Whether you are a US citizen petitioning for a spouse or parent, or a lawful permanent resident sponsoring a husband, wife, or unmarried child, family-based immigration starts with Form I-130 (Petition for Alien Relative). The exact wait, the documents, and the next step after approval all hinge on which family category you fall into and where your beneficiary lives. This 2026 guide covers immediate-relative vs. family-preference categories, step-by-step I-130 filing for both US-citizen and LPR petitioners, current I-130 wait times by country from the Department of State Visa Bulletin, and what actually happens after the petition is approved.
Which family members can you sponsor?
Family-based immigration splits into two broad tracks. Immediate Relatives (IR) of US citizens are exempt from annual per-country caps under INA §201(b) — there is no waiting line, only USCIS processing time. Family Preference categories are subject to annual per-country caps set by Congress, so waits are driven by the State Department's Visa Bulletin priority-date movement.
| Category | Relationship | Petitioner | Cap? |
|---|---|---|---|
| IR-1 / CR-1 | Spouse of US citizen | US citizen | No (immediate relative) |
| IR-2 | Unmarried child under 21 of US citizen | US citizen | No (immediate relative) |
| IR-5 | Parent of US citizen (petitioner ≥21) | US citizen | No (immediate relative) |
| F1 | Unmarried son/daughter of US citizen (21+) | US citizen | Yes (~26,400/yr + carryover) |
| F2A | Spouse + minor child of LPR | Permanent resident | Yes (~87,900/yr, ~77% reserved) |
| F2B | Unmarried son/daughter (21+) of LPR | Permanent resident | Yes (~26,400/yr + carryover) |
| F3 | Married son/daughter of US citizen | US citizen | Yes (~23,400/yr + carryover) |
| F4 | Brother or sister of US citizen | US citizen | Yes (~65,000/yr + carryover) |
Source: INA §§201(b), 201(c), 203(a); Department of State Visa Bulletin — Annual Limits.
Practical takeaway: if you naturalize to US citizenship, your immediate-relative spouse and minor children move out of the F2A cap-bound queue entirely. Green card holders have only F2A, F2B, and F4-equivalent options available to them, all of which carry longer priority-date waits.
I-130 step-by-step filing guide
Form I-130 establishes the qualifying family relationship between the petitioner and the beneficiary. Both US citizens and lawful permanent residents file the same USCIS form; the difference is which categories the petitioner is eligible to file under and what evidence establishes the relationship.
Path A — US citizen petitioner
- Confirm eligibility. US citizen by birth, naturalization, or acquisition; petitioner must be at least 21 to file for a parent.
- Open a USCIS online account at myaccount.uscis.gov and start the I-130 form. Digital filing is available for most categories as of 2026 and reduces RFE risk.
- Attach proof of citizenship (naturalization certificate, U.S. passport biographic page, or birth certificate) and proof of relationship — marriage certificate for spouse petitions (plus Form I-130A for the beneficiary's information), birth certificates for parent/child petitions.
- Pay the filing fee: $625 base fee under the April 2024 fee rule. Add $85 biometrics for adjust-status beneficiaries in selected categories.
- Mail or submit online, then monitor your myUSCIS account for the receipt number, biometrics appointment (if applicable), and adjudication.
Path B — Permanent resident petitioner
- Confirm eligibility. You must hold a valid green card and be physically resident in the United States or its territories at the time of filing.
- File Form I-130 for F2A (spouse, minor unmarried children) or F2B (unmarried adult children). F1, F3, F4 are not available to LPR petitioners; if you naturalize first the categories reopen.
- Provide the same evidence pack as Path A — green card as proof of status, marriage certificate + I-130A for spouse petitions, birth certificate for a child.
- Pay the same $625 fee. LPR petitioners do not have access to a longer immediate-relative window; the petition sits in the F2A/F2B queue until the priority date becomes current.
- Track priority-date movement on the State Department Visa Bulletin each month. Once your priority date is current, NVC processing begins automatically.
