The family-based green card checklist — Form I-130

What this petition is

Form I-130 (Petition for Alien Relative) is the first step in most family-based US green card cases. The US-citizen or lawful-permanent-resident petitioner files I-130 with USCIS to establish a qualifying family relationship with the foreign beneficiary. Approval of the I-130 does not, by itself, grant any status, work authorization, or travel document — it only establishes the relationship. The beneficiary then either adjusts status in the United States (Form I-485) or processes the immigrant visa abroad through the National Visa Center and a US consulate.

Who files this petition

The category of relationship and the petitioner's status together decide how long the case will take and whether a visa number is immediately available:

• US citizens can petition for a spouse, an unmarried child under 21, a parent (if the petitioner is 21 or older), an unmarried adult son or daughter, a married son or daughter, or a sibling (if the petitioner is 21 or older).
• Lawful permanent residents can petition for a spouse, an unmarried child under 21, or an unmarried adult son or daughter.

Spouses, parents, and unmarried children under 21 of US citizens fall into the "immediate relative" categories and have no annual numerical cap. Every other relationship falls into the family-preference categories (F1, F2A, F2B, F3, F4) and is subject to the monthly Visa Bulletin.

The collection categories

ReRooted organises the I-130 family-based requirements around the documentary milestones USCIS and the Department of State look at:

1. Pre-application eligibility — petitioner status, the correct relationship category, priority-date awareness, and the AOS vs CP decision recorded in Part 4 of Form I-130.
2. Petition documents — Form I-130 itself, Form I-130A in spouse cases, proof of US citizenship or LPR status, and the relationship evidence.
3. Relationship evidence — for spouse cases, the body of bona-fide- marriage evidence (joint finances, joint household, shared social life, future commitments) that runs alongside the civil marriage certificate.
4. Civil documents — birth certificates, marriage certificates, divorce decrees, death certificates, certified translations.
5. Identity and biographic — passports, photos, and the address and employment history requested across the petition forms.
6. Financial sponsorship — the Affidavit of Support (Form I-864) and the petitioner's qualifying income evidence at the final-stage interview.
7. Background and admissibility — police certificates, court records, military records (where applicable), and the disclosable items declared on the immigration forms.
8. Filing and post-petition — the USCIS filing fee, the immigrant visa application processing fee paid to the National Visa Center, the medical exam scheduled at the appropriate stage, and the Form I-485 or DS-260 packet at the end.

The categories grid below shows the live count of requirements per category, sourced directly from the seed data behind every ReRooted tracker.

Common pitfalls

• Misreading the Visa Bulletin. Final Action Dates and Dates for Filing are different charts; USCIS announces every month which one applies to Form I-485 filings.
• Filing when the beneficiary has unlawful presence or entered without inspection. Adjustment of status is restricted in those situations. Get advice from a licensed immigration attorney before deciding AOS vs consular processing.
• A petitioner upgrading from LPR to USC mid-case but not informing USCIS. Upgrades can move a case from F2A to immediate-relative, but only if the petitioner notifies USCIS (and the National Visa Center if the case has already moved past USCIS).
• Treating I-130 approval as a green card. It is not. The case continues with the I-485 (if adjusting in the US) or the DS-260 (if consular processing).

For your specific situation, refer to USCIS and a licensed immigration attorney. The information above is organisational, not legal advice.