Immigration Site

Hi,

im a newly naturalised citizen and would like to sponsor my sister (British) for a GC. I hope you can clarify a couple of questions I have.

right now, she is visitng me on a tourist visa. if she decides she wants to stay now, can we file appropriate forms for the GC (is that I130/I485?)? How long does this take? Can she work during this time? And does that mean that she could not leave the US until the GC is granted?

Alternatively, if she goes back to Britain, would I just file the I130, and wait? During this waiting period, which seems to be about 10 years, can she visit on a tourist visa freely.

thanks for your help
eligabex

She cannot file an I-485 since a visa is not immediately available for her. You just file the I-130 and wait (and wait, and wait, and wait...)

A pending I-130 may cause issues with visiting, but can be overcome if she shows strong ties to her home country (job, residence, etc.)

Thanks, RealCandadian. very helpful.

Out of curiousity, what visas would allow her to apply for GC without leaving the country?

My sister was also thinking about coming to stay for two 3-months visits later this year. Would it make sense to wait to submit the I130 until she has entered the country for the second time?

thanks again

Eligabex

Out of curiousity, what visas would allow her to apply for GC without leaving the country? Without leaving for the 10-11 years it takes for her to become eligible to file I-485? No visa allows a stay of that long in a single shot, although in some circumstances a work visa and/or student visa with renewals may reach 10-11 years total. For example 4 years with a student visa followed by 3 years with an H1B work visa which is then extended for another 3 years for a total of 10.

My sister was also thinking about coming to stay for two 3-months visits later this year. Would it make sense to wait to submit the I130 until she has entered the country for the second time? Given that there are only 7 months left in the year, she probably wont be allowed two 3-month visits this year with the visa waiver program. After one 3-month visit, they tend to refuse entry unless the next visit is at least 3 months after the end of the prior visit.