Bringing mother-in-law into US through sponsorship or otherw

[pauld33]

I am trying to research this for my friend who is in a strange situation.

My friend is a US citizen and marrying a Canadian guy. Now she could sponsor him to come to US, but the problem is that his mother is dependent upon him, and he cares too much to just leave her in Canada.

So far the research she and I have done has not yielded any optimistic results about him being able to come to US with his mother. I don't think my friend can directly sponsor her mother-in-law, and he could only sponsor his mother after he becomes a US citizen. I have read that if he sponsors his mother after only getting a green card then it takes unnecessarily long. Way longer than if he were a citizen.

I do know that his mother can come and live with them for 6 months on tourist visa and then extend it by another 6 months, but they usually don't extend it beyond that.

Is there any way that he could bring his mother with him when his wife sponsors him so that the mother can live with them?

Thank you in advance.

[ElenaW]

I'm sorry but I'm afraid not . She can apply for a long term tourist visa or a different visa that she individually qualifies for. You're also right about the process taking incredibly long when one is not a citizen but a green card holder.

I suppose in a case like this, it's either best to move to Canada or visit his mother several times a year.

[Marco 72]

One possibility (perhaps a long shot) would be for the US citizen to move to Canada at first, find a job either with a US company, or for the US government, or for another institution that qualifies, and then for the Canadian spouse to apply for "expeditious naturalization" as a US citizen under section 319b of the INA. See here. This way the husband would become a US citizen without having to live in the US. He would then be able to move to the US with his wife and sponsor his mother right away.

By the way, a green card holder cannot petition for a parent at all - it's not even a matter of waiting a long time.

[pauld33]

One possibility (perhaps a long shot) would be for the US citizen to move to Canada at first, find a job either with a US company, or for the US government, or for another institution that qualifies, and then for the Canadian spouse to apply for "expeditious naturalization" as a US citizen under section 319b of the INA. See here. This way the husband would become a US citizen without having to live in the US. He would then be able to move to the US with his wife and sponsor his mother right away.

By the way, a green card holder cannot petition for a parent at all - it's not even a matter of waiting a long time.

Thank you! This is very helpful. I will tell her about this.

[ElenaW]

By the way, a green card holder cannot petition for a parent at all - it's not even a matter of waiting a long time.

Didn't know that. Thanks for pointing it out.

[saunderscolin15]

Green card holders can petition for their parents, they can even petition for their brothers and sisters as well. There are categories which is mentioned in state department website. Sure it takes tooo much time... Bless you and your friend
USAFIS
Immigration Consultant

[Marco 72]

Green card holders can petition for their parents, they can even petition for their brothers and sisters as well.

Not true. There are no family preference categories for the parents or siblings of a green card holder. See the State Department website.

USAFIS
Immigration Consultant

Beware of "immigration consultants". People who need help with immigration should hire an experienced immigration attorney. As this post has shown, some immigration consultants don't even know how the law works.