I-130 for Husband but which step for kids (split & merged)

[Stephie C 8]

2 minutes ago, Mike E said:

I know of   no legal ways to accomplish what you want.  
 

You should have attended to N-600K upon  the birth of each child.  

Would a K3/K4 visa allow them to be in the US whilst waiting for the I-130? 
 

I was not aware that the N600k existed. As I have never resided in the US I was not aware the kids could get citizenship. 

[Mike E 11,739]

8 minutes ago, Stephie C said:

Would a K3/K4 visa allow them to be in the US whilst waiting for the I-130? 
 

I was not aware that the N600k existed. As I have never resided in the US I was not aware the kids could get citizenship. 

There are less than 10 K-3/K-4 visas issued per year.  Filing for I-129F while there is an I-130 almost always causes the I-129F to be canceled.  
 

It’s not on anyone but you to be  aware of the N-600K.  With the birth of my first child in America my second thought was: what is her path to Canadian citizenship.  

[pushbrk 12,870]

1 hour ago, Mike E said:

1. N-600K is for people with no immediate plans to live in the USA.

 

2. One requirement for the process is to obtain a non immigrant entry status such as a B visa, to enter the USA to attend the interview. The beneficiaries of N-600K have expressed immigration intent. Not eligible for a B visa.  
 

 

3.  B visa / N-600K timelines measured in years, sometimes if not longer than I-130 / IR-2. It’s the new normal.  

Typically, a B visa can be issued in this situation because the only use for the visa is to attend the interview that will grant citizenship.  US Citizenship trumps all.

 

I don't have an opinion on whether to do the N600k, but once the children have passports they have no need to go through the expense and trouble of obtaining a Certificate of Citizenship on top of the passport as somebody earlier suggested.  They CAN but it's not needed.

 

[pushbrk 12,870]

1 hour ago, Stephie C said:

Could they not enter on a tourist visa and leave the country to then return to the US on their passports? 

They are British Citizens who can travel using ESTA.

[pushbrk 12,870]

For the affidavit of Support issues.  If the spouse immigrant's income will continue from the same source due to internal company transfer, their income can be used to qualify.  Current income would come from the offer letter stating what his income will be once he immigrates.  I don't see a way for him to come and start work ahead of the rest of the family, but that is the responsibility of his company and THEIR immigration lawyers.  That's one of the common and necessary uses of immigration lawyers.

[SteveInBostonI130 3,432]

2 hours ago, Stephie C said:

My understanding was that he could enter and work in the US if his company were to file an I-765. This is for internal transfers within internal companies, which is what he will be doing. The green card/I-130 process would continue whilst he is over on this visa. Is this correct?

 

He will need an employment visa sponsored by the future company if he wants to enter the US before you and work.  

[OmarStuck 24]

2 hours ago, Stephie C said:

Hi, thanks for your advice. This is issue that I’m facing, we do intend to move to the US but if I could get the kids citizenship before we leave it would make the whole move a bit smoother and potentially easier for school, health insurance etc. When you had your interview did they ask you if you had any intention to immigrate? If I were asked I would not lie but state that I chose this option because it is quicker and could be completed before the whole family were in a position to move. 

It is also very possible that my husband will need to be out there for work before the kids and I are able to go. In this instance his work would file for an internal transfer work permit for him whilst we are waiting for the I-130 and green card to be completed. So again my thoughts were that the N600k would allow the family to reunite sooner. 
 

I have attempted to research it and all that I can find is that you need to be residing outside of the US, which we are and be temporarily present in the US for the interview. I haven’t found any gov documents that state that you must have no intention of immigrating. Please correct me if this assumption is wrong as I don’t want to go down the wrong route and prolong the process. 
 

Also when you leave the US following the interview do you have to provide evidence that you are returning to the previous country of residence, the UK. Would you be allowed to remain in the US whilst waiting for the kids passports,  then would crossing the boarder to Canada be enough, with the kids then returning to the US on their American passports? 
 

I really appreciate the help, sorry if it sounds a bit rambling. 

As technically your kids do not have any immigration intent, I do not think there is a concern for the N-600K. It is their father that is immigrating. Your kids intend to go to the interview and come back to their residence in the UK.

 

If you want to go through the quicker route of the N-600K, go ahead and apply for ESTA for your kids now. This would be much quicker than the visit visa process. @SirenDoll had an issue with approval of ESTA after applying for the N-600K.

 

You can leave on your UK passport, apply for US passport and come back on the US passport although it is frowned upon. I did this.

 

[OmarStuck 24]

1 hour ago, pushbrk said:

Typically, a B visa can be issued in this situation because the only use for the visa is to attend the interview that will grant citizenship.  US Citizenship trumps all.

 

I don't have an opinion on whether to do the N600k, but once the children have passports they have no need to go through the expense and trouble of obtaining a Certificate of Citizenship on top of the passport as somebody earlier suggested.  They CAN but it's not needed.