I-130 wait times by country
The wait between I-130 filing and finally getting a green card has two layers. The first is USCIS adjudication time — how long until the I-130 itself is approved. The second is the visa-availability back-log — for family preference categories only, the State Department assigns a Final Action Date each month. Your priority date must become current (i.e., pass the Final Action Date in your chargeability area) before NVC processing can begin.
As of the February 2026 Visa Bulletin, key family-preference Final Action Date movements include:
| Category | Chargeability Area | Approx. Final Action Date |
|---|---|---|
| F2A | All countries (excl. Mexico / Philippines) | Current |
| F2A | Mexico | ~ 15-AUG-2021 |
| F2A | Philippines | ~ 15-AUG-2021 |
| F4 | India | ~ 15-NOV-2006 |
| F4 | Mexico | ~ 15-MAR-2001 |
| F4 | Philippines | ~ 15-MAR-2004 |
| F3 | All countries | ~ 22-JUL-2010 (varies) |
Source: U.S. Department of State, February 2026 Visa Bulletin. Dates are approximate Final Action Dates from the most recent bulletin; consult the current bulletin for the exact cut-off.
For Immediate Relatives (IR-1, IR-2, IR-5), the wait is just USCIS adjudication time — typically 8 to 20 months at most service centers in 2026. There is no wait for visa availability once the I-130 is approved; NVC moves into step 1 immediately.
See live USCIS I-130 processing times by service center and the current Visa Bulletin for up-to-date priority-date movement. Once your priority date is current, USCIS will forward the case to the Department of State's National Visa Center (NVC) automatically.
After I-130 approval: consular processing vs adjustment of status
Once USCIS approves the I-130, the path forks based on where the beneficiary is living and which preference category applies.
If the beneficiary lives outside the United States — consular processing
- USCIS forwards the approved petition to the National Visa Center (NVC).
- NVC collects Form DS-260 (Online Application for Immigrant Visa), the I-864 Affidavit of Support, civil documents (birth/marriage certificates, police clearances), and supporting evidence.
- NVC schedules the consular interview once the case is documentarily qualified and the priority date is current.
- The beneficiary attends a medical exam and the consular interview at the US embassy or consulate in their country. Consular officers confirm eligibility, security clearances, and the I-864 sponsor's ability to support.
- If approved, the beneficiary receives an IR-1, CR-1, F2A, or other immigrant visa and enters the US within the validity window as a permanent resident (conditional or unconditional depending on marriage duration at admission).
If the beneficiary is already in the United States — adjustment of status
- Wait until a visa number is available (current for IR categories and most F2A; backlogged for F1/F2B/F3/F4).
- File Form I-485 (Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status) with USCIS, attaching the I-864, medical exam (Form I-693), and supporting evidence.
- Concurrent filings — I-130 + I-485 in F2A is now allowed because F2A is typically current; for backlogged preference categories, I-485 must wait for the priority date.
- Adjustment applicants may apply for employment authorization (EAD, Form I-765) and advance parole (Form I-131) while I-485 is pending.
- USCIS schedules a biometrics appointment, may schedule an adjustment interview, and finally approves or denies the I-485.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does an I-130 petition take in 2026?
For Immediate Relatives (spouses, unmarried children under 21 of US citizens, and parents of US citizens), I-130 is exempt from annual per-country caps under INA §201(b) — current USCIS processing is roughly 8 to 20 months depending on service center. For Family Preference categories (F1, F2B, F3, F4) wait times are determined by the State Department Visa Bulletin and the Final Action Date in your chargeability area. F2A is current for most countries in mid-2026 but backlogged for Mexico and the Philippines. F4 for India and Mexico is currently in priority-date territory from the early 2000s in many cases. Check the current Visa Bulletin at travel.state.gov for the exact Final Action Date for your category and country.
How much is the I-130 filing fee in 2026?
