The impact of Naturalization on pending immediate relative cases for children

If a green card holder files a family based petition for his/her spouse, their unmarried children under the age of 21 can be included in the spousal petition, meaning that they do not need to file separate petitions for their minor children. However, if the green card holder (Petitioner), becomes a U.S. Citizen through naturalization before the petitions are approved, it can have important consequences for their pending petitions.

Upon the petitioner’s naturalization, the family petition will automatically be upgraded to an immediate relative petition. This change is generally beneficial to the foreign spouse because the petition will not be subject to visa caps, so processing time could be significantly expedited. However, there are some issues you need to consider for the children beneficiaries. The reclassification of the visa category after the naturalization will cause the children to fall out of the pending petition and they will be required to have their own petitions. It means the petitioner has to re-file a new, separate application for each child. Also, naturalization can lead to more complicated outcomes if the initial petition was filed when a child is nearing the 21st birthday since the child generally no longer qualifies as a minor once the child turns 21. The petitioner who naturalized will need to file a new petition for the child who turned 21, and if this is the case, the child will have to wait until their priority date becomes current to apply for a green card.

Naturalization can benefit your spouse and minor children’s immigration process by upgrading their petitions and speeding up processing times. However, the naturalization could cause unexpected consequences including delays, age outs and additional fees for your pending case. Consulting an experienced immigration attorney can help ensure that all necessary steps are taken to avoid delays and complications in your case. The attorneys at Tanner Law Offices can assist you with your case process or provide additional information. Please contact our office at (717) 731-8114 to schedule a consultation to discuss your case.