Approval for Stepson

[C4Racer]

My wife received approval of the I-130 to bring her 18 year old son to live with us.

I know they want the parent to be there if the son or daughter is under 18.

They are not allowed to question minors without the parent/s present.

Will they want my wife to be there at the interview or can he go by himself?

 

[Randy W]

My wife received approval of the I-130 to bring her 18 year old son to live with us.

I know they want the parent to be there if the son or daughter is under 18.

They are not allowed to question minors without the parent/s present.

Will they want my wife to be there at the interview or can he go by himself?

 

 

 

She should TRY to be present at the actual interview, but, at the very least, should hand him her American passport to be placed on the counter in full view of the Interviewing Officer.

 

IR-2 DENIED 11:30 AM 11/21/05

[tsap seui]

My wife received approval of the I-130 to bring her 18 year old son to live with us.

I know they want the parent to be there if the son or daughter is under 18.

They are not allowed to question minors without the parent/s present.

Will they want my wife to be there at the interview or can he go by himself?

 

Interview day is one of the most important days of both of their lives. They wouldn't let me go in with them but I'd be outside waiting on my wife and son while they were inside. It's Guangzhou and the State Department...leave nothing to chance in that place and with those people.

 

Good luck with the interview.

 

tsap seui

Edited September 5, 2014 by tsap seui (see edit history)

[dnoblett]

You say stepson is 18, so from what I can understand stepson was less than 18 at time of marriage, so why did you not file the I-130 for a step child instead of wife filing it?

If U.S. Citizen step parent files the petition for step child the processing time would have been less than a year rather than 2007 to now.

 

However, yes it is recommended that a parent be there when child interviews.

[warpedbored]

Dan his wife is a naturalized citizen.

[dnoblett]

Dan his wife is a naturalized citizen.

Timeline shows:

 

I-130 Timeline for Stepson

Sent I-130 : July 17, 2007

Rcv'd NOA 1 : Aug 2, 2007

Rcv'd RFE : Dec 21, 2007

Sent Evidence : Mar 5, 2008

 

Citizenship

Sent N-400 to NSC : Sept 16, 2008

Rcv'd NOA1: Oct 2, 2008

Test: Jan 13, 2009

Sworn in: Jan 14, 2009

 

Green-card holder filed I-130 before becoming a citizen, it would have been better and quicker if U.S. citizen step parent had filed it back in Aug 2007, yet even with naturalization I wonder why spouse did not inform NVC or USCIS of this getting the case bumped from F2A to F1 which would have gotten the visa pushed back late 2008 early 2009, only thing I can think may have been a custody issue, waiting till after age 18 would allow step child to decide.

[bobbyA]

My wife received approval of the I-130 to bring her 18 year old son to live with us.

I know they want the parent to be there if the son or daughter is under 18.

They are not allowed to question minors without the parent/s present.

Will they want my wife to be there at the interview or can he go by himself?

 

How do you know "they want the parent to be there if the son or daughter is under 18"? And where did you get "They are not allowed to question minors without the parent/s present."?

 

For your reference, my friend Tim (U.S. Citizen) petitioned his 16-year-old stepson's IR2 visa and the interview took place about 6 weeks ago in Guangzhou. Tim and his wife (10-year green card) went to Guangzhou planning to accompany the 16-year-old the entire duration from medical, interview, to POE.

 

Tim emailed the consulate asking for permission to accompany his just-turned-16-year-old (in April) stepson at the interview. The consulate replied, "Your beneficiary reaches age 16. And only kids under age 16 is allowed to have adult accompanied."

 

So Tim did not accompany his stepson during the interview. Tim did not give his U.S. passport to the 16-year-old because he decided to keep it in case he needed to enter the consulate himself. The 16-year-old came out of the interview smiling and told his parents he passed the interview. Interestingly, he was asked a few questions about his mother and nothing about his stepfather (the petitioner).

 

He was asked when his mother went to the U.S. and when was the last time she came to visit him in China.

 

So the interview went well for Tim's stepson, but they were caught in the Department of State computer crash. It delayed the visa by about 2 weeks, then they had to work the CITIC bank to release the stepson's passport because the crash caused a glut of passports after the system partially recovered.

