Family-Based Immigrant Visa Categories

The Immigration Act of 1990 presented Congress' most recent revision of the visa allocation formula. The great majority of these visas are allocated for the various categories of family reunification.

Immediate Relatives
Immediate relatives of U.S. citizens (including the spouse, minor children and parents of adult U.S. citizens) remain an unrestricted category, not subject to numerical limitation and therefore not subject to long waiting periods. However, the number of immediate relative applicants admitted is tabulated and can reduce the number of visas available in the family-sponsored preference categories.

Family-Based Preference 1:
Unmarried Sons/Daughters of U.S. Citizens.

Family-Based Preference 2:

• Subcategory 1: Spouses & Unmarried Children (under 21) of Permanent Residents
• Subcategory 2: Unmarried Adult Sons/Daughters of Permanent Residents
• Family-Based Preference 3: Married Sons/Daughters of U.S. Citizens
• Family-Based Preference 4: Siblings of U.S. Citizens