Family-Based Immigration Lawyer

Two questions decide a family case

Who you can sponsor depends on whether you are a U.S. citizen or a green card holder. How your relative gets the green card depends on how they entered the United States, if they are here. Attorney Zachary Gold works out both before Cruz Gold & Associates files Form I-130, then prepares the affidavit of support and takes the case through to the green card, here or through a U.S. consulate.

Since 2025 the rules have tightened on both routes. Before granting a green card inside the United States, officers now weigh whether the relative kept to the terms of a visa or parole (USCIS memorandum PM-602-0199); a new public charge rule applies to green card applications filed from September 18, 2026 (Federal Register); and spouses, children and parents of citizens from 39 travel ban countries generally can no longer get immigrant visas abroad, with narrow exceptions.

Who can you sponsor for a green card?

It depends on whether you are a U.S. citizen or a green card holder (USCIS Policy Manual):

• U.S. citizenYour spouse, unmarried children under 21, parents (if you are 21 or older), unmarried sons and daughters 21 or older, married sons and daughters, and brothers and sisters (if you are 21 or older).
• Green card holderYour spouse, unmarried children under 21, and unmarried sons and daughters 21 or older.
• No one can sponsorGrandparents, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins or parents-in-law (Form I-130 instructions).

A citizen's spouse, unmarried children under 21 and parents are "immediate relatives". The law sets no yearly limit on their visas, so they have no visa line to wait in (INA 201(b)). Every other relative falls into a preference category with a yearly limit and a waiting line (INA 203(a)). A stepchild counts only if your marriage to the child's parent took place before the child turned 18, an adopted child generally if adopted before 16 and in your custody and living with you for two years (INA 101(b)), and a half-brother or half-sister counts as a sibling (USCIS Policy Manual).

In the preference categories, the relative's spouse and children under 21 come on the same petition. That does not work for immediate relatives: if you are a citizen bringing your spouse, the spouse's children need petitions of their own.

How long the wait is for each relative

A preference relative's place in line is the date the I-130 was filed. Each month the State Department's Visa Bulletin lists how far the line has moved. In the November 2026 bulletin, immigrant visas go to petitions filed before these dates for most countries (Visa Bulletin, November 2026):

• Spouses and children under 21 of green card holders (F2A)October 22, 2026, so almost no wait (Mexico: April 22, 2026)
• Unmarried sons and daughters 21 or older of citizens (F1)January 22, 2021 (Mexico: September 22, 2008; Philippines: November 1, 2013)
• Unmarried sons and daughters 21 or older of green card holders (F2B)August 22, 2020 (Mexico: May 15, 2010; Philippines: October 1, 2013)
• Married sons and daughters of citizens (F3)October 22, 2015 (Mexico: July 15, 2001; Philippines: July 22, 2006)
• Brothers and sisters of citizens (F4)October 22, 2012 (India: December 15, 2006; Mexico: April 22, 2001; Philippines: May 15, 2008)

For relatives already in the United States, USCIS accepts green card applications in November 2026 under the bulletin's separate "dates for filing" chart, which runs a little ahead of the dates above (USCIS). The dates usually move forward, but they can also move back. Once the relative is notified that a visa is available, they have one year to apply for it, or the State Department must end the registration; it can be restored within two years if the delay was beyond their control (INA 203(g)).

A case then runs in this order:

1. A free call with Zachary. We go over your relative's history with you, in English or Spanish.
2. The petition. We file Form I-130 online or by mail; since October 7, 2026, a paper petition filed on its own goes to Phoenix from New Jersey and Texas and to Chicago from Pennsylvania (USCIS).
3. The wait. Immediate relatives move on right away; preference relatives wait for their bulletin date.
4. The green card or visa case. Form I-485 here, or the National Visa Center and Form DS-260 abroad, with the affidavit of support and the medical exam.
5. The interview. At the USCIS field office, where Zachary can attend with you, or at the consulate, and then the green card.

Checks that come before the petition

An approved I-130 gives your relative no status in the United States, and since August 2025 USCIS has said it may send a relative it finds removable to immigration court (USCIS Policy Manual). So the petition is filed only after Zachary has gone through these points with you:

• How your relative entered and how long they stayed. A relative who entered with a visa or parole and is your immediate relative can usually apply here even after an overstay; a relative who entered without inspection, or a preference relative out of status, usually cannot (INA 245).
• Unlawful presence. More than 180 days but less than a year of unlawful presence, followed by a departure before removal proceedings begin, triggers a three-year bar, and a year or more a ten-year bar; time under 18 does not count (INA 212(a)(9)(B)). Leaving for a consular interview, or traveling on advance parole since August 13, 2026, counts as that departure (USCIS). A relative who must leave for a consular interview may be able to ask for an I-601A waiver first, and anyone with past unlawful presence should get advice before traveling on advance parole.
• Proof of the relationship. Birth and marriage certificates, proof earlier marriages ended, and certified translations go in at filing. Since August 5, 2026, USCIS may deny a petition that lacks required evidence without first asking for it (USCIS policy alert), and when documents fall short its request for evidence suggests an optional DNA test (USCIS policy alert).
• The sponsor's income. We check whether your income covers the affidavit of support, or whether a household member or a joint sponsor has to sign as well.
• Nationality and age. We check whether your relative is a national of a travel ban country, and whether a child is close to 21.

