rocky relationship as he was raised by his grandparents. I've been asking him to consider me petitioning him to come live with me.

Unbeknownst to him, I filed for an I-130 a week after he arrived. (I know, that was a rookie mistake). I don't want him to be "dinged" for fraud as it was really me (his mother) who filed for this. 

 

We have not filed for an i-485 as I haven't convinced him yet to stay. He is on a tourist visa and is allowed to stay here until June 18. 

Questions:

• Is there a way I can recall the I-130 filing and just wait to see if he even wants to stay? And then file it together with the I-485?
• If there is no way to recall it, what should I do next? Assuming he wants to stay---do I wait a few more weeks to file the I-485? What happens if the I-130 is denied? What happens if it is approved?
• I am a US citizen (by naturalization) and have been a US Citizen since February 2016. 
• While his paperwork is in "process" are there any school/university options for him? Or does that have to wait until his green card gets approved? 

 

Thank you in advance. I appreciate any insight I can get. 

[wagecuck3 31]

Yes, you can withdraw the I-130, but there's no point. It just means you'll have to pay the fees and wait for the processing time if you ever decide to file another I-130.

 

If he wants to stay, then he needs to file the I-485 (since he is 18, it is his responsibility to file for himself). There is no reason to wait. He came to the US as a visitor, you convinced him to change his mind. It's not fraud.

 

I see no reason why the I-130 would be denied. To approve the I-130, USCIS just needs to find that your son is, legally, your child as far as immigration law is concerned. It's only at the I-485 stage that there are various possible reasons for denial, for example, if you don't meet the income requirements to sponsor a family member. If the I-485 is approved, your son will receive a green card. If it is denied, he will have to leave the US immediately since it's almost certain that his B-2 status will be expired by then.

 

If he doesn't want to stay, there's no need to withdraw the I-130. He will simply not file the I-485, and if he's ever questioned about the I-130 in the future, he can just tell the truth: his mom wanted to give him the option to live with her in the US but he decided he didn't want to. It won't cause any problems.

 

Regarding how he can go to university while his AOS is pending, I don't know the answer to that, but there are others on this forum who would know.