can I file stepson's I-130 along with my wife's?

[Texxon 1]

Hello,

I am putting together two I-130 packets this weekend, one for my wife and one for my stepson. My wife and I have been married for 4 years; we were married and living in the Czech Republic (a visa-waiver country); she and stepson are both Czech. My stepson is 7 years old. Two weeks ago I moved back to the USA thinking that my wife and stepson would be able to join me this summer and live here with me while we awaited for their permanent residency statuses to be approved. I now realize this is not possible--that we will have to be separated for a whole year--and I am now trying to do everything possible to expedite their eventual arrival here.

This VisaJourney.com page does a great job explaining how to bring one's wife over:

http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide1

but what about my stepson?? Do I create a completely separate packet for him and mail it separately? Or do I write a single cover letter and single table of contents and include all the documents for both my wife and stepson's cases in this single packet/envelope? My wife and stepson are inseparable: she cannot come here without him, so their cases need to be considered jointly if at all possible. Is this possible?

I'm an American citizen, by the way, born in the USA. Thanks for any advice/assistance.

[aleful 1,905]

Hello,

I am putting together two I-130 packets this weekend, one for my wife and one for my stepson. My wife and I have been married for 4 years; we were married and living in the Czech Republic (a visa-waiver country); she and stepson are both Czech. My stepson is 7 years old. Two weeks ago I moved back to the USA thinking that my wife and stepson would be able to join me this summer and live here with me while we awaited for their permanent residency statuses to be approved. I now realize this is not possible--that we will have to be separated for a whole year--and I am now trying to do everything possible to expedite their eventual arrival here.

This VisaJourney.com page does a great job explaining how to bring one's wife over:

http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide1

but what about my stepson?? Do I create a completely separate packet for him and mail it separately? Or do I write a single cover letter and single table of contents and include all the documents for both my wife and stepson's cases in this single packet/envelope? My wife and stepson are inseparable: she cannot come here without him, so their cases need to be considered jointly if at all possible. Is this possible?

I'm an American citizen, by the way, born in the USA. Thanks for any advice/assistance.

you have to make two separate packets or envelopes and you can mail them in one big package to the same place. They are separate petitions.

[Texxon 1]

you have to make two separate packets or envelopes and you can mail them in one big package to the same place. They are separate petitions.

does mailing them in one big package accomplish anything besides saving money on postage? Will their petitions be handled by the same person and processed along side one another? Or does USCIS consider these two cases wholly independent from each other? Is it possible that my wife would be approved before our son and have to leave him in Czech for weeks or months until his final application is approved?

Edited June 10, 2012 by Texxon

[aleful 1,905]

does mailing them in one big package accomplish anything besides saving money on postage? Will their petitions be handled by the same person and processed along side one another? Or does USCIS consider these two cases wholly independent from each other? Is it possible that my wife would be approved before our son and have to leave him in Czech for weeks or months until his final application is approved?

they might be handled by separate officers, but in the end even if one of them had the interview before the other, the first one has up to 6 months to enter the country, and I'm sure that the other interview would only be days or a few weeks of difference, if even. All cases are not the same and they might have the same day as well.

[Darnell 8,478]

does mailing them in one big package accomplish anything besides saving money on postage? Will their petitions be handled by the same person and processed along side one another? Or does USCIS consider these two cases wholly independent from each other? Is it possible that my wife would be approved before our son and have to leave him in Czech for weeks or months until his final application is approved?

they stay together in the queue, in the same place in the queue, as the queue moves along.

In a longish while, the Adjudicator sees that they are 'together', as you've put his name in her petition, and her name in his petition, so they'll be smart and know these two I-130's are to be processed together.

Good Luck !

ps - USCIS is just one piece of the process. There's an entire other set o stuff to be done at NVC for document intake on Immigrant Visa Document Processing.

[Texxon 1]

they might be handled by separate officers, but in the end even if one of them had the interview before the other, the first one has up to 6 months to enter the country, and I'm sure that the other interview would only be days or a few weeks of difference, if even. All cases are not the same and they might have the same day as well.

Thanks for the info!!

And thank you, Darnell!!

Edited June 10, 2012 by Texxon

[Darnell 8,478]

if it's financially feasible for you to 'move back' to the Czech Republic, then file from there, showing yer Czech residency, the turn around time at USCIS is about 20 days, tops. Is a special queue for 'filed from abroad' casefiles.

Otherwise, you get into the regular queue. Figure 6 months till the casefile is adjudicated.

[Texxon 1]

if it's financially feasible for you to 'move back' to the Czech Republic, then file from there, showing yer Czech residency, the turn around time at USCIS is about 20 days, tops. Is a special queue for 'filed from abroad' casefiles.

Otherwise, you get into the regular queue. Figure 6 months till the casefile is adjudicated.

REALLY??? I was just told at the American Embassy in Prague last month that it might be better to wait and file our petitions in America!!! We went to the embassy with our Direct Consular Filing paperwork in hand, only to be told that the embassy in Czech doesn't do this sort of thing. When I told them that I was returning to America soon, they said I should just file the I-130 petitions from America so I won't have to worry about change-of-address issues.

But from what you're saying, it seems I was given horrible advice: if I had submitted the paperwork from the Czech Republic to the appropriate International Lockbox, we might have cut 6 months off our processing time?

Perhaps I can still do this? I closed on a house here in Texas June 1st; I essentially found/purchased the house from the Czech Republic and arrived here just in time for the final closing. Though I technically live here in Texas now, I could return to the Czech Republic for a week--we are still renting an apartment there--and send the paperwork in from there. By the end of June, however: there's really no way I could claim residency in the Czech Republic anymore; I have to live in Texas and will have to claim Texas residency. But that should be fine, shouldn't it? As long as I was a resident of the Czech Republic at the time we initially file the I-130 forms, I should be OK, right? Later I could fly back to the Czech Republic again--in a few weeks or months--to take care of any additional paperwork or meetings that have to take place there in Czech. (Again: I wouldn't at those times claim to be a Czech resident, but a Texas resident who filed initially from the Czech Republic as a Czech resident at that time.)

Would this work?

[Darnell 8,478]

study this a bit, please..

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/357465-usc-petitioner-living-abroad/

The option to 'file via DCF', if not available in Prague, well, there's a new queue at the lockbox for Chicago - and it gets into 'fast processing'.

Your 'residency' thing is easy - you went to USA to close on a house, then returned to Czech Republic on your current residency permit. Can also be viewed as 'vacation time' or 'business trip in USA' or 're-establishing USA domicile' trip. Essentially, IMO, yer still a resident of the Czech Republic, if'n you get on a plane soonish. (Nowish, this week)

Good Luck !

Edited June 10, 2012 by Darnell

[Texxon 1]

BEAUTIFUL!! Jeeze, I hired-then-fired an immigration lawyer within the span of an hour three days ago when he told me--at the conclusion of our meeting--that it would take him 2 weeks to file the I-130s. I figured a year was long enough to wait; a year + two weeks would be intolerable. But this is great news!! Thanks so much for the link & info, Darnell!!!

[Darnell 8,478]

yer very welcome !!