I-130 Application for Spouse and 1 y/o Child

[Alexandrea Ambas 0]

Hi, Visa Journey

 

I'm happy to be here in this forum and have been reading a lot of helpful contents to guide me in my application of I-130 for my spouse and child. I am a US Citizen based in the Philippines and planning to leave by February 2023 to file the petition. Basically I will be starting from scratch, that includes establishing domicile, applying for a job and whatnot. With this being said, I would like to know if it will be ideal to submit the application form with the employment being blank since by the time of the filing, have just flew in from the Philippines, provided I will submit all the supporting documents of our income, assets, business documents in the Philippines and as well as the Affidavit of Support from my relatives in California.

[TBoneTX 45,288]

Welcome to the forum.  Your thread is moved from the K-3 Process forum to the CR-1 Process forum.  

[Alexandrea Ambas 0]

1 minute ago, TBoneTX said:

Welcome to the forum.  Your thread is moved from the K-3 Process forum to the CR-1 Process forum.  

Oh Thank you!

 

[Mike E 11,739]

7 minutes ago, Alexandrea Ambas said:

I would like to know if it will be ideal to submit the application form with the employment being blank 

Yes; you can file I-130 / I-130A as an unemployed person.  

[Alexandrea Ambas 0]

26 minutes ago, Mike E said:

Yes; you can file I-130 / I-130A as an unemployed person.  

Thank you for your reply, Mike! But will it affect the approval as I am unemployed at the time of the filing?

 

[Mike E 11,739]

42 minutes ago, Alexandrea Ambas said:

Thank you for your reply, Mike! But will it affect the approval as I am unemployed at the time of the filing?

 

No.  Review the process:

 

https://www.visajourney.com/guides/ir1-spouse-visa/

You will need be employed in the U.S. between the time I-130 is approved and she has her visa interview.  If you aren’t employed or you are and don’t earn enough, she  will need a joint sponsor who does.  
 

It’s best to file I-130 / I-130A now as back logs  for approval are long and you can expect it will take 2 years before your family can join you inbthe U.S.  

[Chancy 6,241]

13 hours ago, Alexandrea Ambas said:

I am a US Citizen based in the Philippines

 

If you want your family to be with you in the US asap, the most ideal case is for you to find a US-based job BEFORE you travel to the US, get a formal offer in writing (with target start date of employment in the US), then use that job offer to request for direct consular filing (DCF) at the US embassy in Manila.  IF you qualify for DCF based on exceptional circumstances (impending job relocation to the US), you could skip the long wait at USCIS + NVC and jump straight to the consulate stage.  If there is any chance at all that you can get yourself a US job offer now, I recommend trying this approach first.  The DCF option is only available while you are based in the Philippines.  If you move to the US before filing the I-130 petition, you will have to file with USCIS and join the line behind everyone else who filed before you.

 

By the way, is your child also a US citizen?  Does your child have CRBA and US passport?

 

[Alexandrea Ambas 0]

4 hours ago, Chancy said:

 

If you want your family to be with you in the US asap, the most ideal case is for you to find a US-based job BEFORE you travel to the US, get a formal offer in writing (with target start date of employment in the US), then use that job offer to request for direct consular filing (DCF) at the US embassy in Manila.  IF you qualify for DCF based on exceptional circumstances (impending job relocation to the US), you could skip the long wait at USCIS + NVC and jump straight to the consulate stage.  If there is any chance at all that you can get yourself a US job offer now, I recommend trying this approach first.  The DCF option is only available while you are based in the Philippines.  If you move to the US before filing the I-130 petition, you will have to file with USCIS and join the line behind everyone else who filed before you.

 

By the way, is your child also a US citizen?  Does your child have CRBA and US passport?

 

Hi, Chancy! Thank you for your response! This is very helpful. Though job offers would be a challenge on my end since I have been doing business ever since I graduated from college and would start from scratch in a corporate field   Upon checking the USCIS website for the I-130 processing time, as of November 2022, it's roughly around 10.5 months. Is that still the case now?

 

My child is not a US Citizen and does not have a CRBA and US Passport since I did not stay in the US for more than a year.