Beyond the petition, we prepare green card applications and consular cases, affidavits with household members and joint sponsors, I-601A and I-601 waivers, petitions that continue after a petitioner's death, and cases for children close to 21, and Zachary can attend USCIS interviews with you.

In our clients' words

Rated 5.0 on Google from 102 reviews of our Ewing office (October 2026)

Applying for the green card inside the United States

A relative who was inspected and admitted, or paroled, into the United States can apply for the green card here on Form I-485 (INA 245(a)). An immediate relative can file it together with your I-130; a preference relative files when the bulletin date is reached. Immediate relatives are exempt from the bars for working without permission or falling out of status; preference relatives are not.

A May 2026 USCIS memorandum calls a green card granted inside the United States "a matter of discretion", and officers weigh the relative's record under the visa or parole alongside family ties (PM-602-0199). In the USCIS figures updated October 19, 2026, 80% of family-based green card applications were decided within these times (USCIS processing times):

• Mount Laurel field office (Ewing area)21.5 months
• Newark field office (Hackensack area)22 months
• Philadelphia field office15 months
• Houston field office18 months

While the application is pending, the relative can get a work permit and, with advance parole, travel. Leaving without advance parole usually ends the application, and for anyone with past unlawful presence any trip is a risk. USCIS interviews most family applicants, the petitioner generally must attend, and since May 18, 2026 attorneys attend in person (USCIS).

Immigrant visa through a U.S. consulate

A relative abroad, or one who cannot apply inside the United States, gets an immigrant visa. After USCIS approves the I-130, the National Visa Center opens the case, collects the fees, the affidavit of support, Form DS-260 and civil documents, and schedules the interview once a visa is available (State Department). As of October 26, 2026, the center was reviewing documents submitted on August 18, 2026 (NVC timeframes).

Since November 1, 2025, the interview takes place in the relative's country of residence, or of nationality on request (State Department). Every applicant has a medical exam with a panel physician first. The visa is usually valid for up to six months, and the relative becomes a permanent resident on entering the United States.

The sponsor's income and the affidavit of support

The petitioner signs Form I-864 and promises to support the relative. You need income of at least 125% of the federal poverty guidelines for your household, which includes the relatives you sponsor. The 2026 figures for the 48 contiguous states and DC are below; Alaska and Hawaii have higher ones (Form I-864P):

• Household of 2$27,050
• Household of 3$34,150
• Household of 4$41,250
• Each additional person$7,100

Active-duty service members sponsoring a spouse or child need 100%. If your income falls short, assets worth five times the shortfall can make it up, or three times when a citizen sponsors a spouse or a child 18 or older. Adult relatives in your household can add their income on Form I-864A, and a joint sponsor who meets 125% alone can sign a second affidavit (I-864 instructions).

Only the edition dated August 24, 2026 is accepted from October 1, 2026, and it lets USCIS pull the sponsor's credit report (USCIS). The affidavit is a binding contract: an agency that pays your relative a means-tested benefit can sue you for the cost. It usually lasts until the relative becomes a citizen or has worked 40 quarters, and a divorce does not end it (8 CFR 213a.2). Under the public charge rule in force since September 18, 2026, officers look at the relative's whole situation, and benefits received from that date can count against them.

Unlawful presence and the I-601A waiver

The three- and ten-year bars start with the departure, so a relative who could not apply here and has to leave for a consular interview can be stopped by them. The I-601A provisional waiver lets that relative ask for a waiver before leaving (8 CFR 212.7(e)). The relative must be 17 or older and in the United States, with an approved petition and the immigrant visa fee paid, and cannot have a green card application pending, open removal proceedings (unless administratively closed) or a final or reinstated removal order. The relative must show that a U.S. citizen or green card holder spouse or parent would suffer extreme hardship, more than the usual hardship of separation. Hardship to a U.S. citizen child counts only through that spouse or parent (I-601A instructions), so a parent of a citizen has no qualifying relative unless the parent also has a citizen or green card holder spouse or parent.

The fee is $795, and in the October 19, 2026 figures 80% of cases were decided within 28 months. An approved I-601A covers only the three- and ten-year bars for that one visa. Other grounds may need Form I-601 ($1,050) or permission to reapply on Form I-212 ($1,175), some cannot be waived at all, and a relative who reentered without inspection after more than a year of unlawful presence faces a permanent bar that this waiver cannot cure.

