Green card for children

If you’re a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident, you can file a petition for certain children. The category depends on your status, your child’s age, and whether your child is married. Your child’s immigration history and the other green card requirements also need to be reviewed.

Before starting a petition, it’s worth checking whether your child is already a U.S. citizen through one of their parents. If so, the right step would be documenting their citizenship.

Here, “children” includes adult sons and daughters. Immigration categories distinguish between a child under 21 who is unmarried and an adult or married son or daughter. The CSPA can affect the age calculation.

Which category is your child in?

Age can be calculated in a special way under the Child Status Protection Act, known as the CSPA. That’s why turning 21 doesn’t always mean losing the category. Having no annual visa limit doesn’t mean the green card is immediate or guaranteed either.

Which family relationships can qualify?

Biological children can qualify, as can other relationships recognized by immigration law, including:

• Stepchildren: the marriage that created the relationship must have taken place before the child turned 18.
• Adopted children: the I-130 family petition path has specific requirements about age at the time of adoption, legal custody, and living together. Other adoptions go through the orphan or Hague Convention processes.
• Children born outside marriage: when the father files the petition, additional proof of the relationship recognized by law may be required.

How it works

1. Family petition. You file Form I-130 with proof of your status and of the relationship.
2. USCIS review. Approval recognizes the relationship the case is based on; the green card requirements still have to be met.
3. Visa availability. In the F1, F2A, F2B, and F3 categories, the priority date and the Visa Bulletin are checked. The priority date is usually the date USCIS properly received the petition.
4. Green card application. If your child is abroad, the process normally continues with the National Visa Center (NVC), the DS-260 form, documents, and the consular interview. If your child is in the United States and qualifies, they can apply for adjustment of status with Form I-485. In certain cases the I-130 and I-485 can be filed together.
5. Decision and admission, if applicable. Through consular processing, permanent residence begins when the child is admitted to the United States as an immigrant. Through adjustment of status, it begins when the I-485 is approved.

Do you need a petition for each child? A U.S. citizen generally files a separate I-130 for each child who qualifies as an immediate relative. That category doesn’t allow including the beneficiary’s own children as derivatives. In the preference categories there can be derivative beneficiaries: for example, the spouse and eligible children of an F3 beneficiary, or the eligible children of an F1, F2A, or F2B beneficiary. Each person must meet their own requirements.

Filing or approval of an I-130, by itself, doesn’t give immigration status, a work permit, or protection from removal.

Cost

These are the basic government fees for an ordinary family case, in U.S. dollars, verified as of October 13, 2026:

With an I-130 filed online, the same example totals $1,305. The NVC affidavit of support fee isn’t automatically multiplied for each family member: there are per-case billing rules and exceptions for certain related cases.

The example with an I-130 and an I-485 at the general fee, both on paper, totals $2,115. Age alone isn’t enough to get the reduced I-485 fee. Whether online filing is available depends on the form and the case.

The subtotals don’t include legal fees, the medical exam, translations, travel, or additional applications, such as work or travel permits. Exemptions and special procedures can change the cost. Check the fee when you file each application in the USCIS fee schedule and the State Department fee table.

Our fee: a flat representation fee. We give it to you at your consultation and in writing before we start. We offer payment plans.

Timing

The wait has several parts: review of the I-130, visa availability when there’s an annual limit, and the consular or adjustment process. In some cases those stages can overlap.

Children who qualify as immediate relatives of U.S. citizens don’t wait for an annual quota. For the other categories, check the current Visa Bulletin. The applicable column normally depends on the country of birth, with exceptions, and not simply on current nationality.

The Final Action Dates chart shows when a visa may be available for a final decision; it doesn’t guarantee an approval or an interview that month. The Dates for Filing chart may allow documents to be prepared earlier. To file an I-485, also check which chart USCIS allows that month.

USCIS processing times are estimates. There is no guaranteed total time, and Visa Bulletin dates can move forward, stall, or go backward.

Documents usually needed

Financial sponsorship creates legal obligations. When the I-864 is required, the petitioner normally must sign it even if a joint sponsor also takes part. The sponsor’s minimum age of 18, U.S. domicile, and financial resources are reviewed. A joint sponsor doesn’t replace all of those requirements. Some beneficiaries are exempt, including certain children who will automatically acquire citizenship when they enter as residents.

Next step

Book a consultation with Visia to review your child’s category, their history, and the available options.