I-751 Petitions for Conditional Permanent Resident Children

Minor children of adult conditional permanent residents who immigrate to the U.S. as derivative dependents or as direct beneficiaries of step-parent petitions will also be granted status as a conditional resident, just like their parent. As such, conditional resident children must also file I-751 petitions (or be included in their parent’s petition) in order to have their conditions removed. If you are filing to have your children’s conditional status removed, or if you are a child filing on your own (with the assistance of an adult), there are some special rules that may apply to you which you should consider before taking that first step.

With this in mind, consider the following scenarios and the available options:

If you became a Conditional Resident on the same day, or within 90 days of your parent, then your parent can include you on his or her I-751 Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence. That means you will not have to file a separate I-751 Petition. However, you will have to pay the Biometrics Fee, which, as of this writing is $85.00. If you are included in your parent’s I-751 petition then you are considered to be a derivative dependent of your parent and whether the conditions on your residence are removed will depend upon whether your parent’s I-751 petition is approved and his or her conditions are removed.

If you became a Conditional Resident more than 90 days after your parent, then you will have to file your own I-751 (Waiver) Petition to Remove Conditions on Residence. In this situation, you are also considered a derivative dependent of your parent’s petition (ie. your conditions will only be removed if your parent’s I-751 petition is approved and your parent’s conditions are removed).

If you cannot be included in your Parent’s Petition because he or she did not file (or for whatever reason you are not or cannot be included) then you will have to several options:

• If your parent’s spouse will join you, file a Joint I-751 Petition with your Parent’s spouse. You can elect this option by checking box 1.b. in Part 3 of the I-751 form. This is probably the best option because your petition will be supported by the credibility and, perhaps, the testimony of your parent’s spouse which should carry a lot of weight under most circumstances. Note that this will (obviously) require that your parent is still married to his or her spouse. If they get divorced before you file, then this option is not available to you.
  
• If your parent’s spouse will not join you in the filing of a Joint I-751 Petition OR your parent has divorced his or her spouse, then you still may be eligible to file an I-751 Waiver Petition IF you were ALSO battered or subjected to extreme cruelty by your parent’s spouse (who must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident). To elect this option, you would check box 1.f. in Part 3 of the I-751 form.
  
• If your parent’s spouse will not join you in the filing of a Joint I-751 Petition OR your parent has divorced his or her spouse, then you still may be eligible to file an I-751 Waiver Petition IF you can prove that the termination of your conditional residence and your removal from the United States will result in extreme hardship. Under the regulations, USCIS will only consider hardship that developed since you became a conditional permanent resident.

As you can see, there are several different options available to Conditional Permanent Resident Children who are seeking to have the conditions on their status removed. While in most cases, the rules and legal standards that are applied to I-751 child petitioners are the same as those applied to adults, there are a few key differences and grounds of eligibility (and ineligibility) that you need to be aware of and take into consideration before filing.

If you have any questions about I-751 Petitions for Conditional Permanent Resident Children, contact U.S. Immigration Lawyer Sean D. Hummel to schedule a consultation (954) 385-3111 or email: sean@hummelaw.com.