Wife in the States, Children abroad... How to file?

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NYStu

Registered Users (C)
Hello everybody, I will be filing I-130 and I-485 for my wife within the next month. My questions now is: My step-children are in my wife's country, how exactly do I need to file their paperwork? I am not sure if I need to file both I-130 and I-485 for them or just I-130, or if I need any other forms based on the fact that they are not in the States. Any guidance will be appreciated.

Thanks

P.S. Yes, I also posted this in another forum, please understand I want to find as much info as possible.
 
Are you a US citizen? Are the stepchildren under 18? Have you figured out what needs to be done in your wife's country so the children can be permanently taken outside that country (i.e. away from their biological father)?
 
Jackolantern said:
Are you a US citizen? Are the stepchildren under 18? Have you figured out what needs to be done in your wife's country so the children can be permanently taken outside that country (i.e. away from their biological father)?
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Yes, I am a Citizen, and yes, Kids are under 18. We need a letter from the father, he has no problem providing us with the letter.
 
You need to file a separate I-130 for your wife and each stepchild. No I-485 for the children, because they are outside the US. When your wife files I-485, she must not leave the US until she has an approved Advance Parole (or she may be blocked from reentering the US). And if she has overstayed her existing visa for more than 180 days, she should not leave the US at all before her green card is approved. I mentioned those conditions in case you are planning to have her accompany the children to the consulate.
 
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Jackolantern said:
You need to file a separate I-130 for your wife and each stepchild. No I-485 for the children, because they are outside the US. When your wife files I-485, she must not leave the US until she has an approved Advance Parole (or she may be blocked from reentering the US). And if she has overstayed her existing visa for more than 180 days, she should not leave the US at all before her green card is approved. I mentioned those conditions in case you are planning to have her accompany the children to the consulate.
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Thanks for your responses, we are planning on going to her home country once we get the consulate interview, so we will be filing an Advance Parole form. Do you know if the kids get their immigrant visas once my wife gets her GC or does this happen sooner? Also, do we need any other forms?

Thanks again
 
NYStu said:
Do you know if the kids get their immigrant visas once my wife gets her GC or does this happen sooner?
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The processes will be largely independent, as they will have their I-130 separate from your wife's, and she will file I-485 while they pursue consular processing. So her I-485 could be approved weeks or months before or after the children's immigrant visas.

For info on which other forms you need, see the "GC for parents AOS and CP" sticky thread.
 
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