Hi, everyone. I wanted to make a video regarding a question that we have been getting a lot over
the past weeks and months. With everything that has been going on in this world and all of the
delays that we're seeing at the US embassies and consulates regarding expedite requests for
K1 fiancé visas and also for CR1 marriage-based counselor processing cases. Before I dive
into the options available to expedite those types of cases, I'd like to introduce myself and our firm.
My name is Attorney Megan Pastrana from Corado-Pastrana, the immigration firm for couples.
Our firm is dedicated to assisting couples in navigating the immigration process from a fiancé
visa, an adjustment of status to consular processing, removal conditions, and naturalization.
We know how important it is for you to have up-to-date information and also
general information about the immigration process. We constantly are updating our YouTube channel
with information. If you haven't already subscribed to our channel, please do so now.
Also, if you give this video a thumbs up, we'd really appreciate it so YouTube will share
it with other people who can benefit from this information. Our firm also has a Facebook group
called Immigration for Couples. The link is below and our website also has lots of free educational
materials and that link is also below. Let's dive into expedite request options for
K1 fiancé visa petitions and also for CR1 or immediate relative marriage-based petitions.
For those of you who are going through the process, if you already have an approved I-129F
fiancé visa petition or if you already have an approved I-130 petition based on your marriage
the next step is the interview phase of the case. Unfortunately, many US
embassies and consulates are closed at this time or some are open but they have
limited services. They have a limited amount of interviews that they're doing every month.
Many people are unfortunately just waiting in limbo for an interview. But I wanted to share
with you some really important information that I want anyone who's going through the process to
know about options for an expedite request. If you have children that are also part of the petition,
whether that's part of the fiancé visa petition or whether it's part of a separate I-130 petition
associated with your spouse's I-130 petition. If you have children on either of those petitions
that are close to turning 21, it's really important that you look into
filing an expedite request for your case. That's something we do frequently and diligently here.
If any of our clients have children that are turning 21, we make that expedite request.
If that is your situation and if you don't already have an attorney,
please book an appointment with one of our attorneys right away. The link is
below so we can discuss with you options for expediting your case for an interview.
Let me go into a little bit about what an expedite request is and why it matters if you have
a child on the petition that will be turning 21. An expedite request is a request
to have an interview scheduled at a US embassy or consulate to complete your case.
The circumstances in which somebody can ask for an expedite request are pretty limited.
It has to be something very serious so there's other reasons that an expedite request
could be made. But in this video, I'm only focusing on expedite requests if you have a child
that is going to be turning 21. The reason that's important is because individuals who are United
States citizens that are petitioning for their fiancé and any children under 21 or if you have an
I-130 petition filed for your spouse and children under the age of 21. If any of those children
go beyond the age of 21, once they are older than 21, they fall out of a category called an
immediate relative. I don't want to go too much into the legal
analysis and requirements and the reason that this happens but basically
once a child turns 21, they're no longer an immediate relative which means that they would
have to wait in a much longer line to be able to complete the process. Sometimes several years
sometimes decades depending on what country you're from. It's really important that if a child is
going to be turning 21, then we ask for that expedite request. What will happen is that
either immigration will decide, "Let's get you scheduled for an interview. Let's
get this process complete before your child turns 21 so they can enter the United States."
Or immigration will determine that they won't schedule the interview right away
but that they will essentially freeze that individual's age. There's something called a
Child Status Protective Act calculator. I won't get into all of that either. You really
need an attorney to help you to determine if your child is protected by that.
But if you have a child that's going to be turning 21 soon, it's really important
that you look into the option of an expedite request for your case to make sure that your child
doesn't lose that benefit of being an immediate relative.
If you're in that position, please feel free to schedule an appointment
using the link below with one of our attorneys and we'd be happy to help you
determine if that's an option for you and what the next steps will be and how we can help you.
Have a great day and we hope to see you in an appointment. Thanks.