What are the requirements for family visas? In addition to the numerical restrictions, immigration law sets a 7 percent cap each year for family visas issued for each country, commonly referred to as the per-country limit. Only about 6 percent of overall legal immigration consists of brothers and sisters of U.S. About 40 percent of the family preference visas are issued to the spouses and minor children of LPRs. To ensure that family visas are not issued just to immediate relatives, immigration law requires that at least 226,000family visas be allocated through the family preference categories. In fiscal year 2015, spouses and children (immediate relatives) accounted for approximately 69 percent of family immigration and 44 percent of total legal immigration to the U.S. While there is no limitation on number of visas issued to immediate relatives, the number of those visas issued is subtracted from the 480,000 cap, and thus determines how many other relatives will be admitted to the U.S. The total number of family preference visas cannot exceed 480,000, which was set by Congress in 1990. How many visas are available for sponsors’ extended family members?Ī maximum of 480,000 each fiscal year. In past decades, each immigrant has typically sponsored an average of approximately 3.5 relatives, which includes spouses and children. How many relatives does an immigrant typically sponsor?Īn average of 3.5 relatives. citizens and LPRs cannot sponsor other family members such as grandparents, aunts, uncles, in-laws and cousins for immigration. citizens, and their spouses and minor children, provided the U.S. citizens and their spouses and minor children and 4) brothers and sisters of U.S. citizens, their spouses and their children 2) spouses, minor children and unmarried sons and daughters over 21 of LPRs 3) married sons and daughters of U.S.
citizens who are at least 21 years old.įamily preference categories: 1) unmarried sons and daughters of U.S. citizens 3) orphans adopted abroad, 4) orphans to be adopted in the U.S., by U.S. citizens 2) unmarried children under 21 of U.S. There are only two groups who are eligible for family visas: Concerns about “chain migration” are criticisms of our existing legal immigration system and the ability of family members to sponsor their close family members for immigrant visas. Today family visas account for about 65 percent of legal immigration each year.Ĭritics of family-based immigration describe the ability of immigrants - who become green-card holders and citizens - to sponsor their relatives as a “chain” of migration. citizens and lawful permanent residents (LPRs) can sponsor certain family members for a visa that provides permanent residence, also known as a “green card.” Since the time of our first colonies in the 17th century, immigration has been family-based, but the enactment of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) of 1965 formally set family ties as the main way people immigrate to America. Family immigration is the primary basis for legal immigration to the United States.
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