IMMIGRANT VISAS

Family-Based Immigrant Petition

Adjudication of immigrant visa petitions filed by persons resident in the United States is the responsibility of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS), formerly named the U.S. Immigrant and Naturalization Service (INS). After USCIS approves a petition, it is assigned to one of the U.S. Embassies or Consulates overseas designated to process certain immigrant visa applications. Petitioners and immigrant visa applicants should anticipate a 4 to 6 month wait or possibly longer for the petition to arrive at the designated U.S. Embassy or Consulate.

Effectively immediately, consular posts abroad will accept I-130 petitions for immediate relative immigrant classification from American citizens who are resident in their consular districts.  To demonstrate residency in a consular district, American citizen petitioners must be able to show that they have permission to reside in the consular district and that they have been doing so continuously for at least six months before filing the I-130 petition.  Individuals who are in country on a temporary status, such as students or tourists, would not meet the residency standard.

All lawful permanent residents, and American citizens resident in the U.S. or with a permanent address in the U.S., must file I-130 petitions at the USCIS Service Center having jurisdiction over their place of residence (as indicated on USCIS website: http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/i-130.pdf).

For filing a petition for a spouse or fiance(e) of an American citizen, please click here.

For filing a petition for other family members, please click here.

All immigration forms, including the I-130 petition, can be obtained online at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website.

There is a non-refundable fee of USD $185 (or RO 74.000) for filing the I-130 petition. This fee is payable in cash, in U.S. dollars or Omani rials, at the time of filing.

When the I-130 petition is filed, the petitioner will be given a number of documents and forms by the Consular Section. These documents and forms must be filled out completely before the immigrant visa process can move forward (see "Completing the Immigrant Visa Process" link on the left-hand side of this page for more information).