Asian Journal- The Filipino-American Community Newspaper

Dear Attorney Gurfinkel:

I was petitioned by my employer and adjusted status (received my green card) in the US in 2006. I was told that my employer’s petition of me also included my spouse and minor children in the Philippines, as "following to join" beneficiaries. I have been waiting many years for them to get their immigrant visas, but nothing seems to be happening.

Is there anything that I can do to hasten their cases, so that they can finally join me in the US?

Very truly yours,

BH

Dear BH:

"Following to join" enables the spouse and minor children of aliens who were petitioned and have adjusted status to permanent residence in the US (or who already received immigrant visas in Manila), to be included under the principal alien’s petition (whether it is a family or employment based petition) in certain circumstances. There would be no need to file a separate family-based petition for their spouse and children, as they are already included in the principal’s original employer petition, as derivative beneficiaries.

In the past, people who were petitioned by their employers (such as nurses, PT’s, and college level and skilled jobs), relied on the following to join procedure for their family members, as their family would typically be able to join the principal beneficiary within a few months, whereas a family petition might take 3 to 4 years.

However, times have changed and continue to do so, and the movement of the priority dates for employment based petitions has become erratic and unpredictable. On numerous occasions, the priority date in the third preference category (EB-3: nurses, physical therapists, skilled workers and college graduates) has moved forward, stagnated, retrogressed (moved backwards), or became "unavailable:. While following to join was once the faster way for family members to join the principal beneficiary in the US, that may no longer be the case, especially if the priority date retrogresses. This is because if a priority date was, at one point in time "current", but then retrogresses, the Embassy will not issue an immigrant visa to family members until the priority date is once again current.

At the present time, the priority date for third-preference workers is 2002. Therefore, if you had a priority date on your case which was after 2002 (i.e. your employer filed your case after 2002), your family has to sit and wait until your priority date once again becomes current. (This is the case even though you may have adjusted status in the US at a time when your priority date was current, but it then retrogressed).