 

The end result of the N-600K process is a "Certificate of Citizenship". How else would they get a passport?

[pushbrk 12,870]

14 minutes ago, OmarStuck said:

The end result of the N-600K process is a "Certificate of Citizenship". How else would they get a passport?

That is the N-600k.  Somebody suggested doing an N-600 AFTER they got passports.  The other route, IR2 visas, results in automatic US Citizenship once they enter the USA with their US Citizen parent.  THAT process results in being able to apply for a US passport without any certificate of citizenship.  The IR2 visa and entry stamp is all the necessary documentation needed to apply for a passport.  

 

That should answer your "what else?" question.

[SirenDoll 14]

11 hours ago, nastra30 said:

Children of USC can't age out as long as I-130 has been filed.

 

Some things I discovered going down the I-130 route with my children (I am US Citizen)

1. While your child(ren) cannot age out for the I-130 process, if we then immigrated after my child(ren) was 18, then they would not be eligible for the "instant citizenship" that is referred to, and they would not be eligible for the N-600. As that has to occur before 18. They would have to go through the PR-> Citizen conversion like any other adult.

2. N-600 and N-600K are similar but different. They are both applications for certificate of citizenship for under 18s, which is needed before getting a passport or a SSN, if the child was not born in the US. 

N-600 is if you reside in the USA
N-600K is if you do not.

For me, the process of N-600K was the right one, as we ended up deciding not to immigrate.

N-600 and N-600K can only be done for under 18's.

 

The reason I would consider applying the children first and with an N-600K is that
1. Them all being US Citizens provides added weight to the I-130 for your husband

2. N-600K costs about $1K USD vs (I-130 + N-600) which is about $2K USD (if I recall correctly). With 5 kids ( I think you said) that's a huge possible cost for you.

 

But it depends on why you want to immigrate, and when. And yes, doing the I-130 for all may be the best and quickest course of action. The children will receive "instant US citizenship" as children with PR and US Citizen parent. However proving it when applying for passports and SSNs _might_ be harder, and then N-600s might be needed.

 

Regarding visas/ESTAs, the US frowns upon people applying for visas with the intention to immigrate. ESTAs can get denied, and even tourist visas can get denied.

 

I just had a look at some of your previous posts, if it's an internal transfer and his company files for the visa, they will also be involved in the filing for visas for your children, as dependents. Once in the country then you can apply for PR for all. And then if you need to, you can apply for N-600s. You may not need N-600s if you can prove residency.

 

As I'm sure you are already finding there are multiple routes for visas and citizenships. Good on you for doing the research before applying for anything. I had no resources when I started, so this forum is an amazing help.

 

I'm not one of the lawyers in this forum. I am someone who started the I-130 and then got screwed by the pandemic and embassy closures, and ended up going to N-600K for my children. My husband's I-130 is still sitting in the system in case we want to pick that back up again. All I can share is that I wish I had just done the N-600Ks for my children when they were young. I had family circumstances that prevented it, but that's absolutely what I should have done.

 

Good luck with your decision making. 

 

 

 

 

[Mike E 11,739]

4 minutes ago, SirenDoll said:

N-600 and N-600K can only be done for under 18's.

N-600 can be done at any age. 

[Stephie C 8]

22 hours ago, pushbrk said:

For the affidavit of Support issues.  If the spouse immigrant's income will continue from the same source due to internal company transfer, their income can be used to qualify.  Current income would come from the offer letter stating what his income will be once he immigrates.  I don't see a way for him to come and start work ahead of the rest of the family, but that is the responsibility of his company and THEIR immigration lawyers.  That's one of the common and necessary uses of immigration lawyers.

Hi, thanks for your advice. I have asked my husband to get onto his company’s HR today and start enquiries. On the subject of the affidavit of support, would we require a joint sponsor who is a resident of the US? I never have been a resident, never worked or filed a tax return over there and only received a social security number November 2019.
 

Would I be allowed to file an affidavit of support if I am not a resident? 

 

Would they look at our household income, marital assets ( inc 5 classic cars) and equity in our property, which at the last valuation was in excess of £250k? 
 

I have family members in the US who would be willing to be a joint sponsor but as we are more than capable of financially supporting ourselves at a level well above 125% of the HHS poverty guidelines with my husband’s income and cash/investments, would this be necessary? 
 

Thank you very much for your advice. 

[Boiler 45,449]

You are always the Sponsor.

[Stephie C 8]

1 hour ago, Boiler said:

You are always the Sponsor.

I’m not sure if that is accurate as I have always been a resident of the UK and as such have no physical or financial presence in the US, but I would be happy to be proven wrong.  Thanks 

[Boiler 45,449]

1 minute ago, Stephie C said:

I’m not sure if that is accurate as I have always been a resident of the UK and as such have no physical or financial presence in the US, but I would be happy to be proven wrong.  Thanks 

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