Law Office of Mario Zapata - IMMIGRATION LAW
  • Home
  • Attorney Profile
  • Immigration Law
    • Executive Action >
      • Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)
      • Deferred Action for Parent Accountability (DAPA)
    • Family-Based Immigration >
      • Fiancee Visas
      • Green Card for Spouse, Children, and Siblings
      • Green Card Through Same-sex Marriage
      • I-601 & I-601A Provisional Waiver
      • U-Visa and Green Cards for Victims of Abuse (VAWA)
      • Naturalization & Citizenship
      • Parole of Spouses, Children and Parents of Military Members
    • Deportation Defense >
      • Asylum
      • Cancellation of Removal
      • Removal Proceedings
    • Employment-Based Immigration >
      • PERM & Employment-Based Green Card
      • E-1 and E-2 Non-immigrant Visa
      • H-1B Specialty Occupation Workers
      • L-1 Intra-company Transferee
      • TN (NAFTA Professionals)
  • Español
  • Contact Us
  • Blog
  • More +
    • Consultation
    • News
    • Resources
    • Scholarship
    • Disclaimer

Family-Based Immigration

Our Orange County Immigration Law firm works to helps with all matters regarding family based immigration. In order to file a family based immigration petition for your relative, your status must fall under one of the following family based immigration categories:
  1. U.S. citizen,
  2. A lawful permanent resident, or
  3. Refugee admitted as a refugee within the past 2 years or asylee granted asylum within the past 2 years

Give us a call and ask about our free initial consultation for family-based immigration matters.  We are here to help you and/or a loved one with an immigrant visa and/or adjustment of status (green card) process.  

IMPORTANT: Family of military members may be eligible for additional processes which may result in acquiring their green card. See here or call us at (714) 441-2800.  This process is described as parole-in-place.

Family-Based Immigration Petitions by U.S. Citizens

A United States citizen may file immigrant petitions for the following relatives:

  1. Husband or Wife (including same-sex spouse)
  2. Children; including Step-children, as long as the U.S. Citizen married the child’s father or mother before the child reached 18 years of age.
  3. Parents; including Step-parents, as long as the father or mother of the U.S. Citizen married the step-parent when the U.S. Citizen was still under 18 years of age.  Note:  The U.S. Citizen must be at least 21 years old to petition for a parent or stepparent.
  4. Brother or Sister, at any time after the U.S. Citizen reached 21 years of age. The Beneficiary’s spouse and children under 21 years of age are also included in the petition.
  5. Spouses of U.S. Citizens, children under 21 years of age, and parents, are considered “Immediate Relatives”; therefore, there is no waiting list.  Other relatives (brothers, married sons or daughter, son or daughter over 21) are given a “Priority Date” the moment the petition is received by US Citizenship and Immigration Services.  The beneficiary will have to wait for an Immigrant Visa to become available.  Check the monthly Visa Bulletin


Family-Based Immigration Petitions by Permanent Residents

A legal Permanent Resident may file a petition for the following family members:
  1. Husband or Wife (including same-sex spouse)
  2. Unmarried son, daughter, or step-child.  In order for a Permanent Resident to file for a step-child, he or she must have married the child’s parent before the child turned 18 years of age.

Relatives of a permanent resident are given a priority date the moment the petition is received by US Citizenship and Immigration Services. The beneficiary will have to wait for an Immigrant Visa to be available.  You can check the monthly Visa Bulletin by visiting the U.S. Department of State's website here. 

Note: A visa petition (Form I-130) is only used to demonstrate a qualifying relationship. An approved petition DOES NOT grant any benefit except to create a place in line for visa processing.

For more information about the process and requirements to petition your relative in your particular case, call our Anaheim immigration law office at (714) 441-2800 to schedule a free initial consultation or contact us. 
Based in Anaheim, California, the Law Office of Mario Zapata provides immigration-related legal services to individual and business clients from across the United States and around the world, including: Orange County, Los Angeles County, Riverside County, San Bernardino, and San Diego County in California. Mr. Zapata has represented residents of Anaheim, Fountain Valley, Fullerton, Garden Grove, La Habra, Lake Forest, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Ontario, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Juan Capistrano, and Westminster.

© 2018 by Law Office of Mario Zapata. All rights reserved. Disclaimer :  Site Map
  • Home
  • Attorney Profile
  • Immigration Law
    • Executive Action >
      • Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)
      • Deferred Action for Parent Accountability (DAPA)
    • Family-Based Immigration >
      • Fiancee Visas
      • Green Card for Spouse, Children, and Siblings
      • Green Card Through Same-sex Marriage
      • I-601 & I-601A Provisional Waiver
      • U-Visa and Green Cards for Victims of Abuse (VAWA)
      • Naturalization & Citizenship
      • Parole of Spouses, Children and Parents of Military Members
    • Deportation Defense >
      • Asylum
      • Cancellation of Removal
      • Removal Proceedings
    • Employment-Based Immigration >
      • PERM & Employment-Based Green Card
      • E-1 and E-2 Non-immigrant Visa
      • H-1B Specialty Occupation Workers
      • L-1 Intra-company Transferee
      • TN (NAFTA Professionals)
  • Español
  • Contact Us
  • Blog
  • More +
    • Consultation
    • News
    • Resources
    • Scholarship
    • Disclaimer