The Form I-130 base filing fee is $625 per petition under the April 2024 USCIS fee rule (effective April 1, 2024). If the beneficiary is living in the US and will adjust status concurrently, an additional $85 biometrics fee applies for most adult applicants. There is no separate USCIS fee for Form I-130A. Premium processing is not available for I-130 family petitions. After I-130 approval the beneficiary will pay separate fees for NVC processing, the DS-260, the medical exam, and either consular processing abroad or Form I-485 adjustment of status in the United States.
Can I work in the US while waiting on an I-130 petition?
I-130 itself does not grant work authorization — it is purely a family relationship petition. If the beneficiary is in the US and wants to work while waiting, options include: H-4 EAD if the principal H-1B holder has an approved I-140 and the beneficiary is their spouse; L-2 EAD for spouses of L-1 intracompany transferees; K-3/K-4 visas (spouse or child of US citizen waiting on I-130); or a standalone work-authorized status such as H-1B, O-1, L-1, or F-1 OPT. Beneficiaries living abroad cannot legally work in the US until their immigrant visa is issued or they change status.
Can my unmarried children under 21 immigrate with me as derivatives?
Yes — minor unmarried children (under 21) of an approved principal beneficiary generally immigrate as derivatives under INA §203(d) so long as they remain unmarried and under 21 when the immigrant visa is issued. The Child Status Protection Act (CSPA) can shield an applicant from aging out if the age-out calculation is favorable; CSPA locks in a child's age at the time of I-130 approval less the time the petition was pending. If a derivative child misses the principal beneficiary's visa availability window, they can sometimes immigrate later via Form I-824 follow-to-join approval. Children who have aged out generally need their own I-130 petition (often in F2B or F1) and a long wait.
What happens after I-130 approval?
After USCIS approves the I-130, the case is forwarded to the Department of State's National Visa Center (NVC). NVC collects civil documents, the Affidavit of Support (I-864), and the DS-260 immigrant visa application, then schedules an interview at the US embassy or consulate in the beneficiary's country. If the beneficiary is already in the US in a valid nonimmigrant status, they may instead file Form I-485 to adjust status once a visa number is available. The exact path depends on the immigrant category, the beneficiary's location, and current visa bulletin movement in their chargeability area.
What is the removal of conditions and when is Form I-751 required?
If a US citizen or permanent resident obtained a CR1 or CR2 conditional resident visa by marrying a US citizen and the marriage was less than 2 years old when the green card was issued, the conditional resident must file Form I-751 Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence within the 90-day window before the 2-year conditional card expires. Failure to file I-751 on time puts the beneficiary at risk of abandonment and removal. Children of the conditional resident usually become unconditional residents automatically when the parent's conditions are removed.
Should I file K-3 or just I-130 for my spouse?
K-3 (and K-4 for children) was designed to let a foreign-citizen spouse of a US citizen enter the US to wait for I-130 processing rather than wait abroad. In practice, K-3 has been obsolete since the State Department's decision to issue CR1/IR1 visas concurrently with I-130 approvals — current processing typically delivers a CR1 spouse visa within the same overall window as a K-3, without the extra step. New practitioners rarely recommend K-3. The current best-practice path for a US-citizen spouse abroad is: file I-130 → wait for NVC processing → attend consular interview → receive CR1 immigrant visa → enter the US as a conditional or unconditional permanent resident.
What is the sponsor's income requirement for an Affidavit of Support (I-864)?
For most family-based immigrant visa and adjustment-of-status cases, the US citizen or permanent resident sponsor must file Form I-864 Affidavit of Support demonstrating income at or above 125% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines for the sponsor's household size (100% for active-duty military sponsors). If the sponsor's income alone does not meet the threshold, they can use assets, a joint sponsor with independent income at 125%, or household-member income. I-864 is a legally binding contract — the sponsor remains financially responsible for the beneficiary until the beneficiary has worked 40 qualifying Social Security quarters, become a US citizen, permanently departed the US, or died.
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