I'm a U.S. citizen. I filed for a green card for my parents in October 2014. I also want to bring my sister here, who will turn 18 in July 2015. I Was told that it would be faster if my mom would petition my sister than I do, Asa she gets her green card. How old does my sister have to be before my mom petition her, 18 or 21?
Answer
The length of time will, in part, be determined by your sister's country of citizenship. Also, whether she is under 21 or over 21, married or single, at the time your mother files for her will effect the waiting period.
Vincent Martin
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Answer
As the parents of a USC, your parents are considered immediate relatives. This means that they are not subject to a visa quota, and a visa would be immediately available to them upon approval of the alien relative petition. Unfortunately, siblings of USCs are not considered immediate relatives. Your sister falls in a family preference category in which there is currently a backlog of about twelve years (could be more depending on what country she's from). LPRs can petition all unmarried children, regardless of age. Once your parents enter the US as permanent residents, they can petition your sister as the child under 21 of an LPR. The backlog in that category is a couple of years. If she ages out of that category, i.e. turns 21, before a visa number becomes available, then she will automatically be transferred to the category of child over 21 of LPR. There is a much longer wait in that category. You can check out the wait times at http://travel.state.gov/content/visas/english/law-and-policy/bulletin.html.
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