Sponsor sister's green card and her unmarried 29 year old son.

**techieguy_98** · 13th August 2012, 10:01 PM

Hi,
I am a US citizen. I want to file green card for my married sister who has a 17 year old son now.

By the time my sister gets her green card , her son will be around 29 years old approx... So not sure how long her son will have to wait to get his green card..

Is there a better way to approach this scenario ?

THanks a lot for your help.

**Jackolantern** · 13th August 2012, 10:24 PM

Her son will almost surely age out and be ineligible to join her as a derivative. For him to get a green card*, his mother would have to file for him after she gets her own green card, which would take another 7 or 8 years, by which time he would be 36 or 37! And if he gets married, that adds on even more years (worse if he marries before his mother is a US citizen).

*unless he qualifies through another route such as employment or marriage

**techieguy_98** · 14th August 2012, 06:00 PM

1. Where does it clearly state about unmarried son over 21 years cannot be listed as a derivative on a potential green card (sister in my case) application ?

2. Would it be easier to file my parent's green card and then have one of the parents sponsor the married daughter along with her unmarried 21+ yr old son ?

Feedback and thoughts welcome

**TheRealCanadian** · 14th August 2012, 11:42 PM

Originally Posted by techieguy_98

1. Where does it clearly state about unmarried son over 21 years cannot be listed as a derivative on a potential green card (sister in my case) application ?

Children over 21 (or married under 21) are not eligible for derivative benefits. They are considered independent adults.

2. Would it be easier to file my parent's green card and then have one of the parents sponsor the married daughter along with her unmarried 21+ yr old son ?

Wouldn't make a difference.

**Jackolantern** · 15th August 2012, 08:52 AM

Originally Posted by techieguy_98

1. Where does it clearly state about unmarried son over 21 years cannot be listed as a derivative on a potential green card (sister in my case) application ?

Download http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/87553.pdf and see page 2, the paragraph entitled
"9 FAM 42.31 N2.2 Filing Petitions for Derivative Aliens".

2. Would it be easier to file my parent's green card and then have one of the parents sponsor the married daughter along with her unmarried 21+ yr old son ?

No. First it would take 6-12 months for your parents to get their green cards. They can't file for a married daughter until they get citizenship, so that's another 5 years, by which time the son would be about 23. Then it's another 10 years for the married daughter to get her own green card, so then the son is 33. Then he can expect another 7 year wait with his mother filing for him as a 21+ son, by which time he's about 40.