Immigration-USA-VA.com.
Located in Winchester, Virginia.
| Immigrating to the United States to live here permanently is an important, and complex decision. This section provides information
to help foreign citizens desiring to permanently immigrate to determine the visas, requirements, and related materials they
will need to apply to immigrate to the United States. For information on who can immigrate to the U.S., click on the link below titled: Visa Types for Immigrants. The links below also contain information on visa forms, the Affidavit of Support, and other requirements and related materials
for immigrants. Also see the links to your left, which includes a "forms" link.
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Effective March 20, 2007, consular posts abroad are again authorized to accept petitions for immediate relative immigrant
classification from American citizens who are resident in their consular districts, U.S. service members, emergency cases
involving life and death or health and safety considerations, and others determined to be in the national interest.
Immigrant Visa Processing - The National Visa Center (NVC)
After the immigrant petition has been approved by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the petition is forwarded to the National Visa Center (NVC) for processing . NVC plays an important role in the next steps of the U.S. immigration process. NVC provides instructions to petitioners
and sponsors, and receives from sponsors, the required Affidavit of Support forms, fees, other required documents, and much
more. For numerically limited family preference petitions, NVC contacts the petitioner once the petition’s immigration wait
nears end, and the
priority date
is about to come current.
Learn more about the Affidavit of Support information and the National Visa Center.
See Visa Information for Immigrants for more information about the Visa Bulletin, required vaccinations, DNA testing and more.
For an overview of the types of immigrant visas available under immigration law, please see Immigrant Visa Classifications on the USCIS Website.
Step 1 - In general, to be eligible to apply for an immigrant visa, a foreign citizen must be sponsored by a U.S. citizen relative(s), U.S. lawful permanent resident, or by a prospective employer, and be the beneficiary of an approved petition.
Learn about the different processes for the major immigrant categories, which are listed below by category:
A lawful permanent resident is a foreign national who has been granted the privilege of permanently living and working in the United States. If you want to become a lawful permanent resident based on the fact that you have a relative who is a citizen of the United States or is a lawful permanent resident, your relative in the U.S. will need to sponsor you and prove he/she has enough income or assets to support you, the intending immigrant(s) when in the United States. For an overview of the types of immigrant visas available under immigration law, please see Immigrant Visa Classifications on the USCIS Website. Your relative sponsor and you, the intending immigrant, must successfully complete certain steps in the immigration process in order to come to the U.S.
Here are the key steps:
First, the USCIS must approve an immigrant visa petition,
"Form I-130" Petition for Alien Relative filed by your sponsoring relative for you. (See our forms section for instructions on how to file these forms).
Next, most sponsors will need to demonstrate adequate income or assets to support the intending immigrant, and accept legal responsibility for financially supporting their family member, by completing and signing a document called an Affidavit of Support. Once this is complete, then the intending immigrant will apply for the immigrant visa as explained below.
Click on the links for information on the various types of family immigration visas.
Overview – Immigrant Visas
Family Based Immigrants
Spouse/Fiance(e) of U.S. Citizen
Affidavit of Support
National Visa Center – Visa Processing
Spouse and Fiance(e) of an American Citizen
Spouse - If you are an American citizen you have two ways to bring your foreign spouse (husband or wife) to the United States to
live. They are
Immigrant visa for a Spouse of a U.S. Citizen (IR1 or CR1) - An immigrant Petition for Alien Relative, "Form I-130" is required.
Nonimmigrant visa for spouse (K-3) - It is important to note that application for the nonimmigrant visa for spouse (K-3) who married a U.S. citizen must be filed
and the visa must be issued the country where the marriage took place. After the visa process has been completed, and the visa is issued, the spouse can travel to the United States to wait for
the processing of the immigrant visa case.
Two petitions are required:
Fiancé(e) - If you are an American citizen, you may bring your fiancé(e) to the United States to marry and live here.
Nonimmigrant visa for fiancé(e) (K-1)- To travel to the United States for marriage.
An I-129F fiancé(e) petition is required.
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