Migrants may enter the US to join family members for the purposes of permanent residence under a worldwide level, or quota, established for the entry of family sponsored immigrants. However ‘immediate relatives’ under section 201(2)(A), which include children, spouses and parents of US citizens, may enter the country with no numerical limitation on their entry.  Parents of US citizens must be over the age of 21. 

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Migrants may enter the US to join family members for the purposes of permanent residence under a worldwide level, or quota, established for the entry of family sponsored immigrants. However ‘immediate relatives’ under section 201(2)(A), which include children, spouses and parents of US citizens, may enter the country with no numerical limitation on their entry.  Parents of US citizens must be over the age of 21.  Other family members are given preferred allocated places as defined in section 203 (a) and are subject to numerical limitations. These include unmarried sons and daughters of US citizens whose entry must not exceed 23,400 people, spouses and unmarried sons and daughters of permanently resident immigrants (so called ‘green card holders’) at an initial number which may not exceed 114,200 people, married sons and daughters of US citizens at of figure of less than 23,400 and brothers or sisters of US citizens over 21 at a figure of 65,000 people.

The final figure for the worldwide level or quota of family member entrants is calculated on a complex basis. The initial figure is set under section 201(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) at 480,000 from which the number of immigrants who acquired lawful status to enter the US as family sponsored immigrants in the previous fiscal year must first be deducted. Under section 201(4), the number of persons paroled into the US for urgent humanitarian reasons (see 8.2-Immigration Law and Policy) who did not depart from the US within 1 year or who did not acquire lawful status of admission to the US for permanent residence in the two preceding years, or who acquired such status in such years under a provision of law exempted such from the worldwide levels or quotas of immigration (see 8.2-Immigration Law and Policy) must then be taken from the 480, 000. Once the two figures have been deducted from the 480 000 the remaining figure must then be added under section 201 (3) to the difference between the worldwide level established for the previous year and the actual number of visas issued. The final figure may not go below 260,000, as stated in section 201(c) B(ii).

Family members of persons granted asylum, under section 208 (3), will be granted the same status as the principal applicants if they are accompanying or following to join them. This includes the spouse or child of the applicant. The term ‘child’ is defined under section 101(b)(1) (A)-(E) as a child under the age of 21; who was born in wedlock; a stepchild if under the age of 18 at the time of the marriage creating their status; a child legitimated by law; a child born out of wedlock if they have a bona fide parent-child relationship with one of their natural parents; or an adopted child under the age of 18, who has been in the legal custody of their parents for at least two years.

Analysis provided by: Anisa Niaz LLM (Public Law), United Kingdom.

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