Many Filipino parents petition their single children, and then wait for many years for their priority dates to become current. While waiting, circumstances could change, such as the child getting married. Years later, the parent receives notices from the National Visa Center (NVC), advising that it is time to fill out forms and pay various processing fees. The parent dutifully performs all these acts, but is later shocked to find out that either their petition is no longer valid, or the waiting time will be many years longer. What happened? The parent may ask, “If my child’s marriage affected the petition, why did the NVC send the forms or take my money?”
The answer is that if you petitioned your child as single, and that child later got married, the marriage would either affect the validity of the petition itself, or result in a longer wait for the child. For example, if an immigrant parent files a petition for their single child (Category F-2B), and the child later gets married (before the parent naturalizes), that petition is considered void. On the other hand, if an American citizen parent petitions their child while the child is single (Category F-1), and the child gets married (Category F-3), it could add several additional years to the child’s waiting time for an immigrant visa.
So why did the NVC go ahead and send the forms or notices to the petitioner, and ask that the various processing fees be paid? The reason is that nobody invited the NVC to the child’s wedding. By that, I mean that you (as a petitioner or beneficiary) never notified the NVC of the child’s marriage. So, the NVC’s records still indicate that the child is single. The forms and fee requests were being sent based on the NVC’s record that the child is still single. Sending the forms and fees to you however, does not mean that the NVC will continue processing the case once the marriage is disclosed, or that this is somehow a “sign from Heaven” that the marriage will not affect the petition. (And it is critical that you not try to hide the marriage, or think it is a “secret marriage,” because the NVC/Embassy will investigate, and if they find the child’s marriage contract, it could be considered fraud if the child attempted to continue to claim himself as being single).
The bottom line is that if you never informed the NVC of your child’s marriage, it does not mean that the child is still entitled to be processed as “single.” That is why it is important that if there have been any material changes in circumstances since the time the petition was filed, you should notify the NVC.
The stakes could be very high when you fail to keep the government informed of various changes in circumstances, such as changes to your child’s marital status. That is why you should seek the advice of a reputable attorney, who can evaluate if there are other options or avenues available to you. For example, as noted above, if a parent petitioned their child while the parent was an immigrant, and the child got married, the petition is void. But if the parent later naturalizes, a new petition can be filed for their married child. While the child will get a new priority date, it is better than nothing. I have known of many circumstances where, although the original petition was terminated as a result of the child’s marriage, a new petition could have been filed many years ago. However, the parent just sat on the old, void petition, rather than filing a new petition. Similarly, proper annulments (or divorce) could also affect or shorten the waiting time for a child’s case. And such new options and avenues for immigrating to the US could be uncovered through the advice of a reputable attorney.
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