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Washington, D.C.—As of March 4, 2013, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security will permit certain visa applicants to file for family unity waivers within the United States, reducing the amount of time families must spend apart.
“We applaud the Obama Administration for prioritizing family unity by easing burdensome bureaucratic hurdles,” said Erin E. Oshiro, senior staff attorney at the Asian American Justice Center.
Under current immigration law, U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents (LPRs) can apply for a green card for their spouse or child. However, many applicants and their families face long backlogs in obtaining a green card, forcing many families to live apart for years. Under the new rule, certain eligible family members may apply for a provisional unlawful presence waiver (also called the family unity waiver) prior to leaving the United States for their visa interview in their home country. With an approved waiver in hand, these family members can then complete their travel and visa appointment in a short time and avoid spending additional time in their home countries separated from loved ones in the United States.
Asian Americans are the most likely group to have family members caught in the visa backlogs. While Asian Americans are only six percent of the U.S. population, they sponsor more than one third of all family-based immigrants. As of November 2012, there were nearly 1.9 million Asians in the family backlog, with close family members from the Philippines, India, Vietnam and China experiencing the longest wait times.
All applicants will still have to leave the United States for their home country visa interviews, and they must show that a three or ten year bar from the United States would cause their U.S. citizen spouse or parent extreme hardship..
