Frequently Asked Questions about the I-130 Petition

A US citizen or a lawful permanent resident can file an I-130 petition on behalf of their alien relative who wish to immigrate to the United States. They must file an I-130 petition for each of your eligible relative.

Eligible relatives

If you are an US citizen or a lawful permanent relative, you can file an I-130 petition for the following relatives:

• Your spouse
• Your unmarried child(ren) less than 21 years of age
• Your unmarried child(ren) above 21 years of age

Besides the above listed relatives, an US citizen can file an I-130 petition for his or her married child of any age. An US citizen over 21 years of age can petition for his or her parents, brother(s) and sister(s).

Documents

If you are a US citizen, you must provide evidence of your US citizenship – copy of your birth certificate (if born in the US) issued by a civil registrar, vital statistics office, or other civil authority or copy of your naturalization certificate or certificate of citizenship (if you are a naturalized citizen) or copy of Form FS-240, Report of Birth Abroad of a Citizen of the United States, issued by a U.S. Embassy or consulate or copy of your unexpired US passport or an original statement from a U.S. consular officer verifying that you are a U.S. citizen with a valid passport. If you do not have any of these documents, you must submit a statement from the appropriate civil authority certifying that the document or documents are not available. You can submit secondary evidence by way of church records, school records, census records and affidavits.

Lawful permanent residents must submit a copy of the front and back of their permanent resident card. If you have not yet received your card, you should submit copies of your passport biographic page and the page showing admission as a permanent resident, or other evidence of permanent resident status issued by USCIS or the former INS.

Filing

You must submit evidence of your relationship with the alien relative. Documents that you should submit include:

• Marriage certificate if applying for your spouse, passport photos of yourself and your spouse and Form G-325A, Biographic Information for you and your spouse.

• Birth certificate if applying for your child(ren) indicating your name as a parent
• Your birth certificate if applying for your parents indicating the name of your parents
• If you are applying for your brother or sister, your birth certificate and your brother or sister’s birth certificate indicating at least one common parent. 

Submit the I-130 petition along with a fee of $355 to the USCIS office having jurisdiction over your place of residence in the US.

Getting Legal Help   

If you want to file an I-130 petition for your alien relative, consult with an experienced US immigration attorney. The attorney can study your case and assist you with the filing.