Adding derivative family members to CEAC website 2022

[WaitingHayete 5]

Hello, our approved petition is at the NVC awaiting us to complete the affidavit of support and IV application. This is an IR5 visa to bring my citizen husband’s mother to the USA. We have paid the fees and would like to add a derivative family member, her spouse (not my husband’s father). Under the FAQ it says to select ‘add a derivative family member’ on the summary page next to the applicant’s name but this button does not exist.
 

I’ve searched the entire site, read all the FAQ’s and can’t find it anywhere. I called the NVC but they are not accepting any calls and they direct you to use their online contact form. I did this but it says they are currently answering inquiries from September 2021… Does anyone have any experience with this situation?

 

Thank you in advance.

[Boiler 45,493]

IR5 does not allow derivatives, it is an immediate relative category.

 

They would need to be petitioned separately.

[Crazy Cat 41,846]

1 hour ago, WaitingHayete said:

We have paid the fees and would like to add a derivative family member, her spouse (not my husband’s father).

You cannot do that.  Immediate family members of US citizens cannot add derivatives.  Each person requires a separate petition. 

[Chancy 6,241]

1 hour ago, WaitingHayete said:

We have paid the fees and would like to add a derivative family member, her spouse (not my husband’s father).

 

As mentioned above, your mother-in-law's IR5 case cannot have derivative beneficiaries.

 

Was your husband below 18 years old when his mother married her current spouse?  If so, your husband can petition for his mother's spouse.  If not, your family will have to wait for your MIL to enter the US with her IR5 visa before she can file a petition for her spouse.

 

[WaitingHayete 5]

Thank you for the replies. This seems backwards to me.. So the closest family member (spouse or minor child) to a US citizen cannot more conveniently bring a spouse or child to the US but a non-immediate relative can? If she had a minor child she couldn’t bring them with her and would have to petition and wait a year to do so? So if my husband petitioned to bring his sister then she could add her husband this way but his mother cannot? What is the difference from the government’s point of view?

Edited October 21, 2022 by WaitingHayete
Added quote

[Boiler 45,493]

16 minutes ago, WaitingHayete said:

Thank you for the replies. This seems backwards to me.. So the closest family member (spouse or minor child) to a US citizen cannot more conveniently bring a spouse or child to the US but a non-immediate relative can? If she had a minor child she couldn’t bring them with her and would have to petition and wait a year to do so? So if my husband petitioned to bring his sister then she could add her husband this way but his mother cannot? What is the difference from the government’s point of view?

Immediate relatives do not need to wait for a visa number, a sibling case would take decades.

[Crazy Cat 41,846]

24 minutes ago, WaitingHayete said:

So if my husband petitioned to bring his sister then she could add her husband this way but his mother cannot?

That is correct. 

[WaitingHayete 5]

4 minutes ago, Boiler said:

Immediate relatives do not need to wait for a visa number, a sibling case would take decades.

True, but it is still a matter of a person traveling without their spouse or child.. 😕

[Crazy Cat 41,846]

1 minute ago, WaitingHayete said:

True, but it is still a matter of a person traveling without their spouse

  It's a matter of filing two I-130s instead of one. 

[Boiler 45,493]

1 minute ago, WaitingHayete said:

True, but it is still a matter of a person traveling without their spouse or child.. 😕

Only of they want to, totally their call, and usually the other spouse would be petitioned at the same time.

[WaitingHayete 5]

8 minutes ago, Boiler said:

Only of they want to, totally their call, and usually the other spouse would be petitioned at the same time.

So we could’ve petitioned for her spouse at the same time as his mother even though my husband is of no relation to her spouse? Who is the petitioner in that case? His mother is not yet a permanent resident and my husband has no grounds to petition for her spouse. 

[Boiler 45,493]

3 minutes ago, WaitingHayete said:

So we could’ve petitioned for her spouse at the same time as his mother even though my husband is of no relation to her spouse? Who is the petitioner in that case? His mother is not yet a permanent resident and my husband has no grounds to petition for her spouse. 

It is possible to petition a step parent, depends how old your husband was when they married.

Edited October 21, 2022 by Boiler

[SusieQQQ 11,586]

23 minutes ago, WaitingHayete said:

True, but it is still a matter of a person traveling without their spouse or child.. 😕

Sometimes this is what happens in specific family situations, it is not the most common. Especially someone being old enough (21 years min) to sponsor a parent who also has a minor child? I mean, it happens, but it’s rare. Another less rare but still uncommon situation is like yours, An option is for the parent who gets the visa to enter the US, apply for F2A visa for spouse, apply for a re-entry permit, and go home and stay with the spouse until their petition becomes available for interview.

 

49 minutes ago, WaitingHayete said:

Thank you for the replies. This seems backwards to me.. So the closest family member (spouse or minor child) to a US citizen cannot more conveniently bring a spouse or child to the US but a non-immediate relative can? If she had a minor child she couldn’t bring them with her and would have to petition and wait a year to do so? So if my husband petitioned to bring his sister then she could add her husband this way but his mother cannot? What is the difference from the government’s point of view?

The point being missed here is that immediate relatives have unlimited and immediate visa number availability. For that advantage, they don’t get derivatives. Family preference petitions have annual quotas on the numbers allowed, and the derivatives fall under that quota. So someone adding a derivative to their FB case effectively pushes someone else out of that year’s quota into the next year. 
 

 

Edited October 21, 2022 by SusieQQQ

[WaitingHayete 5]

6 minutes ago, Boiler said:

It is possible to petition a step parent, depends how old your husband was when they married.

No, my husband was older when they got married. So again to clarify, if my MIL had a minor child , she could not bring them with her as a derivative family member because she is an immediate relative of my husband but if she was a sister of my spouse then she could? 

[Crazy Cat 41,846]

1 minute ago, WaitingHayete said:

if my MIL had a minor child , she could not bring them with her as a derivative family member because she is an immediate relative of my husband but if she was a sister of my spouse then she could? 

Correct.  This question come up often.

Edited October 21, 2022 by Crazy Cat