About this Form:

A citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States may file Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to establish the existence of a relationship to certain alien relatives who wish to immigrate to the United States.

How do I fill out Form I-130?

Filing a Form I-130 is only the first step in helping a relative immigrate to the United States. Eligible family members must wait until there is a visa number available before they can apply to become a lawful permanent resident. Use black ink to fill out this application. The purpose of Form I-130 is to petition to establish your relationship to certain alien relatives who wish to immigrate to the United States. This is the first step in helping a relative immigrate to the United States. There are 9 parts to this form. Starting with Part 1, line 1, check the corresponding box to indicate who you are filing this petition for. For line 2, if you are filing this petition for your child or parent, check the box to indicate the type of relationship you have with them. Moving to line 3, if this petition is for a sibling, check yes or no to indicate if you are related by adoption. Finally, with line 4, check the yes or no box to indicate if you gained lawful resident status or citizenship through adoption. Moving to Part 2, line 1, enter your A-number, if applicable. Moving to line 2, enter USCIS online account number, if applicable, and finally on line 3, enter your US Social Security Number, if applicable. Continuing with Part 2, line 5a, enter your last name, on line 5b enter the first name given to you at birth. For line 5c, enter the middle name given to you at birth. Onto line 6, enter the city, town, or village you were born in. On line 7, enter the country you were born in. For line 8, enter your date of birth using mm/dd/yyyy format. This is two-digit for the month and day, and four-digits for the year. If your birthday is March, 16, 2010, the date should be written as 03/16/2010. For line 9, check the box to indicate if you are male or female. Down to line 10a, enter the name of the person who will be accepting your mail. On to line 10b, enter the street number and name of your mailing address. For line 10c, check the box if you have an apartment number, suite number, and/or floor number, and enter the information in the box provided. For line 10d, enter the mailing address city and town. Down to line 10e, enter your mailing state of residence, for 10f, enter your mailing zip code. Onto line 10g, enter your province if applicable, for line 10h, enter the postal code, and for line 10i, enter the country of residence you receive mail. Line 11 needs you to check yes or no to indicate if your mailing address if the same as your physical address. If you answer no, move to questions 12a-13b. If you answered yes, move to line 14a. Line 12a-13b need your physical address information. You will notice line 13b indicates you are currently physically at this residence. For line 14a, enter the street number and name of your mailing address. For line 14b, check the box if you have an apartment number, suite number, and/or floor number, and enter the information in the box provided. For line 14c, enter the mailing address city and town. Down to line 14d, enter your state of residence, for 14e, enter your mailing zip code. Onto line 14f, enter your province if applicable, for line 14g, enter the postal code, and for line 14h, enter the country of residence you receive mail. Finally, enter the date you moved into this address on line 15a and the date you moved out on line 15b. Line 16 needs you to enter the number of times you have been married. Line 17 needs you to check the box to indicate your current marital status. Moving to the next page, for line 18, enter the date you began your current marriage. For line 19, enter the city or town you were married, line 19b, enter the state you were married, for 19c enter the province, and for 19d, enter the country you were married. If you were married before, you need to answer questions 20a-23. Line 20a needs your current spouse’s last name, 20b needs their first name, line 20c needs your current spouse’s middle name, and line 21 needs the date the marriage ended if it did. Line 22a needs your previous spouse’s last name, 22b needs their first name, line 22c needs your current spouse’s middle name, and line 23 needs the date the marriage ended. Moving down, you need to enter your parents information. On line 24a, enter one of your parent’s last name, for 24b enter their first name given at birth, for 24c enter the parent’s middle name. Moving down to line 25, enter the parent’s date of birth in mm/dd/yyyy format. This is two-digit for the month and day, and four-digits for the year. If your birthday is March, 16, 2010, the date should be written as 03/16/2010. For line 26, check the correct box if this parent is a male or female. Moving up to line 27, enter the parent’s country of birth, for line 28 enter the city, town, or village of residence, and finally on line 29 enter the parent’s country of residence. Now you need to perform the same entries for your other parent. On line 30a, enter one of your other parent’s last name, for 30b enter their first name given at birth, for 30c enter the parent’s middle name. Moving down to line 31, enter the other parent’s date of birth in mm/dd/yyyy format. This is two-digit for the month and day, and four-digits for the year. If your birthday is March, 16, 2010, the date should be written as 03/16/2010. For line 32, check the correct box if the other parent is a male or female. Moving up to line 3, enter the other parent’s country of birth, for line 34 enter the city, town, or village of residence, and finally on line 35 enter the other parent’s country of residence. For line 36 select the correct box if you are a US citizen or a lawful permanent resident. If you are a US citizen, move to line 37, otherwise go to line 40a. For line 37 select the box that indicates how