 

No drama at the POE, the stepson got his SS card about 11 days after POE. Still waiting on his green card; the USCIS said the card went into production two days ago.

 

I do think letting the beneficiary show the petitioner's U.S. passport at the interview is a good thing, and that's what I did for my then-fiancee's interview.

 

Every case is different, but at least we know from Tim's recent experience that only kids under 16 can be accompanied by an adult. But it doesn't hurt to try or to email the consulate prior to the interview since rules can change.

[C4Racer]

 

Dan his wife is a naturalized citizen.

Timeline shows:

 

I-130 Timeline for Stepson

Sent I-130 : July 17, 2007

Rcv'd NOA 1 : Aug 2, 2007

Rcv'd RFE : Dec 21, 2007

Sent Evidence : Mar 5, 2008

 

Citizenship

Sent N-400 to NSC : Sept 16, 2008

Rcv'd NOA1: Oct 2, 2008

Test: Jan 13, 2009

Sworn in: Jan 14, 2009

 

Green-card holder filed I-130 before becoming a citizen, it would have been better and quicker if U.S. citizen step parent had filed it back in Aug 2007, yet even with naturalization I wonder why spouse did not inform NVC or USCIS of this getting the case bumped from F2A to F1 which would have gotten the visa pushed back late 2008 early 2009, only thing I can think may have been a custody issue, waiting till after age 18 would allow step child to decide.

 

The I-130 filed in 2007 was filed by me as the step-parent. It went all the way the consulate interview. We were unable to get the father to sign a letter of consent. Next step, wait till he is 18 and can make his own decision. No letter needed. This is where we are today. Since she is now it USC, it only made sense to file using her name.

[C4Racer]

 

My wife received approval of the I-130 to bring her 18 year old son to live with us.

I know they want the parent to be there if the son or daughter is under 18.

They are not allowed to question minors without the parent/s present.

Will they want my wife to be there at the interview or can he go by himself?

 

How do you know "they want the parent to be there if the son or daughter is under 18"? And where did you get "They are not allowed to question minors without the parent/s present."?

 

For your reference, my friend Tim (U.S. Citizen) petitioned his 16-year-old stepson's IR2 visa and the interview took place about 6 weeks ago in Guangzhou. Tim and his wife (10-year green card) went to Guangzhou planning to accompany the 16-year-old the entire duration from medical, interview, to POE.

 

Tim emailed the consulate asking for permission to accompany his just-turned-16-year-old (in April) stepson at the interview. The consulate replied, "Your beneficiary reaches age 16. And only kids under age 16 is allowed to have adult accompanied."

 

So Tim did not accompany his stepson during the interview. Tim did not give his U.S. passport to the 16-year-old because he decided to keep it in case he needed to enter the consulate himself. The 16-year-old came out of the interview smiling and told his parents he passed the interview. Interestingly, he was asked a few questions about his mother and nothing about his stepfather (the petitioner).

 

He was asked when his mother went to the U.S. and when was the last time she came to visit him in China.

 

So the interview went well for Tim's stepson, but they were caught in the Department of State computer crash. It delayed the visa by about 2 weeks, then they had to work the CITIC bank to release the stepson's passport because the crash caused a glut of passports after the system partially recovered.

 

No drama at the POE, the stepson got his SS card about 11 days after POE. Still waiting on his green card; the USCIS said the card went into production two days ago.

 

I do think letting the beneficiary show the petitioner's U.S. passport at the interview is a good thing, and that's what I did for my then-fiancee's interview.

 

Every case is different, but at least we know from Tim's recent experience that only kids under 16 can be accompanied by an adult. But it doesn't hurt to try or to email the consulate prior to the interview since rules can change.

 

The Consulate needing the parents present because they are not allowed by law to interview a minor child is something I have heard from various lawyers throughout the last few years. This doesn't mean all consular officers know or follow the rules. It sounds like it should be no problem if she is there or not. This is what I figured as he is 18, but I just thought it couldn't hurt to ask.

Thanks