What Are the Current Barriers to Family-Based Immigration?

 Posted on November 08, 2024 in English

Family unity is a foundational principle of our nation and our immigration system. As early as the 1920s, family relationships were one basis for admission into the United States. The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 allowed any lawful permanent resident or U.S. citizen who is over the age of 21 to petition for family preference visas for specific family members.

These visas result in LPR status, which most people know as a green card. A green card offers a path to citizenship in the United States. If you want to obtain a family-based visa for a family member, it is important that you speak to an experienced Herndon, VA family-based immigration attorney from Immigration Legal Advisors, PLLC. When you have a strong advocate in your corner, you are much more likely to have a positive outcome to your immigration issue.

Categories of Family Members for Family-Based Immigration

The family members groups for family-based immigration are immediate relatives such as a spouse, a U.S. citizen’s parent, or a minor child and family preference relatives that are divided into: 

• Unmarried sons and daughters of a United States citizen who are 21 years or older (F1)
• Spouses and children of an LPR who are not married and are under the age of 21 (F2A)
• Unmarried sons and daughters of LPRs who are 21 or older (F2B)
• Married sons and daughters of U.S. citizens (F3) and siblings of U.S. citizens (F4).  

What Are Barriers to Family-Based Immigration?

Family-based immigration begins when an LPR or United States citizen who lives in the United States files a petition on behalf of a specific relative. A number of requirements must be met at the time of the application. Immigrant visas must also be available, and the family member must not be subject to any grounds of inadmissibility. The process is somewhat dependent on whether the family member is living inside or outside the U.S. at the time of the request.

Family preference visas are limited to 226,000 per year, and the number of immigrants from any given country is also limited. The wait time for the availability of a visa depends on the preference category, the priority date, and the nationality of the family member. There is an extreme backlog in processing family-based petitions, leading to wait times from six years to decades.

While Congress has the authority to "recapture" unused green cards, this will not likely happen. Family-based immigration is incredibly slow since DHS has no online immigration filing system in place. USCIS must manually enter each applicant’s information into the system and then issue a receipt.   

What Are the Benefits of Family-Based Immigration That Results in a Green Card?

Having a green card gives a person lawful permanent residence in the U.S. A lawful permanent resident is a foreign-born individual who has the legal ability to work and live in the United States indefinitely. Once a person has LPR status, the naturalization process can begin. In some cases, having a green card also allows a person to receive certain government benefits. The primary benefit of family-based immigration is that it removes the ever-present worry that a person will be taken away from his or her family or refused entry into the U.S. to live with family members.

How Many People Could Be Affected by the Family-Based Immigration Backlog?

More than 16.7 million people in the United States share a home with at least one undocumented family member. This could be a parent, a spouse, a child, or a sibling. About six million of these are children under the age of 18. Immigration enforcement actions have significant repercussions for these children, extending to entire communities.

The fear and uncertainty seen in immigrant families can lead to social isolation and even physical symptoms. Since there are few mechanisms in place to safeguard the parental rights of parents who are detained or deported, families can be irrevocably broken.

Contact a Fairfax County, VA Family Preference Visa Lawyer

When you choose a Herndon, VA family preference visa lawyer, you will benefit from a supportive, full-service law firm with twenty-plus years of experience. Contact Immigration Legal Advisors, PLLC at 571-441-2233 to schedule your free consultation. We speak both English and Spanish.