Brothers and Sisters of U.S. Citizens (F4)

To petition to bring your brother or sister to live in the United States as a green card holder, you must be a U.S. citizen and at least 21 years of age. Permanent residents may not petition to bring siblings to live permanently in the United States.

Your sibling’s marital status is not relevant but, if they are married, their spouses and children can immigrate at the same time. The children have to be unmarried and under the age of 21 at the time you apply. If they turn 21 during the process, you can subtract the time that your visa petition was pending from their age at the time that their priority date becomes current under the Child Status Protection Act.

The process of sponsoring siblings for US green cards can be lengthy because Congress has put a limit on the number of persons allowed to immigrate under the sibling category each year.

To learn more about your options contact our San Francisco law firm to speak with one of our immigration attorneys.