Immigration Corner | Did my petition die with my sister?

Dear Mrs Walker-Huntington,

In November 2013 my sister filed an immigration petition for me to immigrate to the United States.

I was informed that the process could take eight to 10 years. As such, since 2021, I have made repeated checks on the USCIS website and all that I was was told was that my I-130 form was received on November 1, 2013.

Sadly, my sister passed away on December 19, 2022. I do not know how this affects the process – whether it is now null and void, or there is still a good probability of approval given that the petition was received so long ago. Please advise with regards to any alternative facility which may allow the filing process to continue. Thank you ever so much.

Yours respectfully

CAB

Dear CAB,

A US citizen sibling filing for permanent residency for their immigrant sibling is the category that takes the longest. The waiting period fluctuates, and while when your sister filed it may have been taking eight to 10 years, it has been taking much longer than that time period. Currently, visas are available for persons who are in the F4 – sibling category – for those with priority dates earlier than January 1, 2008. By that calculation, even if the process moved forward a month at a time (which it does not), you still have a few years left to wait.

Condolences on the passing of your sister. When the petitioner dies, the petition dies with them. However, US immigration law has a provision known as ‘humanitarian reinstatement’ for which you can apply to revive your petition. Your petition should be approved by now and sent to the US Department of State for further processing. They will hold the file until it is close to the time for the visa to become available and begin to process the paperwork.

In the interest of time, if in fact your petition has been approved, you should notify the State Department of the death of your sister. The file will be returned to the US Citizenship& Immigration Services (USCIS) for revocation. You would contact USCIS to make the request for humanitarian reinstatement. If the petition has not yet been approved, contact USCIS to notify them of the death and request the humanitarian reinstatement.

Dahlia A. Walker-Huntington, Esq. is a Jamaican-American attorney who practises immigration law in the united states; and family, criminal and international law in Florida. She is a mediator and former special magistrate and hearing officer in Broward County, Florida. info@walkerhuntington.com