your citizenship was acquired; either through birth, naturalization, or your parents. For line 38 answer yes or no to indicate if you have obtained a Certificate of Citizenship. If you answered yes to line 38, answer lines 39a-39c, otherwise move to line 40a. For line 39a, enter your certificate number. For line 39b, enter the place the certificate was issued, and on line 39c enter the date your certificate was issued in mm/dd/yyyy format. Part 2 If you are a lawful permanent resident, answer questions 40a-41. If no, move to item number 42. For line 40a, enter your class of admission and on line 40b enter your date of admission is mm/dd/yyyy format. Next on line 40c, enter the city or town of admission and for 40d enter the state in its abbreviated form. The for line 41, check the correct box indicating if you gained lawful permanent status through marriage to a US citizen or lawful permanent resident. This next section will need your employment information for the last five years. If you are currently unemployed, write the word “unemployed” on line 42. Starting with your current employer, enter the name of the employer or company on line 42. For line 43a enter the address of the business starting with the street number and name of the business. For line 43b check the box to indicate if this is an apartment, suite, or floor and in the corresponding box write the number. For line 43d enter the state and for 43e enter the company’s zip code. If the company is located in a province enter that information on line 43f. Enter the postal code for line 43g and the country on line 43h. Enter your occupation at the company in line 44, and the date you began working in mm/dd/yyyy format on line 45a. Now you need to enter the same information, but for your most recent employer before your current employment or unemployment. Enter the name of the employer or company on line 46. For line 47a enter the address of the business starting with the street number and name of the business. For line 47b check the box to indicate if this is an apartment, suite, or floor and in the corresponding box write the number. For line 47d enter the state and for 47e enter the company’s zip code. If the company is located in a province enter that information on line 47f. Enter the postal code for line 47g and the country on line 47h. Enter your occupation at the company in line 48. Enter the date you began working in mm/dd/yyyy format on line 45a and the last date of employment on line 49b. Part 3 This section provides your biographical information. Beginning at line 1, select the box to indicate if your ethnicity is Hispanic or Latino, or is Not Hispanic or Latino. For line 2, check the box that indicates your race. The options to pick from are White, Asian, Black or African American, American Indian or Alaska Native, or Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander. In the next field, line 3, enter your height in feet and inches. In line 4, enter your weight in pounds. For line 5, select the box that indicates your eye color. Continuing to line 6, select the box that indicates your hair color. Part 4 This information is about the person you are petitioning for, the benefactor. Starting with line 1, enter their A-Number, if applicable. Then, enter their USCIS online account number, if they have one. For line 3, if they have a US Social Security Number, enter it in this field. Moving down to line 4a, enter the beneficiary’s last name. On line 4b, enter their first name given at birth, and down on line 4c, enter their middle name. If there are any other names they have used, enter that in fields 5a-5c. In line 6, enter the city, town, or village the benefactor was born. Below that in line 7, enter their country of birth. Line 8 needs the benefactor’s date of birth is mm/dd/yyyy format. For line 9, check the correct box to indicate if they are male or female, and for 10 check yes or no to indicate if anyone else has petitioned for the benefactor before. Select unknown if you and the benefactor do not know if anyone else has petitioned for them before. Moving up to line 11a, if the beneficiary has a street number and name, enter it in this field. Same with 11b, indicate if the residence is an apartment, suite, or on a specific floor, and write it in the space provided. In line 11c, enter the city or town the benefactor lives in, and then enter the state and zip code in 11d and 11e respectively. For line 11f, enter the province, if applicable, the benefactor lives in. Enter the benefactor’s postal code on line 11g, and their country of residence in line 11h. Moving down, enter the address information the benefactor plans to live in the United States. If the information is the same as line 11a-11h, write the word “Same” in line 12a. Enter the benefactors address outside of the United States, but if it is the same as 11a-11h, write the word “Same” on line 13a. For line 14, enter the benefactor’s phone number, if they have one. Moving to the next page, on line 15, enter the benefactor’s cell/mobile phone number, if they have one. On line 5, enter the benefactor’s email address, if they have one. Down to line 17, enter the number of marriages the beneficiary has had. For line 17, check the box to indicate their current marital status, and on line 19, enter the date the current marriage began. If the beneficiary is married, move down to line 20a, otherwise move to line 21a. For line 20a, enter the benefactor’s city or town their current marriage took place. Moving down, enter the state’s abbreviation. Down to 20c, enter the province, if applicable, and then on line 20d, enter the country the current marriage happened. The next section needs you to provide the names of any prior spouses of the beneficiary. Start with the most recent spouse on line 20a. Enter their prior spouse’s last name, first name, middle name, and the date the marriage ended on line 21a-22 respectively. Provide the same information if there was a prior spouse on lines 23a-24. Next, provide all