When a child turns 21

For a citizen's child, age is frozen on the day the I-130 is filed, so the child stays an immediate relative while unmarried. For a preference child, the Child Status Protection Act subtracts the time the petition was pending from the child's age on the date a visa becomes available, and since August 15, 2025 USCIS takes that date from the bulletin's final action chart (USCIS policy alert). The child then has one year to apply.

Becoming a citizen changes your relatives' categories. A green card holder's spouse and unmarried children under 21 become immediate relatives the day the petitioner naturalizes, with a child's age measured on that day, and unmarried sons and daughters 21 or older move from F2B to F1. When F1 is the slower line, as it is for Mexico in November 2026, they can choose in writing to stay in F2B (USCIS Policy Manual). The spouse's children then lose their place on the spouse's petition and need petitions of their own, which is why we file for each child from the start.

Spouses, children and parents from travel ban countries

Since January 1, 2026, Proclamation 10998 suspends immigrant visas for nationals of 39 countries, and it removed the exception that had covered spouses, children and parents of U.S. citizens (State Department). A relative from one of those countries who was in the United States on January 1, 2026, who held a visa valid that day, or who can travel on the passport of a country not on the list is outside it, and the State Department can grant case-by-case national interest exceptions (Proclamation 10998). Court orders in 2026 stopped USCIS's holds on applications from these countries (USCIS) and the State Department's separate 75-country immigrant visa pause (State Department); the rulings may still be appealed.

How much does it cost to sponsor a family member?

Government fees depend on the route (USCIS fee schedule):

• Petition (Form I-130)$675 on paper, $625 online
• Green card application inside the United States (Form I-485)$1,440 on paper, $1,390 online; $950 or $900 for a child under 14 filing with a parent
• Work permit and travel permit with a pending I-485$260 and $630 on paper ($580 online)
• Immigrant visa through a consulate$325 per person to the State Department and $120 when the National Visa Center reviews the affidavit of support (22 CFR 22.1), plus the $235 USCIS Immigrant Fee after the visa is issued (USCIS)
• Provisional waiver (Form I-601A)$795

The medical exam is paid to the doctor. Our own fee is a flat fee for each stage: one for the petition, one for the green card application or the visa case, and a separate one for a waiver. You hear each figure after the free consultation, before anything is filed.

Laws, fees, Visa Bulletin dates and processing times on this page were checked on October 27, 2026 on uscis.gov and the USCIS Policy Manual, the State Department's sites and Visa Bulletin, the Federal Register, federal statutes and regulations.

The attorney on your petition

Frequently asked about family petitions

Can a U.S. citizen sponsor a niece, nephew or cousin?

No, there is no category for them. A niece or nephew can still come with their parent: when you sponsor your brother or sister, the sibling's spouse and unmarried children under 21 are included in the same petition. With the brother and sister line back at 2012, the child has to still count as under 21 under the Child Status Protection Act, and be unmarried, when the visa becomes available.

How long does it take to sponsor a parent?

A parent of a U.S. citizen 21 or older has no visa line, so the time depends on the route. Inside the United States it is the green card processing time at your field office, between 15 and 22 months at the offices above. Abroad, USCIS must first approve the I-130, and then the case goes through the National Visa Center and the consulate interview.

What happens after the I-130 is approved?

An immediate relative moves straight to the green card application or the visa case. A preference relative waits until the bulletin date reaches the petition's filing date. The approval itself gives no status, so a relative here without status should not rely on it.

What happens to the petition if the sponsor dies?

A widow or widower of a U.S. citizen who was not divorced or legally separated at the death stays an immediate relative until remarrying: a pending or approved I-130 converts to Form I-360 on its own, and otherwise the widow or widower files the I-360 within two years of the death (USCIS). Other relatives who lived in the United States when the petitioner died, and still do, can have the case decided anyway, with another close relative signing the affidavit of support (INA 204(l)).

Can I file a petition while I live abroad?

Yes. A citizen or green card holder living abroad files the I-130 online or by mail to the USCIS Chicago lockbox. USCIS offices abroad no longer take routine petitions, and a U.S. consulate accepts a citizen's petition for an immediate relative only in exceptional cases, such as a medical emergency or a child about to turn 21 (USCIS Policy Manual).

Related pages

• Marriage green card lawyer for spouses of citizens and green card holders
• K-1 fiance visa lawyer for a fiance or fiancee abroad
• Adjustment of status lawyer for green card applications filed inside the United States
• Green card lawyer for every route to permanent residence
• Citizenship lawyer for green card holders who want to sponsor parents and siblings as citizens
• Deportation defense lawyer when a relative is in immigration court
• What an immigration lawyer costs, flat and hourly fees explained
• Immigration lawyers in New Jersey, our Ewing office
• Immigration lawyers in Newark, for cases at the Newark field office
• Immigration lawyers in Philadelphia, our office on South Broad Street
• Immigration lawyers in Houston, our office on Caroline Street
• About attorney Zachary Gold