QUESTION
NVC degraded preference category from F2A to F2B
Asked on Feb 24th, 2016 on Immigration - Virginia
More details to this question:
Hello, I just want to know what I can do if NVC suddenly degrades a visa category from F2A to F2B. We have been processing my sister's petition and have already paid Affidavit of Support and Immigration Visa Fees, totalling $325 and $120 respectively. We were also asked to send all financial documents and support to the NVC which they have acknowledged receiving in November 2015. Now the priority date for F2A is Sept 2014. My sister's priority date is Aug 13, 2014. We followed up with them and the call center agent said her category was changed to F2B. Her birthday is August 1994 and her priority date was Aug 13, 2014. So that should freeze her age to 20 years old. The call center agent said we should request for consideration under Child Protection Status Act. But why should I do that? She is clearly under 21 as what USCIS correctly categorized her under F2A when the petition was approved. What should we do? Thank you for the response.
1 ANSWER
Immigration and Nationality Law Attorney serving New York, NY
Partner at
Alan Lee & Arthur Lee, Attorneys at Law
3 Awards
The priority date (or date of submission of the I-130 petition) does not freeze the date of the beneficiary's age in an F-2A case. Neither does an I-130 approval date. The F-2A category has a two-year backlog, and your sister turned the age of 21 one year after the case was submitted. Age is only frozen when the priority date is reached. Credit for age is allowed for the time that the I-130 is pending. Unless the l-130 petition took a year to be approved, she would not be credited with sufficient time to bring her age under the age of 21 when the priority date was reached. However, in the event that there was sufficient crediting of time on the I-130 petition pendency to bring her under the age of 21, she or your parent or your legal representative could request the NVC for consideration of The Child Status Protection Act. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee, Esq.'s (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.
Answered on Mar 23rd, 2016 at 11:25 AM