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What is the V Visa? The Legal Immigration Family Equity Act and its
amendments (LIFE Act) established a new nonimmigrant category (V) within the
immigration law that allows the spouse or child of a U.S. Lawful Permanent
Resident to live and work in the United States in a nonimmigrant category. The
spouse or child can remain in the United States while they wait until they are
able to apply for lawful permanent residence status (Adjusting Status), or for
an immigrant visa, instead of having to wait outside the United States as the
law previously required.
Who is Eligible?
A person may apply at a U.S. consulate abroad for a V-1 or V-2 visa or seek
V-1 or V-2 nonimmigrant status while in the United States, if that person:
- is lawfully married to a Lawful Permanent Resident of the United States
(V-1), or is the unmarried child (under the age of 21) of a Lawful Permanent
Resident (V-2); and is the principal beneficiary of a relative petition (Form
I-130) that was filed by the Lawful Permanent Resident spouse/parent on or
before December 21, 2000; and has been waiting at least 3 years since the
petition was filed for status as a Lawful Permanent Resident because the
petition is still pending, or has been approved but: an immigrant visa is not
yet available; or,
- there is a pending application to adjust status or application for an
immigrant visa.
The derivative child of a V-1 or V-2 nonimmigrant is eligible for a V-3 visa
or for V-3 status.
Can I Travel Outside the United States?
If you obtain a V nonimmigrant visa from a consular office abroad, you may be
inspected and admitted to the United States in V nonimmigrant status after
traveling abroad as long as you continue to possess a valid, unexpired V visa
and remain eligible for V nonimmigrant status.
When you are granted V nonimmigrant status in the United States by the INS, you
will need to obtain a V visa from a consular office abroad in order to be
inspected and admitted to the United States as a V nonimmigrant after traveling
abroad. (You will not need to apply for a V visa abroad in order to be admitted
if you have traveled to contiguous territories or adjacent islands, have another
(different category) valid visa, and are eligible for automatic revalidation.)
Procedures for obtaining a V nonimmigrant visa abroad are found in the
Department of State regulations at 22 CFR 41.86 (66 FR 19390, April 16, 2001).
In addition, you must remain eligible for admission in V nonimmigrant status.
A V nonimmigrant with a pending Form I-485, Application to Register Permanent
Residence or Adjust Status, does not need to obtain advance parole prior to
traveling abroad. This means that an alien in V nonimmigrant status may be
readmitted as a nonimmigrant despite the fact that he or she is an intending
immigrant with a filed application for adjustment of status or an immigrant
visa. The departure of a V nonimmigrants with a, pending applications for
adjustment of status is not considered to have abandoned the adjustment
application upon departure.
Important Note: If you have accrued more than 180 days of unlawful presence in
the United States (or 365 days), then travel abroad and are admitted or
readmitted as a V nonimmigrant, you have triggered a 3- or 10-year bar to
admission. The law exempts V nonimmigrants from the 3- (or 10-) year bar for
purposes of admission to the United States as a V nonimmigrant but does not
exempt them from the bar when they later apply for an immigrant visa or for
adjustment to LPR status. That means that although you will be admitted or
readmitted to the United States in V status, you may be unable to adjust status
to LPR unless an individual waiver for that ground of inadmissibility is
granted. To the extent that you may be eligible, you may apply for the waivers
found at section 212(g), (h), (i), and (a)(9)(B)(v) of the Act. |
