Options for non-US citizen wife of GC holder (green card, uscis, application)
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Hey people. I`m planning a move to the U.S. from Canada. I have a couple of job offers, all of whom will sponsor me for an H1B to begin with and then a GC right after. They say the GC should take 1-2 years (I`m a doctor). My wife would be coming in on an H4 to begin with, but what options does she have after I get my Green Card? Our plan is for her to be a stay at home mom, but would she absolutely need to get a job and her own H1B so she could stay in the country? We don't have kids yet but when we do, they'll be Americans, so I'm not worried about their future legal status. Thanks.
Hi again and thanks for the replies. Although I know that I would be able to sponsor my wife as a permanent resident, I've heard that the delay between our application for her GC and actually getting it would be several to many years because I wouldn't be a US citizen yet. My question really pertained to that waiting period. There seems to be no H4 equivalent for a GC.
Hi again and thanks for the replies. Although I know that I would be able to sponsor my wife as a permanent resident, I've heard that the delay between our application for her GC and actually getting it would be several to many years because I wouldn't be a US citizen yet. My question really pertained to that waiting period. There seems to be no H4 equivalent for a GC.
If, as I suggested, you go to the linked USCIS website you'll find the information you need. Start off here and then go to the associated links to find the current visa availability/time frames:
Hi again and thanks for the replies. Although I know that I would be able to sponsor my wife as a permanent resident, I've heard that the delay between our application for her GC and actually getting it would be several to many years because I wouldn't be a US citizen yet. My question really pertained to that waiting period. There seems to be no H4 equivalent for a GC.
Dependents get their GCs at the same time as the primary applicant.
Both of you will get Green card at approximately same time. After Green Card, she can work. Now it also depends on what is you citizenship. If you possess say passport of country like India, you are looking at 10-15 years of wait time for getting green card on the basis of H-1B visa. If you have psssport of country like Germany, it is much faster. there is one very good forum site for information. Murthy Law Firm : U.S. Immigration Law
I appreciate the replies from all of you, but the question that I was originally asking pertains to the following statement I read on Wikipedia:
"Green card holders married to non-U.S. citizens are able to legally bring their spouses and minor children to join them in the USA, but only after an extensive multi-year delay, during which time the family is separated. The foreign spouse of a green card holder must wait for approval of an 'immigrant visa' from the State Department before entering the United States. Due to numerical limitation on the number of these visas, the current wait time for approval is four to five years for all non-retrogressed countries (including Western Europe), and many more for the retrogressed countries. In the interim, the spouse cannot be legally present in the United States (let alone work), unless he/she secures a visa for himself/herself using some other means."
Alright, so my work will sponsor my green card, but my wife is planning on being a stay at home mom, in other words, the only one who will sponsor her green card would be me....once I get it. So there's no way we can get our GCs at the same time. I have to get mine first. So the question is: is the paragraph that I have copied and pasted from wikipedia true? Will I have to be separated from my wife for several years while she's waiting to get her GC that I sponsored? Thanks again.
[LEFT][/LEFT] [SIZE=1]Can my relative wait in the United States until he or she [/SIZE] [SIZE=1]can become a permanent resident? [/SIZE][SIZE=1][SIZE=1]No. Your relative’s approved petition gives your relative a place in line among those waiting to immigrate. It does not give permission for your relative to live or work in the United States while he or she is waiting to apply for permanent residence. If he or she enters or stays without legal status, it will affect his or her eligibility to become a permanent resident upon reaching his or her place in line for issuance of a visa.
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So I guess the only way she would be able to live in the U.S. would be if she gets a job, has her own H1B??
[SIZE=1][SIZE=1] [/SIZE][/SIZE]
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