How can I find out what happened to my file?
Dear Mrs. Walker-Huntington: I SAW a response you gave in The Sunday Gleaner some time ago and I would love your advice regarding a filing status. In 2013, my motherin-law filed for my husband, myself and our son, who was a minor at the time. We have not heard anything from the embassy to date, and the lawyer who is supposedly dealing with the case cannot be reached. I have checked online, but have not seen any information regarding the progress. How can I know for sure that it is still being processed, or not? I believe his mom was a green card holder at the time but is now a citizen. I would really love to know what is happening, so if you are able to advise me on how to proceed it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for your assistance. Regards,
SK
Dear SK,
First, a green card holder cannot file an immigrant petition for a married son or daughter. Please check with your mother-in-law as to her actual US immigration status when she filed the immigrant petition for her son in 2013. She would have had to be a US citizen in order to file for her married son.
Second, has your mother-inlaw received any notice from US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS)? After the initial filing, she and the lawyer she hired would have received a receipt notice – Form I797. That notice would have a receipt number, the date of filing, and the category under which her application was placed. With that receipt number, she can track the progress of the application with USCIS on its website.
If the application is approved, the file is transferred to the National Visa Center (NVC) and it is assigned a case number. You would also be advised of the priority date – usually the filing date. The file stays at the NVC until the visa application is processed and the priority date becomes current, i.e., when a visa becomes available. During the NVC process, the file is split into the number of derivative dependents – in this case yourself and your son, if he still qualifies as a minor. The file is ultimately transferred to the US Embassy in Kingston for an appointment.
If your mother-in-law was a US citizen when she filed for her son in 2013, the filing would be in the F3 preference category (married son of a US citizen). Currently, visas are available for persons with priority dates earlier than October 1, 2009. Persons with priority dates earlier than March 1, 2010 are being asked to pay the visa fees, process visa applications and affidavits of support.
It is unusual to not be able to reach a lawyer. We are all licensed and must update any change of address/phone number with our state bar associations. Ensure that your mother actually hired a lawyer to assist her and not a paralegal or notario.
A lot of time has passed since the filing in 2013, and your family needs to get on top of the status to ensure that the filing has actually been done, and done correctly, and that you all have not been waiting in vain.
Dahlia A. Walker-Huntington, Esq, is a Jamaican-American attorney who practises immigration law in the United States; and family, criminal & international law in Florida. She is a diversity & inclusion consultant, mediator, and former special magistrate & hearing officer in Broward County, Florida. info@walkerhuntington.com.