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Answers of the week
July 9, 2010
QUESTION: I am a legal resident of the United States and had to travel for an emergency. I was 7 months pregnant and had a premature delivery. My children were ill and had to be hospitalized for 3 months. Now, I need to return to California but I do not want to go without my children. What do I need to do so that they can travel to the US? - GSF
Since you are an LPR and your child was born during your temporary visit abroad, he/she can be admitted to the U.S. within two years of his/her birth without a visa, as long as you are returning to the United States for the first time after the birth of the child. If you meet these conditions, you should carry documentary evidence of the parent-child relationship (a birth certificate) as well as any exit/entry evidence like passport stamps (to prove that it is your first return to the U.S. after the child’s birth). As your child will not have a visa, he or she will not be able to board an aircraft to enter the U.S., so you will need to travel by car and enter the U.S. at a land crossing.
If this is not the first time you have entered the U.S. after the birth of your child, then your child will need an immigrant visa. As a Legal Permanent Resident (LPR), you can petition for your child under the immigration visa category F2A that will allow your child to live in the U.S. with you once the visa is granted. Your child is not eligible for a tourist visa as he/she intends to live in the U.S. We do not process immigrant visa applications in Guadalajara. They are only processed in Cuidad Juarez. You can find more information on applying for an immigrant visa for your child at http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types/types_1312.html
Once you are naturalized, and assuming the child is under the age of 18 and in your physical custody, the child will automatically become a U.S. citizen. If your spouse is an American citizen and the child enters the U.S. accompanied by your husband, the child will automatically become an American citizen immediately upon entry under the Child Citizenship Act of 2000. You will find more information at the following link: http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/types/types_1312.html |