information for the beneficiary’s spouse and children. For Person 1, starting on line 25a, enter the person’s last name, on 25b enter the person’s first name, 25c enter the person’s middle name, line 26 enter the relationship between the benefactor and the person (eg. spouse or child), and on line 28 enter the person’s country of birth. Enter the same information for persons’ 2 through 5 on lines 29a-44 respectively. Moving down to line 45, check the box yes or no to indicate if the beneficiary was ever in the US. If the beneficiary is currently in the US, fill in lines 46a-46d. If not, move to line 47. Line 46a needs you to enter the class of admission the beneficiary was in the US under. For line 46b, enter the arrival-departure record number from Form I-94. For 46c, enter the date of arrive in mm/dd//yyyy format. Moving down, enter the date the authorized stay expired. Down to line 47, enter the benefactor’s passport number. Moving up to line 48, enter the benefactor’s travel document number. On line 49, enter the country of issuance for the passport or travel documents. Then, enter the expiration date of the passport or travel documents on line 50 in mm/dd/yyyy format. This next section needs you to provide the beneficiary’s employment information. For line 51a, enter the beneficiary’s current employer, if applicable. Below that on 51b, enter the street number and name, for 51c check the box to indicate if the address is an apartment, suite, or on a specific floor and enter that information in the space provided. 51d, enter the city or town of the employer, then on 51e and 51f enter the abbreviated state and the zip code respectively. Enter the province of the business in line 51g, if applicable. Moving along to 51h, enter the postal code, then the country on line 51i, and enter the date employment began in line 52. Moving to line 53, check the box yes or no to indicate if the beneficiary was ever in immigration proceedings. If you answered yes, on line 54 check the box to indicate the type of proceeding. In 55a, enter the city or town the proceeding took place, on 55b enter the State, and on line 56 enter the date of the proceeding in mm/dd/yyyy format. The next section only needs completed if the beneficiary’s native written language does not use roman letters. Use spaces 57a-58f to enter their information in their native written language. If you are filing this for your spouse, enter the last address you lived together. If you have never lived with your spouse, write the words “Never lived together” on line 59a. Otherwise, fill in the information in line 59a-60b respectively. Enter the beneficiary’s city or town they are applying for adjustment of status to that of a lawful permanent resident in line 61a and the state in 61b. If the benefactor will not apply for adjustment of status, but will apply for an immigrant visa abroad at a US Embassy, enter the city or tow, province, and country on lines 62a-62c respectively. Part 5 Starting on line 1, check yes or no to indicate if you have ever filed a petition for this beneficiary or any other alien. If yes, you need to provide the name, place, date of filing, and the result of the filing on lines 2a-5 respectively. If you are applying for multiple relatives and have separate filings, enter the names and relationship to each relative in the spaces provided from 6a-9. Part 6 This section is for the petitioner to answer. Starting with 1a or 1b, check the box to indicate if you can read and understand English or if you need an interpreter. If you select 1b, enter the language you need an interpreter for. For line 2, check the box if you used a preparer and write their name in the space provided. Next, moving up, enter your daytime telephone number on line 3, your mobile/cell phone on line 4, and your email address in line 5. Sign and date the form with today’s date in mm/dd/yyyy format. If you did not use an interpreter or preparer you have completed this form. If you used an interpreter move to the next part. Part 7 This section needs the interpreters information. Starting with line 1a, enter the interpreter’s last name, first name given at birth, and business or organization they are affiliated with on lines 1a-2 respectively. Next, enter the interpreters mailing address including their street number and name, check if they live in an apartment, suite, or floor and fill in what it is in the space provided, enter their city or town, state, zip code, provide if applicable, postal code, and country in spaces 3a-3h. On line 4, enter the interpreter’s daytime phone number, for line 5 enter their mobile or cell phone, and for line 6 enter their email address. The interpreter must certify they are fluent in English and the specific language you require in the space provided. Then online 7a, the interpreter must sign and for line 7b enter today’s date in mm/dd/yyyy format. Part 8 If you used a preparer, you need to provide their information in this section. Starting on line 1a, enter the preparers last name, then their first name given at birth on line 1b, and the preparer’s business or organization if applicable on line 2. Enter the preparer’s mailing address in the spaces provided starting with 3a through 3h. Enter the preparer’s daytime phone number on line 4, their mobile or cell online 5, and their email address on line 6. Moving down, check the box to indicate if the preparer is an attorney or accredited representative of the petitioner or not. If you are, also check the box to indicate if this case does or does not extend beyond this petition. For lines 8a and 8b, the preparer needs to sign and date with today’s date in mm/dd/yyyy format. Part 9 This section is provided if you need more space to provide information for this petition. If you need more than this section, attach separate sheets of paper and indicate page number, part number, and item number to reference your answers. Sign and date each page with today’s date in mm/dd/yyyy format. You have now completed Form I-130.