How to Bring Thai Children to the USA - K2 & K4 Visas
CHILDREN TO THE USA?The child or children of a Thai fiancée or spouse
enters the United States on a derivative visa. This means that a Thai
fiancée who enters the US on a K-1 Fiancée visa will be able to bring
her child on a K-2 visa, a derivative visa of the K-1. For a Thai
spouse who enters the United States on a K-3 visa a K-4 visa will be
used to bring in the Thai child. For an IR-1/CR-1 visa, the Thai
children will enter the United States on derivative visas (IR-2/CR-2)
of their Thai mother.DO I NEED TO HAVE SEPARATE IMMIGRATION PETITIONS
FILED ON BEHALF THE CHILDREN OF MY THAI FIANCÉE OR SPOUSE?Children of
a Thai fiancée or spouse do not need to have a separate K-1/K-3
petition filed on their behalf. However, the US Citizen Spouse should
make sure to name all of the Thai fiancée or spouse's children on the
K-1/K-3 petition. A failure to name all of the Thai fiancée/spouse's
children on the petition could result in difficult immigration
experience for the Thai children. A separate I-130 immigrant visa
petition must be filed for each of the Thai fiancée/spouse's children
before they will be eligible to obtain permanent residence. To adjust
their status in the United States, the Thai children must do so at
their local USCIS office or they should file the I-485 form to
register their permanent residence. In order to get permanent
residence derivative of their Thai parent, the child must be under
twenty one years of age and not married. Basically, for the K visas no
separate petition is necessary for the Thai fiancée/spouse's children.
For the IR-1/CR-1 Visas the Thai children will need separate petitions
filed on their behalf.
WHAT IF I DON'T NAME THE CHILDREN OF MY THAI LOVED ONE ON THE K-1/K-3 VISA
PETITION?A child of a Thai fiancée or wife who was not named on the K1/K3
petition is still entitled to a K2/K3 travel Visa provided the Thai child
can show that they are in fact the unmarried child of the Thai K1/K3 visa
holder. The US Embassy in Bangkok asks for a letter from the US Citizen
fiancé/spouse acknowledging that the Thai fiancée/spouse has children.ARE
ALL OF MY THAI FIANCEÉE/SPOUSE'S CHILDREN ELIGIBLE FOR A CHILD VISAAll
children under the age of 21 and unmarried are eligible for derivative
visas of your Thai fiancée or spouse. If the Thai children are over the
age of 21 or married they will not be eligible for a child visa. Thai
children over the age of 21 may still be considered children for
immigration purposes so long as the petition in question was filed prior
to the Thai child's 21st birthday.HOW DOES THE K-2/K-4 THAI CHILD ADJUST
THEIR STATUS IN THE US?The US Citizen must file an I-130 petition on
behalf of the Thai child in order for the Thai child to be able to adjust
his/her status to permanent residence. If the U.S. Citizen doesn't file
the I-130 petition then the Thai spouse may do so as soon as she is a
lawful permanent resident of the USA, but the Thai child would have to
wait for a visa number, which could take a great deal of time. Please
note, the Thai parent will no longer be in K-1/K-3 status, after adjusting
to legal permanent residence, hence, the Thai child will not be in lawful
K-2/K-4 status, since this is a derivative classification and only exists
so long as the Thai fiancée/spouse holds her K-1/K-3 Visa. If the Thai
child stays in the United States, without adjusting status to permanent
residence, after the Thai fiancée/spouse has adjusted status to permanent
residence, then the Thai child will be deemed out of status and thus in
the country unlawfully which can cause many problems, not least of which
is the fact that it could cause the Thai child to get deported or barred
from entering the USA for a certain period of time. For the above reasons
it is best if the US Citizens files an I-130 to adjust the Thai child's
status as soon as possible.
Thanks for Reading,This information is made available to provide general
information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide legal
advice about specific situations or problems. The information conveyed in
this article should not be construed as a substitute for legal advice from
a competent licensed professional in your jurisdiction.
Benjamin W. Hart is a licensed US Attorney and Member of the American
Immigration Lawyers Association. He currently lives in Bangkok,
Thailand and is the Managing Director of Integrity Legal, a legal
service in Thailand. Visit Integrity Legal on the web at: web:
integrity-legal .com
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