[Alexandrea Ambas 0]

18 hours ago, Mike E said:

No.  Review the process:

 

https://www.visajourney.com/guides/ir1-spouse-visa/

You will need be employed in the U.S. between the time I-130 is approved and she has her visa interview.  If you aren’t employed or you are and don’t earn enough, she  will need a joint sponsor who does.  
 

It’s best to file I-130 / I-130A now as back logs  for approval are long and you can expect it will take 2 years before your family can join you inbthe U.S.  

I have checked the USCIS website and it shows that the processing time of I-130 as of November 2022 is 10.5 months. Isn't that the case now?

 

 

Edited November 24, 2022 by Alexandrea Ambas

[Mike E 11,739]

3 minutes ago, Alexandrea Ambas said:

I have check the USCIS website and it shows that the processing time of I-130 as of November 2022 is 10.5 months. Is that not the case now?

 

That  doesn’t include:

 

* time to transfer case to NVC

* NVC process 

* time to transfer case to consulate 

* consular processing before interview 

* administrative processing after interview 

 

[Alexandrea Ambas 0]

7 minutes ago, Mike E said:

That  doesn’t include:

 

* time to transfer case to NVC

* NVC process 

* time to transfer case to consulate 

* consular processing before interview 

* administrative processing after interview 

 

Have you gone through the same process?

 

[Mike E 11,739]

4 minutes ago, Alexandrea Ambas said:

Have you gone through the same process?

 

IOW, since I’ve no direct experience with the process, my advice is without merit.  Ok.  
 

Before I leave this thread:

 

* to answer your question my wife and I went through a process called the fiancée visa. Pre Covid the visa was issued in 10 months after I started the process. Her green card was not in hand 23 months after I started the process. 
 

* since you doubt what I am saying you can go to this website’s timeline section to see what an spouse based immigration visa is taking. Covid drove backlogs to be longer.  Even if USCIS is letting new applicants jump the queue don’t count on your consulate doing likewise. 
 

Good luck. I’m out. 

[Alexandrea Ambas 0]

44 minutes ago, Mike E said:

IOW, since I’ve no direct experience with the process, my advice is without merit.  Ok.  
 

Before I leave this thread:

 

* to answer your question my wife and I went through a process called the fiancée visa. Pre Covid the visa was issued in 10 months after I started the process. Her green card was not in hand 23 months after I started the process. 
 

* since you doubt what I am saying you can go to this website’s timeline section to see what an spouse based immigration visa is taking. Covid drove backlogs to be longer.  Even if USCIS is letting new applicants jump the queue don’t count on your consulate doing likewise. 
 

Good luck. I’m out. 

Oh no! I appreciate your response. Was just asking if you've gone through the same process because it will likely be of the same timeline post pandemic. Though as per research, Fiance Visa usually takes longer now post pandemic

[pushbrk 12,883]

10 hours ago, Alexandrea Ambas said:

Oh no! I appreciate your response. Was just asking if you've gone through the same process because it will likely be of the same timeline post pandemic. Though as per research, Fiance Visa usually takes longer now post pandemic

Fiance visa is irrelevant to your situation.  People are here to help.  Expect 18 to 24 months.  Your current unemployment is not a problem but you will  need to file two petitions.  One is for your spouse.  The other is for your child. The difference is in your result. Your wife will become a permanent resident when she arrives but your son will become a US Citizen.  You simply apply for the child's US passport after entry.  

 

Time to become an A-Student of the I-130 and it's published official instructions...AND the whole process.  We're here to help but no substitutes for your homework assignment.

[Alexandrea Ambas 0]

4 minutes ago, pushbrk said:

Fiance visa is irrelevant to your situation.  People are here to help.  Expect 18 to 24 months.  Your current unemployment is not a problem but you will  need to file two petitions.  One is for your spouse.  The other is for your child. The difference is in your result. Your wife will become a permanent resident when she arrives but your son will become a US Citizen.  You simply apply for the child's US passport after entry.  

 

Time to become an A-Student of the I-130 and it's published official instructions...AND the whole process.  We're here to help but no substitutes for your homework assignment.

Hello, Thank you so much for your response! Appreciated very much