How soon can I start filing for my twenty one year old daughter? 9 Answers as of November 30, 2011

You can petition for her as soon as you become a permanent resident but depending on her country of birth, it may be a long process. In the meantime, however, if your daughter is eligible she might be able to get a student visa or an employment-based visa to come to the US.

As a resident, you can file an I-130 petition immediately for your 21 year old daughter. She will have to wait until there is a visa available before she enters as a resident.

Once you have a green card, you can file for her. It will take several years for her to use that petition to get a green card however it is a start. In the meantime she may be able to obtain her own school or work visa to be in the US. I encourage you to have a full consult with a competent immigration attorney to evaluate her options.

As long as she is unmarried, you can file for her as soon as you receive your lawful permanent residence. There is a backlog in the category for unmarried sons and daughters over the age of 21 and it will be a several year wait before she is eligible to immigrate. However, you will be eligible for citizenship after you have been a permanent resident for three years and once you obtain your citizenship, your daughter's case will be converted to a different category and the wait times are significantly less. Additionally, there is no category for married daughters of a permanent resident, so if she is married, she will have to wait until you are a citizen before you can file for her. For more information about the visa categories and wait times, please see the current visa bulletin which can be accessed here: http://travel.state.gov/visa/bulletin/bulletin_5603.html

You can petition for your daughter as soon as you become a lawful permanent resident. Please keep in mind that your daughter cannot be in the United States without lawful immigration status or else she will not be able to adjust her status in the United States and may need a waiver to re-enter the country.

As soon as you get your LPR card.

As soon as you are a permanent resident you can file for your 21 year old daughter provided she is unmarried. She will be in the FB-2b queue until you become a citizen yourself. If she does get married before you become a citizen then she will lose her place in line.

Once you get your permanent residence, you can start the process for her as the FB-2B unmarried adult child of an LPR. After you naturalize, she upgrades to the FB-1. Check the DOS visa bulletin for priority date processing times.

As soon as you get your green card you can file for your daughter. The bad news is that it will take anywhere from 5 to 8 years to get her here.