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Asked over 2 years ago - New York, NY
Flagas in from the starting of the application to the getting of the green card
I agree with my colleague -the Family 4th preference is the slowest, with a current wait in the 10-11 year range. The wait for priority date won't really be impacted by the fact of being from Jamaica (only a few countries are so-high-vilume that they have separate timelines, and Jamaica isn't one of them).
Once the priority date is current and consular processing will proceed, the additional wait will depend on the backlog for immigrant visa processing through Jamaica at that point - no way to predict this so far in advance, but now the range for this part of the process is normally three to eight months.
While it does make sense to get the process moving because of how long the wait is, one thing you should know: once an I-130 is on file, it may be difficult for the beneficiary to enter the U.S. as a visitor, since this type of entry requires the intent to only visit and then return home, while the I-130 shows an intent to come here permanently.
The sibling of U.S. citizens category can take 10-11 years. It is one of the slowest moving family-based preference categories. If you plan to petition for a sibling, it would be wise to file the petition sooner rather than later. An immigration attorney can go over the process for you.
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Seeta Nangia
415-273-9123
seeta@nangialaw.com
www.nangialaw.com
At the State Department website -- www.travel.state.gov they monthly publish a Visa Bulletin (comes out on the tenth fo the month for the following month). You can study the current month and the archives to see how it goes backwards and forwards but the estimates provided by my colleagues are accurate. There may be other options for you to consider that woudl be faster. If you wish a consultation on these feel free to contact me as indicated below.
Lynne R. Feldman, Attorney at Law
Concentrating in Immigration and Nationality Law
2221 Camino Del Rio South, Suite 201
San Diego, CA 92108
phone: (619) 299-9600, facsimile: (619) 923-3277
email: lynne@feldmanfeldman.com
website: www.immigrateme.com
Formerly Adjunct Professor -- Immigration law
University of Illinois College of Law
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